年末から3月下旬まで仕事が本当に大忙しでまともに更新すらできませんでした。音楽関係の web すらまともに巡回する余裕もなかった程。レコードもまったく買わず、音楽も以前ほどは聴く暇もなく、好きなテニスもほとんどできず、なんとも殺伐としたものでした。ともあれ、少しづつここに復帰しようとは思っています。

I had been way way busy since last December to the end of March – just too busy to post new articles and visit various music-related websites regularly. There’s no LP/CD records I bought during that period. There was not enough time to enjoy listening to music for months. There was not enough time to play tennis on the court. It had been so sad and miserable to spend like that, but I hope I will be able to update this site regularly as I had been doing before.

   
( . . . My little baby turns seven months old already . . . )

早いもので、子供は本日満 七ヶ月 を迎えました。普段は人並みにセサミストリートの DVD だの NHK 教育テレビの子供向け番組を見せたりしていますが、週に3日だけ、私がひとりで仕事をしながら子守をする日には、遊んでやりながら、おしめを換えながら、あるいは離乳食を与えながら、いろんな音楽を聴かせたりライブ映像を見せたりしています。今彼女の一番のお気に入りは意外にも ジェームス・ブラウン (James Brown) の 1968年ボストンガーデンでのライブ映像。脇の下を支えて立たせると、画面に向かってキャッキャッ、キャ〜〜〜〜といった風に叫びながら足をばたばたとして喜んでいます。

My little baby turns seven months old today. Usually we let her watch fairly common baby/kid videos such as Sasame Street DVD or TV programs on NHK Educational channel. But three days a week, when I am working at home along with babysitting alone, I try to let her go forward – I mean, I let her listen to various kinds of music I love. While I am feeding her baby foods, or while I am playing with her, there are always many kinds of music filled in my living room, from Jazz, Classical, Soul, R&B, Rock or whatever. By the way her best favourite right now is (surprisingly) a video of Live at the Boston Garden 1968 by James Brown – my baby shouts and screams in high tone along with JB singing on TV – she even tries to flutter her legs on the ground while I am holding her body standing still in front of the TV!

   
( . . . I do believe she loves Frank Zappa and his music so much . . . )

昨日、子供に買ってあげていた KAWAI ミニピアノ P-32 が届きました。 毎週1日だけ子供と遊びにいっている 近所の子育てひろば に 25鍵版 (P-25) が置いてあり、6ヶ月強のうちの子供が楽しそうに鍵盤を叩いているのを見て、対象年齢には遠く及ばないけれどもまあええやろうと思い、買ってあげたのでした。

Yesterday we received a parcel which included KAWAI Mini Piano P-32 – I bought her this good product for my baby. Once a week I take her to a baby community place, and I am so amazed to see her hitting and punching keyboards of 25-key version of the same product. That’s simply why I decided to buy her this mini piano, although this piano is “recommended for 3 years old and up” according to the maker’s notice.

最近はこどものおもちゃはほとんどが電子音ばかりで、音程がまともに調整されているものも少ないのが現状ですが、昔からあるこのロングセラー製品は音程もほぼ正確で、当然電池不要。かわいらしい金属パイプの音は近所迷惑にもなりにくいのではと思いました。

I found most of toy instruments available on market seems to be “electric” – noisy and annoying sounds with incorrectly tuned keys. But this famous product, a long selling product from KAWAI (another famous Japanese piano/other instruments manufacturer), is of course acoustic – no battery required, solid, light, beautiful and pretty steel pipe sounds, fine-tuned with every key. I think this beautiful sound will not harm neighbours.

まだまだ「弾いている」なんていうよりは「叩いている」感じですが、強い興味を持ってくれたようです。

She’s not playing but just hitting with her hands, but I see she’s got so excited and interested with this new toy.