old friend and a cadenza

i was blessed to pick up an old tradition of mine--coffee with a particular friend (name witheld to protect the curmudgeonly). we haven't met regularly in months, so it was particularly nice to pick up where we left off. sealing wax, cabbages nor kings ever came up in conversation, but we talked about many things.
his insight today deserves to be shared.
the topic of music came up, as it often did, and i was explaining the concept of cadenza. it's basically a place for a performer to have some spontaneous (or otherwise well-conceived and planned) musical renderings at particular points of a song. in the realm of concerto, the orchestra and conductor to know to wait for the soloist before contiuing on.
in his inquisitiveness, i realized he had a valid point when he compared classical cadenza to artist spotlight in a jam session. "you mean they just play whatever they want for a while?" yup, pretty much. there are guidelines, but essentially, you're in the composer's seat.
i know this friend to be a highly disciplined individual. he likes order and routine, but he noted and i pass it on to you now--"sometimes you just need to take a cadneza".
and it's true. sometimes you need to take a spontaneous me-moment.
too many cadenzas would distract from what was really being played. too few makes things overly formulaic and routine.
so, as springtime has hit our hometown, i say that this be declared national cadenza weekend. take a small moment and be spontaneous. don't overdo it; don't underdo it. enjoy life for God gave it to you. that's why it's called the 'present'.