It's a very slow day at work, I'm meant to be losing weight for my brother's wedding and the depression from the weekend loss is failing to lift. There is only one cure: dim sum lunch.

As a not-very-interesting aside I might as well tell you how I developed an affection for jazz and blues music. My Da has long been a fan of jazz and set me on the course. But that wasn't the only reason, as my brother's taste in music ranges from abysmal to terrible and he was raised in the same house (although we still await DNA testing to prove conclusively his parenthood). I got into blues as an offshoot of jazz listening to help me through those teenage angst years and university quasi-counter culture phase.

I was about 21 when my Da asked if I'd like to go see Wynton Marsalis play at the Sydney Opera House. Marsalis is the modern jazz maestro from a jazz family. He cops flak but is a darn fine musician. At the time I already had a couple of his discs in my collection, my collection being built up courtesy of a university subsidy that was spent on music rather than anything to further my education. For those unfortunate enough to have never visited Sydney, the Opera House is not just a landmark. It is a cultural hub with theatres and concerts and any visit is always an ocassion. You really feel like you are going "out" when you go.

This particular night I headed into the city with Da. Found our seats in about the middle of the imposing concert hall, usually the scene of opera or symphonies rather than jazz. The scene was the ecletic jazz crowd from university professors to urban professionals to hip young kids to ragtime retirees. There was the usual hushed murmurs before a concert in such a rarified atmosphere while everyone waited for the lights to dim. Suddenly Marsalis appeared on stage, alone. He held a hand up to the side of the stage and said to the band to just wait a minute. There was the start of a round of applause when he turned and held his hand to the crowd. He said "I just want to tune up and get started." With that he played a 10 minute trumpet solo that was stunning in its virtuosity. His band slowly joined him and the concert proceeded in the same vein, with Marsalis generous in sharing the spotlight with his band. They were having as good a time as the crowd and it showed.

I've been to plenty of concerts in my life but this one was certainly the best. I walked out with my Da and we both had smiles from ear to ear, as did the rest of the crowd. Even now thinking back I get a warm glow at the thought of that night. It was just that special. A confluence of time and place that lead to something bigger and ebtter that than the sum of its parts. I hope that one day I'll be taking JC or PB to something like that and they'll always remember it too.