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Friday, April 12, 2024
Huey Lewis Lost His Hearing. That Didn’t Stop Him From Making a Musical.
The New York Times: After Huey Lewis learned that a syndrome of the inner ear called Ménière’s disease had caused him significant hearing loss and left him unable to play or hear music, he faced the difficult task of having to tell his friends and peers.
6 comments:
Penny Preovolos
said...
This article was a really lovely read, to be honest. As someone who is an artist who relies on specific senses to make art. Seeing and touching is also the way I find myself connecting with the world, making, watching, and interacting with art is what I spend most of my day doing. The idea that something could happen to my eyes or hands is terrifying (and I admit probably ableist). That's why it was refreshing and inspiring to read this article. It was really refreshing to hear someone talk about something that devastated them, and yes they got over it, but the frank way he discusses how it hurt him and changed his life was really honest and I appreciated his vulnerability. I think how he asks himself what I am going to do is a really lovely reminder that at some point you just have to accept and push forward. I like his music a lot, and while I'm a little nervous to see it in musical form I congratulate him for his resilience and hard work.
This is what is so amazing about the arts. Huey Lewis is a perfect example Of someone who uses resilience and struggles positively to make something beautiful. I feel like many people these days use their struggles as a way of victimizing themselves to make art instead of using it to push them as Lewis does. He has severe hearing loss yet still could craft a beautiful Musical for people to enjoy. It's also quite special and inspiring for other people with hearing loss to hear about this great cause. It's also so great to hear how “happy” he was well enduring the process of making a musical - Which is of course not an easy task. I'm curious to see how his art adapted after his awful diagnosis, is it more centered around The physical setting, it's a musical so it must have sound, which is interesting because of his condition. overall I've been inspired by Huey Lewis after reading this and makes me want to make better art no matter what condition I'm in.
I think that this article showcases one of the most beautiful parts of the arts. Because we all do this out of some expression of passion, the amount of resilience we show in the face of adversity is always so wonderful. We devote so much of our hearts to this career, and while that is for sure a double bladed sword, it can create some really poetic moments where we don’t let anything get in our way. I think that Huey Lewis’ story is really inspiring in how we can still go on and find new ways to explore our passions even when we can’t do them how we once used to. Speaking from personal experience, I know that this is a really difficult but ultimately rewarding thing to do and I am really glad we get to see stories such as this one show up in the news.
I think that a jukebox musical featuring his earlier works could be really fun to see. I've always loved seeing those kinds of musicals, and I have really fond memories going to see shows like Mamma Mia with my family, so I'm broadly in favor of jukebox musicals. I think there's sometimes where it can go a bit sour, but all in all I think it's really inspiring that he is overcoming his loss of hearing to create this musical. I think it's important when coping with long term disease to seek out things that you enjoy, and to find strength and passion in those activities, and theatre has been a longtime provider of that support in my own life. I really believe in the power of theatre to motivate personal growth, change, and the overcoming of obstacles. I also think that the themes he explores in his songs are particularly pertinent at this time in our political climate, and I can't wait to see this show in production.
This is a really nice story. I can’t imagine what it’s like to find yourself with seemingly no purpose. It’s unfortunate that Lewis got a hearing impairment when his entire career revolves around music and audio. The simultaneous challenges of losing your ability to play music or hear must’ve been crushing. As anyone, but particularly as an artist, a major change to your senses and identity like this must be difficult. That being said, the musical about him is a truly inspiring story. It sounds like he didn’t have a lot of existing experience in visual arts, but he is a performer himself – I wonder how that affected his work on the performance. He was able to adapt to the challenges in his life and switch to a new form of art – that’s pretty impressive. I’d love to hear more about the musical and how it is received once it opens.
I can’t even imagine what it might be like to end up in a situation, completely out of your control, that leaves you unable to use the most important sense for your job that is your entire livelihood and passion. It is unbelievably admirable that despite that situation, Lewis still manages to find a way to continue his work within the music and entertainment industry. I was really impressed reading about the specific details of what it is like to hear with his ears, and considering that he mentioned how difficult it is to be in group situations, it’s pretty impressive that he was able to do all the classic music guy on a musical things in a rehearsal room. Jukebox musicals are no easy feat to make, and I really liked Lewis’ analysis of the importance of the things that go around the music. It must be unbelievably valuable to have the creator of that music assisting so hands-on in the development, regardless of what pitch he can’t hear.
