Silent Sounds

Today I was making lessons plans for my G6-C class, and one of our stories for this month is "Moses Goes to a Concert." Moses is deaf, and he and his classmates attend a percussion concert of a musician who is also deaf. I decided to use the life of Beethoven as a "real-life" illustration, and as I was studying a biography online I came across an incredible quote. The following is a review of Beethoven's 5th Symphony (composition began in 1804 after the decline of his hearing had begun) by E.T.A. Hoffman (author and composer):

"Radiant beams shoot through the deep night of this region, and we become aware of gigantic shadows which, rocking back and forth, close in on us and destroy all within us except the pain of endless longing --- a longing in which every pleasure that rose up amid jubilant tones sinks and succumbs. Only through this pain, which, while consuming but not destroying love, hope, and joy, tries to burst our breasts with a full- voiced general cry from all the passions, do we live on and are captivated beholders of the spirits."

Wow.