Nocturnes by Kazuo Ishiguro

It is amazing that Ishiguro can adopt many voices with ease. In Nocturnes, he shows his familiarity with music and takes a peek at the inner world of five music makers.

In the first story, Crooner, a musician in Venice comes across his mother’s childhood singing idol and gets acquainted with him. The two men strikes a chord with each other and the Jazz singing legend let in that he is on a last trip with his wife who intends to leave him.

The protagonist is roped in to play for Tony as Tony croons a song that has a special meaning for the singer and his wife. The plot did not deliver well and the planned singing is aborted. The reader is told that after that, the singing sensation parts ways with his wife. The protagonist concludes that Tony may be a has-been singer but he will always be  the greatest singer to him.

In ‘Come rain or shine’, Raymond meets up with his old friends, Emily and Charlie, who are married to each other. The reader gets a hint that Raymond’s crush on Emily would have bore fruit if his friends did not marry each other.  Charlie and Emily are going through a rough patch and it is at this time Raymond comes to stay as a guest in their house. Charlie has hoped that Raymond will put a good word for him and salvage the marriage.

There was a little comic interlude in this story as Raymond accidentally tore off a page from Emily’s diary that he thought had to do with him. Charlie, advising from the airport by phone, says that Emily will not spare Raymond. Raymond must therefore must conjure a scene that makes it look like the neighbor’s dog has come over and  messed up the house.

The story provides a little sexual tension the reader wonders if Emily has lingering affection for Raymond when she reminisces their common love for jazz which Charlie hates. Emily self reflects on her relationship with her husband, Charlie, and concludes that the relationship is worth keeping. Raymond and Emily have a last dance at the balcony with their favorite jazz music in the background.

In “Malvern Hills’, a guitarist left the din of London for Malvern Hill, a pub and inn owned by his sister and her husband. The protagonist is a self absorbed musician and composer who is not able to reciprocate the generosity of his sister and brother-in-law.

The guitarist protagonist dislikes a Swiss couple who comes to the pub and recommends a bed and breakfast outfit that has a very poor review. The guitarist changes his impression of the Swiss couple when he realizes that they are musicians like him. In the process, he found that the Swiss couple is like chalk and cheese; she was easily irritated and short tempered while her husband is optimistic and thankful for everything in life. The guitarist was reminded that he may be young and talented but in life, not all things will go as according to his wishes.  The story ends with the guitarist attempting to resolve a problem with his song and throwing the  pessimistic forewarning in the wind.

‘Nocturne’ has its background set in a hotel cum hospital compound. A manager tells a sax player that his marriage has failed because he is ugly and will never be famous despite his musical talents. His ex-wife and husband has offered to foot the bill for his plastic surgery and convinced by his manager, Steve took up the offer.

Steve recuperates from his surgery in his hotel suite and is told that a famous singer is also recuperating next room. Steve has no regard for that particular singer who he thinks has no talent. When the singer learns that a sax player is recuperating next door, she invites him over to her room. And thus, two persons in show biz met, bandages and all.

Steve is indignant when he learns that a huge music award is to be hosted in the same hotel. Lindy, the singer, who has declared that Steve is talented, judging from his CD  recording, deserves an award. In the middle of the night and all bandaged, Lindy stole the plaque for best jazz player from the event hall. Steve rejects the ‘gift’ and the comic duo tries to return the plaque. The plot is not well executed because a security guard interrupts them. As an interim measure, the plaque was stuffed in a turkey, part of the buffet spread for the prize giving ceremony.

The duo returns the next day, in their hospital gown and swathed with facial bandages, to restore the plaque to its proper place. Again they failed and had to discard the plaque in someone’s used breakfast tray on the hospital floor.

Lindy and Steve did not eventually meet each other with their new faces. Steve takes up Lindy’s suggestion to start loving himself other than his ex-wife.

‘Cellists’ tells of a Hungarian cellist, Tibor, struggling to make ends meet. On one of his gigs, he got acquainted with a mysterious woman who claims to be a cellist virtuoso. Tibor is hungry for connections into the music scene and accepts the woman’s invitation to play for her. Tibor is called a genius and plays for her alone the entire season that he was in the town.

Tibor has doubts about her real identity because he has never seen her play her cello nor is she seen with one. The woman eventually owns up but insists that she is very talented where music is concerned. She may have stopped playing the cello since eleven but her musicality supersedes the best musician. Tibor feels cheated and leaves her for another place. On his return to town, he informs her that he has a job in Amsterdam and will leave for good.

Tibor meets her for the last time and finds that the woman is now with her businessman boyfriend. The businessman, who plans to bring her back to America, has no musical talent but is said to appreciate music and the woman’s musicality too.