Free with the price of tuition.

Point Loma hosts concerts throughout the year that are free to students, while the public has to pay admission. I went to a classical piano recital last Friday, and last night I attended Jazz at the Point. Both were absolutely stunning.

The Point Loma Jazz Band opened with a couple of purely instrumental pieces and them some with an accompanying singer. I especially appreciated the saxophone solo. Then, out came the Frank Potenza Trio, consisting of guitar, organ, and drums, with guest flutist Holly Hoffmann.

They played altogether, and they played intricately, dynamically, compellingly. I know so little about music and what well-played instruments sound like, but what I heard was for me amazing. My fellow concert-goers, some girls from my hall who play the harp and the flute, were just as satisfied, so I can only assume the performers were top-knotch.

They themselves seemed to be enjoying it. Frank whispered something to Holly in between songs, and she shook her head, laughing. She said, "He wants us to play this as fast as we can play it." Frank added, "There's fast, there's really fast, and there's faster than humanly possible." The drum player exclaimed, "Now would be a good time to pray!"

I thought he was exaggerating, but when they came to the drum solo, I realized what he was talking about. He beat so quickly, his arms blurred. I was positively mesmerized.

The group then grouped themselves into varying duos. I loved the drums and the flute together. It was so different, so fresh. The other arrangements all seemed to be associated with previous eras- the twenties or the thirties or the forties or fifties, paying homage to bygone times. But this felt like now, an expression consummately present.

It was a release, a mental cleansing. I just sat and listened. There was nothing I had to do, no one I had to please, no standards to achieve or grades to receive. I just sat and listened. The experience is an excellent venue for thinking.

Music is so ephemeral, so evanescent. Once played, the notes are lost forever. But hints of the elegance, the euphonic euphoria, yet remain.