Though Alan Rusbridger's day job as editor of the Guardian leaves him little time for hobbies, he is a keen amateur pianist, even carving out time to attend a piano camp in France every summer. When he hears a fellow camper perform Chopin's famously difficult Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Rusbridger determines to master the piece himself--and to play it at camp the following year.
Rusbridger tackles the Ballade by enrolling in piano lessons for the first time in decades, researching Chopin's life and music, shopping for a new piano. A journalist to the core, he also interviews concert pianists, music teachers, neuroscientists and others about Chopin, music, practice, distraction and memory. Through it all, breaking news stories (including the WikiLeaks scandal and the Arab Spring uprisings) pull Rusbridger's attention back to his demanding day job.
Rusbridger's memoir is a witty, thoughtful (if sometimes rather technical) account of a turbulent year. He finds carving out even 20 minutes a day to concentrate on Chopin provides a calming escape from the rest of his life--and enriches it as well. Conferences, interviews and other glimpses of events behind the scenes at the Guardian intertwine with Rusbridger's struggle to "wall off a small part of [his] life for creative expression."
A celebration of music and creativity, Play It Again is an honest, ultimately joyous account of pursuing a daunting artistic challenge amid the triumphs and frustrations of everyday life. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams