"Bobby McFerrin defies description," I explained to the woman sitting next to me. "He's definitely one of a kind." She had flown in from Paris that morning and wasn't sure she wanted to be sitting for a long stretch to attend the concert of someone she knew little about, especially since she'd been told he was a reggae singer. Her companion had bowed out, allowing me to purchase a last-minute ticket for this sold-out performance.
I continued, "Yes, he does some reggae, along with classical, jazz, African, and a whole lot of other kinds of music. You won't be disappointed." After the first number of his entirely improvised, one-man, a cappella concert, she leaned over and said, "You're right, he's incredible!"
Bobby McFerrin and other splendid musicians—Oscar Petersen, Itzhak Perlman, Diana Krall, and countless others who have delighted audiences—offer a glimpse into the distinctness and infinitude of identity. Through their music, they express priceless, beautiful qualities, including harmony and grace, rhythm and composition—and express them uniquely. To the well-tuned ear, one musician isn't mistaken for another, even though the qualities in play are universal.
