Throughout my eight years of violin playing from the fifth through 12th grades, I sat in first chair for only one concert. Usually, my friend Erin was sitting untouchable in first chair. She had this natural, raw talent whereas I worked for every pitch perfect note I hit.
When Erin and I moved up to the high school we played in the ninth grade strings group together. We weren't good enough to be in the orchestra. Well I wasn't. Half way through our first year in high school, Erin got moved up to the orchestra while I remained back with strings. Erin's move also put me front and center in first chair. And for that one semester I sat in the top seat, the strings had one concert. And that one concert was the single worst concert performance I had during my eight-year playing career.
I was a train wreck. I remember being nervous and missing one note, and then missing the a few more, and then my fingers failed me on an entire phrase. And before I knew it the concert was over, and I'd played less than half the music, sitting frozen for the most part in the top seat. It was so bad that my mom upon seeing me right after the concert asked, "What happened?" What happened was that I was a ninth grader who couldn't cope with the slightest bit of pressure.
Leading up to the wedding on Saturday I replayed this one event several times over in my mind. My deepest fear was that the debilitating nerves I experienced that one day over a decade ago would show up unexpectedly on my friend's wedding day.
I learned on Saturday that thankfully I'm not that same timid ninth grader I once was. On the Thursday night wedding rehearsal, my run through of the songs went really well. Plus the venue was perfect. Instead of being on the floor jammed next to the pews, I stood on a loft overlooking the ceremony while my music floated down to everyone below. I had a minor flub during the ceremony and one of my songs could have been about 30 seconds longer, but other than that, it went really, really well. And I knew it would. As we went through the rehearsal Thursday this calming feeling washed over me. I realized I wanted to be a part of this beautiful day. But not just to be a part of it, I wanted to add to it. The only way I could was to play as best as I possibly could. So I let the beauty of the moment, the happiness of the couple and my months of preparation be the relaxant to my nerves. No pressure. Just happiness. And music.
Here's to no longer being an awkward ninth-grader.
Showing posts with label Violin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Violin. Show all posts
September 29, 2009
September 23, 2009
Cabbage
When my friend Jenny's wedding was over, I remember thinking that I was a bit relieved it was behind me. Do not get me wrong, it was a beautiful wedding, I had an amazing time, but I was the maid of honor. I had a lot of work to do that week between setting up, throwing a bachelorette party and not dropping the rings during the ceremony. I said to myself thank goodness for the next one all I have to do is show up and play the violin.
Well that next wedding is upon me and guess what? I HAVE TO SHOW UP AND PLAY THE VIOLIN OHMYGOD.
I am taking a very early Amtrak train out tomorrow morning so I can be there for the rehearsal at 6 p.m. tomorrow. I really need to be there for the rehearsal. I know how to play my five songs, but I need to see how long it takes people to walk down the aisle. I keep imagining the bride walking down the aisle to a two minute song in 30 seconds, and then the awkwardness that ensues when I play for a minute and a half while everybody just wants to get on with the damn marriage already. So yeah, I have some things that I need to work out.
I also need to work on my nerves. I never did any street corner playing like I hoped. It remains that I know these songs really well in my bedroom with all the doors and windows shut. Outside that immediate area, I'm just not sure. This wedding will certainly put me out of my element.
Fortunately, I know a few people who are performers. They offered me advice and I've taken their sage words to heart. They told me things such as people aren't there to hear me play, they're there to see the bride. Also, if I mess up most people won't even notice. And lastly, they're all cabbage. The last one is my favorite. I like thinking of people as cabbage. It's better than facing reality, which is that I am playing all by myself in a room with 100+ people on the most important day of two people's lives.
They are all cabbage.
Well that next wedding is upon me and guess what? I HAVE TO SHOW UP AND PLAY THE VIOLIN OHMYGOD.
I am taking a very early Amtrak train out tomorrow morning so I can be there for the rehearsal at 6 p.m. tomorrow. I really need to be there for the rehearsal. I know how to play my five songs, but I need to see how long it takes people to walk down the aisle. I keep imagining the bride walking down the aisle to a two minute song in 30 seconds, and then the awkwardness that ensues when I play for a minute and a half while everybody just wants to get on with the damn marriage already. So yeah, I have some things that I need to work out.
I also need to work on my nerves. I never did any street corner playing like I hoped. It remains that I know these songs really well in my bedroom with all the doors and windows shut. Outside that immediate area, I'm just not sure. This wedding will certainly put me out of my element.
