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Mi Historia Musical
It was August of 1980. I turned to my parents and said, "I want to learn to play the piano." They looked at each other, at me, and each other again. My mother asked whether i was sure. I was. "We'll talk about this later," they told me. What they didn't ask me was why. I was very dissappointed that i couldn't see the keys as i was playing. I wanted to learn in the first place so i could make the same neat visual patterns on the instrument that the music teacher made.
Two days later, they told me i could have lessons, but i would need to practice at the Frey's house down the street for now, since we didn't have a piano. I was fine with that. So every day after homework, i went to the Frey's house and practiced along with their daughter Sunday on their old, classic upright. For Christmas that year, actually just after Thanksgiving, a modern upright was delivered to our house.
When school started again in July of 1981, we were offered the chance to learn a stringed instrument. I went home and told them i wanted to learn violin. They looked at each other, they shrugged, and Dad took me down to the local music store to rent an instrument. When school ended in late June, i began private lessons, and they bought me the violin i still own. I continued with the violin until the fall of 1985, at which point i switched to viola, never looking back.
I was as successful with the viola as i had been with the violin, once i got the hang of 2nd position. Oddly, 2nd position was harder for me than getting used to reading alto clef. I played in various school, regional, and super-regional orchestras, as well as in several quartets, one which would last into my university years, such as they were.
I pulled out the violin meaningfully again a year ago fall because Jonathan, Fred's son, began to study it, and i knew they could not afford private lessons. Then in March of this year,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
muzikmaker21 mentioned that the play she was in needed a violinist. The producer contacted me some weeks later, and i committed to all 10 show dates. Somehow, i learned the music in the short, short time between first seeing it and needing to perform it. I even got to have fun playing it out of tune sometimes.
So, 27 years after i started playing musical instruments, and 20 years after my last public performance on a violin, i present the first-ever photos of me actually playing one. Both were taken by Penny Martin, who was also in The Two Gentlemen of Verona. She's a fascinating person, and a violist i'm trying to convince to participate in a quartet. Anyway, tada!
I have really good form!muzikmaker21 had commented on it, but i had no meaningful idea. The photos provide a view of me playing that a mirror does not. I made the top photo into an icon, as debuted on this post. And, yes, my eyes are closed in it. Closing my eyes allows me to a) really listen to what i'm playing and b) be really aware of where my left hand is physically on the instrument, and what my right hand is doing with the bow.
Two days later, they told me i could have lessons, but i would need to practice at the Frey's house down the street for now, since we didn't have a piano. I was fine with that. So every day after homework, i went to the Frey's house and practiced along with their daughter Sunday on their old, classic upright. For Christmas that year, actually just after Thanksgiving, a modern upright was delivered to our house.
When school started again in July of 1981, we were offered the chance to learn a stringed instrument. I went home and told them i wanted to learn violin. They looked at each other, they shrugged, and Dad took me down to the local music store to rent an instrument. When school ended in late June, i began private lessons, and they bought me the violin i still own. I continued with the violin until the fall of 1985, at which point i switched to viola, never looking back.
I was as successful with the viola as i had been with the violin, once i got the hang of 2nd position. Oddly, 2nd position was harder for me than getting used to reading alto clef. I played in various school, regional, and super-regional orchestras, as well as in several quartets, one which would last into my university years, such as they were.
I pulled out the violin meaningfully again a year ago fall because Jonathan, Fred's son, began to study it, and i knew they could not afford private lessons. Then in March of this year,
muzikmaker21 mentioned that the play she was in needed a violinist. The producer contacted me some weeks later, and i committed to all 10 show dates. Somehow, i learned the music in the short, short time between first seeing it and needing to perform it. I even got to have fun playing it out of tune sometimes. So, 27 years after i started playing musical instruments, and 20 years after my last public performance on a violin, i present the first-ever photos of me actually playing one. Both were taken by Penny Martin, who was also in The Two Gentlemen of Verona. She's a fascinating person, and a violist i'm trying to convince to participate in a quartet. Anyway, tada!
I have really good form!
muzikmaker21 had commented on it, but i had no meaningful idea. The photos provide a view of me playing that a mirror does not. I made the top photo into an icon, as debuted on this post. And, yes, my eyes are closed in it. Closing my eyes allows me to a) really listen to what i'm playing and b) be really aware of where my left hand is physically on the instrument, and what my right hand is doing with the bow.