We had our "dress rehearsal" tonight. I realized with tears in my eyes how lucky I was to be sitting on stage with some of the most talented musicians in Japan, a country where being a musician means playing an instrument like you were born with it. Holding a foreign object in your hand and turning it into a perfectly brilliant and powerful expression of the human soul. It is clearly evident that these people spend more time with their instruments than anything or anyone else in this world. The amount of practice and heart they put into the precision of sound and truth is beyond imaginable. Every note is crystal clear. The dynamics are astounding. The music soars, and I am transformed.

In a swell of music, I find myself in a storm of memories. I am a little girl in love with the sounds and waves of blended notes. My childhood was spent collecting the sounds of souls in the form of music. It is truly a gift to be doing the music of Disney in this concert tour. The very first solos I ever loved enough to sing were from the Disney movies. My heart is long last at ease knowing that so many people will experience these stories of sound with me. I used to torture my best friend Natalie by filling all of our girl time with song after song and lengthy explanations of what was so perfect about every one. What a darling friend she was to listen so intently and respond with patience and love.

I cried at the sound of our first violin player, Takashi Aoki San, playing his solo in "When You Wish Upon a Star" ... It was a beauty so pure and so present, I could feel his soul speaking through his strings. It happens every time he plays. I feel divinity in the sound through his fingers. Like an angel speaking. You cannot help but be captivated, forget anything but what you are hearing, and be filled with the greatest sense of peace and awe you could imagine. How lucky are we that we can witness this?? I have certainly been given a gift in the experience of hearing these musicians every night. I cannot believe they will be behind me. I simply cannot believe it.

I have been transformed. This music. It is who I am. I am never looking back.