NZ visual diary - entry 82

musician playing the erhu - Te Komititanga Square

A large public plaza -- Te Komititanga Square -- commands the space between the Old Central Post Office Building and Commercial Bay, an upscale shopping mall just past the northern boundary of Queen Street at Auckland's waterfront.

The square attracts a raft of entertainers -- jugglers, musicians, artists and their shows, dancers and other performers, events both sponsored and spontaneous.

The square is my gateway to the city centre and my pathway to the Britomart Train Centre, which is housed in the Old Central Post Office Building. This is to say that I traverse the square numerous times each week as I make my way to the heart of the city centre on my (almost) daily photography walkabouts.

The musician playing the erhu, a two-stringed bowed Chinese instrument, is a daily presence on the square. I never fail to spot him, or rather I always listen for his instrument's plaintive melody, a sound that to my ear is mournful and insistent, and always hypnotic.

On a walk recently with my wife, I spotted the erhu musician and reached for my camera when I noticed the onlooker whose expression of fixed concentration and thoughtful appreciation charmed me.

I was happy to have captured the image without having disturbed the remarkable bond of listener, musician and his music.