6 comments:
This article was a really lovely read, to be honest. As someone who is an artist who relies on specific senses to make art. Seeing and touching is also the way I find myself connecting with the world, making, watching, and interacting with art is what I spend most of my day doing. The idea that something could happen to my eyes or hands is terrifying (and I admit probably ableist). That's why it was refreshing and inspiring to read this article. It was really refreshing to hear someone talk about something that devastated them, and yes they got over it, but the frank way he discusses how it hurt him and changed his life was really honest and I appreciated his vulnerability. I think how he asks himself what I am going to do is a really lovely reminder that at some point you just have to accept and push forward. I like his music a lot, and while I'm a little nervous to see it in musical form I congratulate him for his resilience and hard work.
This is what is so amazing about the arts. Huey Lewis is a perfect example Of someone who uses resilience and struggles positively to make something beautiful. I feel like many people these days use their struggles as a way of victimizing themselves to make art instead of using it to push them as Lewis does. He has severe hearing loss yet still could craft a beautiful Musical for people to enjoy. It's also quite special and inspiring for other people with hearing loss to hear about this great cause. It's also so great to hear how “happy” he was well enduring the process of making a musical - Which is of course not an easy task. I'm curious to see how his art adapted after his awful diagnosis, is it more centered around The physical setting, it's a musical so it must have sound, which is interesting because of his condition. overall I've been inspired by Huey Lewis after reading this and makes me want to make better art no matter what condition I'm in.
I think that this article showcases one of the most beautiful parts of the arts. Because we all do this out of some expression of passion, the amount of resilience we show in the face of adversity is always so wonderful. We devote so much of our hearts to this career, and while that is for sure a double bladed sword, it can create some really poetic moments where we don’t let anything get in our way. I think that Huey Lewis’ story is really inspiring in how we can still go on and find new ways to explore our passions even when we can’t do them how we once used to. Speaking from personal experience, I know that this is a really difficult but ultimately rewarding thing to do and I am really glad we get to see stories such as this one show up in the news.
I think that a jukebox musical featuring his earlier works could be really fun to see. I've always loved seeing those kinds of musicals, and I have really fond memories going to see shows like Mamma Mia with my family, so I'm broadly in favor of jukebox musicals. I think there's sometimes where it can go a bit sour, but all in all I think it's really inspiring that he is overcoming his loss of hearing to create this musical. I think it's important when coping with long term disease to seek out things that you enjoy, and to find strength and passion in those activities, and theatre has been a longtime provider of that support in my own life. I really believe in the power of theatre to motivate personal growth, change, and the overcoming of obstacles. I also think that the themes he explores in his songs are particularly pertinent at this time in our political climate, and I can't wait to see this show in production.
This is a really nice story. I can’t imagine what it’s like to find yourself with seemingly no purpose. It’s unfortunate that Lewis got a hearing impairment when his entire career revolves around music and audio. The simultaneous challenges of losing your ability to play music or hear must’ve been crushing. As anyone, but particularly as an artist, a major change to your senses and identity like this must be difficult. That being said, the musical about him is a truly inspiring story. It sounds like he didn’t have a lot of existing experience in visual arts, but he is a performer himself – I wonder how that affected his work on the performance. He was able to adapt to the challenges in his life and switch to a new form of art – that’s pretty impressive. I’d love to hear more about the musical and how it is received once it opens.
I can’t even imagine what it might be like to end up in a situation, completely out of your control, that leaves you unable to use the most important sense for your job that is your entire livelihood and passion. It is unbelievably admirable that despite that situation, Lewis still manages to find a way to continue his work within the music and entertainment industry. I was really impressed reading about the specific details of what it is like to hear with his ears, and considering that he mentioned how difficult it is to be in group situations, it’s pretty impressive that he was able to do all the classic music guy on a musical things in a rehearsal room. Jukebox musicals are no easy feat to make, and I really liked Lewis’ analysis of the importance of the things that go around the music. It must be unbelievably valuable to have the creator of that music assisting so hands-on in the development, regardless of what pitch he can’t hear.
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