The Venue

The line curls and snakes through the darkness. The night air is on the edge of bitterly cold and is as still as death. A glowing fire pit off to our right exudes warmth. It is a lure, drawing me away, but I dare not lose my place in line as we wait to be admitted to tonight’s Neo Camerata performance at Cave Without a Name.

Finally the line moves, and at the entrance I notice that our teeny tiny ticket taker is not even pint sized as she solemnly holds out her container to receive our tickets. Before entering the brightly lighted tunnel, we are told tonight’s performance is sold out and not to leave empty seats in between people.

And so it begins, the slow descent down 127 steps into the depths—the underworld. We’ve been here many times before.  I know the way. Our friends, who are new to this music venue, step cautiously.

The Wonder of the Cave

I stop too long after reaching the last step and somehow loose Michael and our two friends. I’m trusting that they will save me a seat.  The cave distracts, with all of its eons of formations, standing rigid as marble statues in a cathedral, but shaped by water, not by a sculptor’s skilled hand. A world of miraculous enchantment. What a stage!

There is nothing more magical than listening to music in the womb of Mother Nature. It elevates the ethereal sounds of violin, piano, and cello to a level of natural elegance achieved nowhere else. Tonight, there are at least two hundred individuals poised to listen, waiting to be captivated.

Neo Camerata

The original music composed and performed by violinist Mark Landson, with Byron Hogan on cello, and Misha Berestnev on the piano is billed as a journey of mind and emotion. It is described as having the beauty of classical, the energy of pop, and is performed with the awe-inspiring technique of virtuoso musicians. In a word, it is SPECTACULAR!

Sitting here listening to Landson’s compositions and his stories of travel and Spain and mountains and sky—and 5 o’clock traffic on 635 in Dallas—I feel I am beside him on my own journey of creation and discovery. Paying close attention to the titles of each piece, hearing the soaring music inside the cave, the title the sound the emotion, become one. You really do get it–the composer’s heart.

When the concert ends and I can think beyond what I hear, my mind is boggled—not an unusual occurrence. It is beyond my meager comprehension to understand how Landson could hear a complete composition—perfect and whole—as he lay in the grass looking at the clouds. And then to be able to put pen to paper and create those imagined notes of discovery, having it all come to fruition just as he dreamt. Imagined. The only word that come to mind is—genius.

Now, for those 127 steps back up.

Cave Without a Name

Concerts in Cave Without a Name or a regular occurrence. Check their website for future performances and buy your tickets on line.

Beautiful even without a concert to draw you here, the cave is open for tours seven days a week all year round, being closed only on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. They also have a WONDERFUL gift shop full of earth’s spectacular and ancient specimens. Click on the link above for more information.

Neo Camerata

To learn more about Neo Camerata and listen to their music, click on the link above.