Blog | Alex Chadsey Music

When the pandemic cancelled a year of performances and confined me to my studio, I took up a pen and began writing. In the coming months, I look forward to sharing essays and posts on topics ranging from music and purpose in life, daily rituals, how traditional West African polyrhythms can offer guidance during troubled times, and much more.

03.01.22

18 Life Lessons

Last year the parents of one of my piano students asked me to contribute something to a book for their son on his eighteenth birthday. “I thought it would be cool if it was something that you would want to tell your 18 year old self,” his Dad wrote in an email. “18 Life Lessons” was

02.01.22

Daily Rituals

Rituals saved my life. I’m not talking about animal sacrifices or fasting or self-flagellation. But when the pandemic upended my world, daily rituals provided structure, purpose, and a sense of empowerment. In the process, I learned a new respect for the power of daily rituals. My earliest encounter with ritual was through music. As a

01.01.22

Rhythm of the Seasons

When asked if I would write a New Year-themed essay for the December issue of Earshot Jazz magazine, at first I hesitated. In spite of progress in our fight against COVID, it’s hard to feel optimistic about the year ahead when the pandemic drags on and our lives remain circumscribed by uncertainty. But as I

12.01.21

Welcome To ACM!

One year ago, during one of the darkest chapters in the pandemic, I faced an uncertain future as a musician. My last performance before a live audience had been nearly six months earlier, in March of 2020, just as the virus was spreading silently across the land. Mass vaccinations would not begin for months, and

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