Today I don't care about how the words come out. I don't care to make an impression. I don't care to construct anything. I just need to let it out : This evening, I heard some brilliant live music. And it's left me feeling high and my mind boggled.

Over the last two years I've been away I've been really lucky to have had some great musical evenings, and occasion to listen to some of my favourite musicians live. All the while, the recurring thought coursing through my head was that I needed to soak up as much as I could, because once I got back to madras I wouldn't be able to attend events like that.

Today changed that for me. It was a concert on par with anything I've ever heard abroad. In our own Alliance Francaise.. I listened to three brilliant musicians, playing some of my favourite pieces.. Le Petit Orchestre Swing de france - a trio comprising Laurent Zeller a violinist, and two guitarists - another Laurent and Gilles parodi, who together made some of the most beautiful music I've ever had the pleasure to hear live. There was Serge Gainsbourg, Django Reinhardt, Cole Porter, Edith Piaf in lovely arrangements.

It was intimate, the setting. That always lends itself to being drawn into the music, if it's good. And the artists really let loose.. they performed so freely, with expression and laughter and such good vibes. The violinist, the only one that spoke english, was wonderfully comical. He joked and laughed and had all of his eating out of his hands. So much so that one might have actually forgiven him if he was just above average as a violinist. But he had to go and be brilliant - absolutely, undoubtedly gifted! The notes he coaxed out of that instrument had me absolutely on the verge - of elation. He was the embodiment of energy in the music when the piece called for it and the epitome of soulfulness in another piece. The guitarists were quiet but had a wonderful body language.. It's amazing how much that tells you.. They didn't speak any english and yet their smiles, the tilts of head, the cheeky smiles said it all.. They were enjoying themselves, they were feeding off each other's energy like all the really good musicians seem to be able to do and they played their hearts out - laid it all on the table so to speak... It was marvelous, the energy in the room towards the end. The applause was the warmest I've EVER heard from an audience in madras for ANY thing. It was spontaneous and the yelling for an encore was the most obvious thing to do - OF COURSE they had to play some more! There was no other way about it...

I came out of there, my heart light, my spirits lifted, my mind ablaze.. Such is the delight of an evening of good music.