"Did you hear me?"

We can all too easily imagine who is asking the question and their tone of voice.

With special emphasis on the last three words, one at a time, it is what I imagine the greatest artist "saying" in every note she plays. It is what the child "says" who plays for us a music they love.

In either case, though we listen, whether or not we understand is a complex matter. Often we don't understand right then and there but only after some reflection, at a distance.

I sometimes think music teachers deliberately structure pedagogy so that they don't feel obliged to listen.