The Organplayer Of The Cathedral

İntroduction:
İ arrived in Santiago at the first of July 2010 at 11.11pm. The "procedure" between pilgrims is: to arrive at Montel del Gozo - which is a mountain 5km away from the city - spend a night at the hostal there, wash and clean themselves and enter the city in the next morning rightafter at sunrise, with a "clean" body and mind in order to see the sun eastwards rising over the cathedral as a symbol of the triumph of light over darkness, summing up and reconciliating all the pain and suffering of the journey they had. Then they join the pilgrims mess in the cathedral at 9.00 am taking place everyday.
İ didn't have a plan like that. İ didn't have any plan at any time on the road. Therefore the people i walked with also preferred not to have any plans during the journey. They didn't fit in to "moments" created by others. This "moment" of entering Santiago was a predefined ritual and since i prefer improvisation, praising moment by creating ot of it, i quietly rejected a moment in brackets.
So did Urszula. We both connected on the road because of this quiet rejection.
İ can say, we walked together, taking every breath being aware of all the gifts moments had, when you seize them.
So we arrived unusually late with an unusual sunset over the city. We weren't clean, we just had walked 45 km's that day, there was No mess waiting for us in the cathedral, we didn't know where to sleep in the night.
There were people, who would arrive even after us, but i think they would join the mess the day after. İf not, the day after after, just for the sake of seing the interior of the cathedral.
The next day, we decided to go to see the ocean in Finisterre, "the end of the world". Before the Discovery of America it was. We spend a whole day there, i brought Ursula from there to the airport and she left without seeing the cathedral, without touching the aktar of Santiago, which is another "moment" created over centuries. See, Ursula is a catholic chaplin. She preaches the religion. She didn't mind. Maybe she did a little, but moment was more important than the "moment". She is courageous!


Now to the real story: The Organist Of The Cathedral
When Urszula left, i didn't visit the cathedral, İ went to a copy-shop, prepared a book of my sketches, which i took on the road and started selling those in front of the cathedral at Plaza de Praterias for the last 6 weeks without ever entering the cathedral. Everyday İ wanted to, but i felt in strange way, that the moment wasn't right. Partly because of the masses of tourists, because of the hype to enter the cathedral, because i preferred to talk and sketch fellow pilgrims to share experiences.
Today is the 11th of August 2010. Today my special moment was there:
Yesterday evening around 10pm, İ was sitting at my spot, selling my books and painting. There were unusually few people around, almost No tourists, some drunk beggars and the nightshift of the Cathedral security. A fragile looking guy in his middle ages approached me and told me very gently how he adored my work, how inspired he felt by me sitting on the street and painting on a cold evening like this. İ thanked, he said, he's also going to work now and left. İ thought he's a musian due to his explicatory imitation of a piano player with his fingers when he said "work". At 12pm -with the clockbell, he came back. İ was still painting, no people on the streets, just him and me. İt was really cold now. İ asked him where he plays, he said i'm the organ player. İ asked him, where his organ was, he laughed out loud, stopped, looked deep in my eyes and said slowly: "İ âm THE organplayer". Then it hit me like a bullet! He was the organplayer of The cathedral!!! The guy who playes Toccata and Fuga in F, when kings enter the cathedral! Toccata and Fuga in F! Toccata and Fuga in F!
İ had to overcome my awe of sitting right next to the Pavarotti of the Organplayers...Joaquin...
Now Joaquin was happy, that somebody was honoured so much to meet him in real, that when İ asked, could i watch him play one day, he said, tomorrow at 11pm you can join me inside the cathedral and i play for you!
The Cathedral:
Today, 11th of August, at 11pm, İ entered the cathedral. The cathedral closes at 10pm. No one else inside but Joaquin, Augusto (the nightshift) and me. No lights. Silence. A moment can only get more intimate at Sex. This moment was "Sex in the Cathedral" to me. This unknowing guy, when İ told him, that İ didn't see the interiors before in the last six weeks was shocked! He laughed out loud one more ABD asked me why? İ told him, that İ was waiting for this very special moment, my personal entrance. " İf that is so", he said, "i have to show you the secrets of the Cathedral". Orgasm.
After wetting my pants, he showed me secrets, each one of them is story of its own. Hidden staircases, hidden rooftop parts, on the rooftop it tourned out, Joaquin is an Astronomer, too, so i now learned how you can read the stars at night to tell what time it is, the smoking corner of the choir, the giant puppets of festivities, the fake angels of the altar, the four virtues of christianity, which later were adopted in pokercards, the gargoyles of the roman time, who are not visible for tourists taking a tour (hehe), the history of the gigantic pipes and finally: THE ORGAN!!!
Entering the organ room, he unlocked the coverstore, and there it was, Starship Enterprise, ready to go. This very gentle guy, sat down on the organseat, switched on the power, the organlight, the monitor connected to the bishop, when he says prayer, the telephone connected to the Assistant priest, pushed a button to initiate the pipes and then of we went to the universe of sounds.
He pulled a flute register and hit one note. A "G", suspended for 5 seconds maybe, turning into a peaceful melody. Then he hit a chord with his other hand, his feet took over the melody on the buttom pedals, and then counterpoint! Melodies melting into each other, he meanwhile , in split-seconds, adding registers of clarinets, oboas, other flutes, octaves... He was an orchestra chef, the orchestra, and a dancer in one person. This is as close as you can get to God. Meanwhile, İt got louder and louder, then the trumpets came in with fanfare chords, the cathedral was shaking, i was shaking, crying, praying and thanking for this gift. Then he pushed a button, which slowly takes out all the registers while he's playing, till only the flute in the beginning was left. We landed safely and quietly back on earth. İt was a 20minutes flight. My personal mess. Of course, İ smoked a cigarette! La cigarette apres L'amour!!!
Then i asked him questions about his life, figured out other secrets of organ players, that he has a 84 year old teacher, Montserrat, a laady still actively traveling around the world to play the organ like a rockstar, that they need 15 minutes to climb the stairs to the organroom with her, pausing every 10 seconds after 3 steps. He pushing her up from the back. That she is the wisest person he ever met, that she possibly Will die soon, and is tomorrow playing for the last time in Santiago.
Then İ asked, if he would like to improvise for me, he was pleased, but said, he likes to improvise unusually unorthodox, İ thought, YES!
He didn't play chords and melodies this time, it was sounds, looking into the dark of the cathedral, i felt whales and dolphins, monsters, World wars... When he finished, İ told Joaquin, that İt reminded me of Nietzschepoems. He smiled and said:" When İ met you, you were sketching and had this aura of peace around you. İ wanted to know, what it is. So you symbolize the peace in my notes. İ, on the contrary âm torn between my feelings and thoughts. But i want that peace, too. For now i just have this dark peace in me, restless and searching. But İ search for light"
İ thought, this guy is so much light already, Godlike in his craft, but still isn't in peace. İ said "to me, this is as close as you can get to wisdom! But the next time, you search again on the organ, let me be around and record this! İt is magic!"
So, tomorrow night, İ have my second mess in the cathedral with Joaquin, discovering another part of the universe. Now that İ know, how to Guess the time, by looking up to the sky watching stars, i won't miss my appointment!
Amen!

Can Bulgu
God