Alexander Prior

Alexander Prior is my age. He has recently been appointed as one of the conductors of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, after completing four year at the St. Petersburg Conservatory with distinction.

I barely play and rarely sing, for all intense and purposes, music is not something I do, just something I know of.
Whenever I see this boy conduct, it's as if music is just what he is. It's like a visible life-force. Something that gives him, not only a reason to get up in the morning, but a motive to never go to bed at night. A constant whir at all hours of the day and night that is less of a choice than something that compels him onwards.






It's said that everyone has three lives; a private life, a public life and a secret life.
The idea of having something in life that utterly defines every aspect of you is both appealing and terrifying.

Having one thing that can sum you up and completely capture every inch of your personality, at first, sounds incredibly easy. One thing to focus on, only one thing you have to be successful in. Very appealing, no?
What if you fail? What if you're overtaken in the one and only thing that gives your life a direction? I can't image the fear that comes alongside having a talent like this. At first, it seems it narrows you as a person, stops you being well-rounded, but it's just not the case. Having this single focus, driven by passion and a fear of failing, can create a personality that is just as complex and versatile as anyone with a hundred hobbies.

I'm someone who writes, I can draw, I've been taught to dance, learnt to act, taken singing lessons, competed in martial arts, ploughed through sports and proven myself to be ambitious and self-driven.
I was the kid left in the drama room an hour after even the teachers deserted the school.
I was the one who set goals and achieved them without being pushed because I found things that interested me.

I look at someone like Alexander Prior, an intense and insanely focussed young man. He seems to define what it means to be head and shoulders above the rest. I mean, there's 'being noticed' and then there's truly 'standing out'.
I'm just wondering whether it's only possible to be outstanding if you're born with a gift or whether, perhaps, it's just possible to make yourself valuable.

A.