Once upon a time, a spruce tree was growing somewhere in the Swiss mountains. It felt blessed to live in such a wild and beautiful landscape. Over time, it felt also increasingly lonely due to its geographical isolation.
One day, the spruce tree decided to follow with its branches the mouvements of the stormy wind. A melodious sound resonated into the valley. The spruce tree exulted, as it had found a companion to create and to play music with. The tree and the wind lived happily together for over three centuries.
Old and sick, the spruce tree was cut down by a lumberjack who sold the woodblock to a carpenter in his village. The spruce tree was left unused in the carpenter workshop for years, awfully sad about its fate.
One day, a visitor surveyed the wood stock of the carpenter. He stopped at the spruce tree lying on the ground, kneeled down and skimmed its rugged bark with his hand to better connect with the soul of the tree.
All of a sudden, the man smiled. He was a luthier looking for suitable wood material to create a violin. Having grown in a heathy natural environment, the spruce tree wood was dense, strong, springy and light; having cried for so long since its cut, the wood was dry and ready to use.
The luthier purchased the spruce tree and transported it to his own workshop which was already full of beautiful cord instruments. The craftsman immediately started creating a new violin with the woodblock.
The spruce tree spirit revived gradually owing to the care and the skills of the luthier whose creative work provided the tree with a sense of purpose. One night, the luthier put the final touch to the violin and placed it in-between another two cord instruments.
A few days later, the luthier was visited by a man and his son who were looking for a violin. Glancing towards the child, the luthier proposed him his latest creation. The boy started playing the delicate instrument. Delighted by the pure sounds, the young musician convinced his father to acquire the violin.
Once at home, the boy played his violin in front of his open window. The wind heard the exquisite music and recognized the distinctive tonal character of his former companion. The spruce tree was so happy to start a new life as a violin, to have found his old friend the wind and to participate again in musical creations.
The melodies of the trio spread over the valley and played their magic. Wild birds flocked nearby fearlessly. People soon gathered and started dancing joyfully and tirelessly.
The boy and his enchanted violin became very quickly famous across the valley. The young musician, the old spruce tree reborn into a violin, and the wind decided to travel all over the world to help creating happiness thanks to their music.
I met them recently in New York City, where they had joined other musicians to enchant local people. I hope that you will meet them also soon.
The “Magician Tree” tale reminds us about key intangible values in life – resilience, adaptability, creativity, friendship, connection to Nature and arts.
Credits
My post draws upon a public sculpture park located in Sion, my home town in the Valais. The artistic and communication project consists in 17 bronze sculptures and corresponding writings in French and Braille languages. It aims to reinforce the social inclusion of people with visual deficiencies. To date, the project is only partially implemented and is open to private donations for completion.
My post borrows also from the creations of a luthier in Sion whom I visited in his workshop. His beautiful craftwork needs also commercial sales to prosper.
Cheers,