Fortunately, I know a few people who are performers. They offered me advice and I've taken their sage words to heart. They told me things such as people aren't there to hear me play, they're there to see the bride. Also, if I mess up most people won't even notice. And lastly, they're all cabbage. The last one is my favorite. I like thinking of people as cabbage. It's better than facing reality, which is that I am playing all by myself in a room with 100+ people on the most important day of two people's lives.
They are all cabbage.
June 23, 2009
On Knowing What I Don't Know
If there's one thing I have learned about Photoshop it's that I don't even know all there is to know. If I'm just correcting photos I've taken randomly of weekend activities or the cats, I use Picasa. It's good enough but also basic enough that it takes me no time at all to edit, and I still get decent results. But for more important photos, like the two shoots I've done recently, I exclusively use Photoshop.
I didn't want to discard them, but they also were not the best solo shots I got of Hunter. So this was my solution.
Having in my teenage years worked in an old school photo lab, I became pretty picky about the contrast and coloring of my images. It's been a delight to see that I can be as picky as I want in Photoshop. If a magenta speck in the upper left hand corner of a photo bothers me I can tweak it without altering the rest of the photo. It's a picky photographer's dream come true, but that dream comes with a price. I am just now finishing editing the set of photos I took on Father's Day - three days ago. With Picasa I would have been done an hour after the shoot, but I also wouldn't have loved any of the photos I took as much as I do now.
I mostly use the color correcting and cropping functions in Photoshop. I know if I wanted I could twist images, make them into puzzles and turn all the colors neon. I don't really have use for all that. Today though as I reached the last three photos of my shoot, I knew they could be more dynamic so I tried something new.
Here are the originals. (Hunter was doing a little crazy dance for me)
I didn't want to discard them, but they also were not the best solo shots I got of Hunter. So this was my solution.
So much cuter! And it's a better representation of his little dance. Thank you Google and all your wisdom because I couldn't have combined these three photos otherwise.
My Photoshop tastes are constantly changing right now. In each of the three nights I've edited this collection of photos I tweaked their color, shading and contrasting differently. I've had to go back and change some of the photos I've already edited because I've liked what I've done on subsequent nights better. It's OK though. I guess it's all part of the learning process, which is definitely where I am. But it's good to know that there are certainly enough functions in Photoshop to keep me constantly learning and perfecting my editing skills.
And just because he's such a doll and I really did love this shoot, I will leave you with another of my favorite images from my Father's Day photos.
And now for a complete change of subject... Does anybody have a suggestions for a song I can play during the candle lighting portion of a wedding ceremony - preferably something good for a solo violin? I need another song for my September wedding, and I don't know what I want to play. Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring, Ave Maria, Canon in D and Ode to Joy have already been taken. Or alternately, if you don't know a good song, just for laughs, please suggest the worst possible song I could play at that moment. Immediately I am thinking Toxic by Britney Spears or Superfreak.
February 18, 2009
Here Comes the Violinist
I got some very, very good news yesterday.
After several bouts of technical difficulties, I was able to send recordings to a very excited bride to be. I emailed three WAV files, after several attempts to capture what I thought were acceptable recordings, of me playing Ode To Joy, Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring and Cannon in D on the violin. And then I prepared for the worst. To my critical ear, my playing did not sound good. Ode to Joy was decent, Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring was OK and Canon in D made me cringe. I heard every pause, every off key note, every shaking bow stroke. The songs were flawed. Each and every one. So when I pushed send on my email, I reminded myself not to get my hopes up. I had given the bride the option to back out, and she very well could.
Much to my immense relief the bride, Dorrie, told me she loved them. She even said I sound "AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Canon in D made her tear up.
Based on her response I learned two things: 1.) I have an overly critical ear toward my own playing. And 2.) Holy shit! I'm playing a wedding! It's official. I'm am a violinist again.
My last public performance was toward the end of my senior year of high school. In other words, it's been close to a decade. And that performance was with an entire orchestra. This whole playing solo in front of 100+ people on the most important day of two peoples' lives is completely new to me. I try not to let the pressure of that scenario creep into my playing, but sometimes it does. And that's when I tell myself how horrible and unprofessional I sound.
But if the bride's happy, I need to be happy as well. I need to stop being so judgmental of how my music sounds. I need to just enjoy playing. And I do really enjoy my violin, especially when I am able to stop reminding myself of a missed note three stanzas ago. On the big day, I'll have four songs and a lot of stanzas to get through. And chances are I'll have a lot more on notes than off ones.
After several bouts of technical difficulties, I was able to send recordings to a very excited bride to be. I emailed three WAV files, after several attempts to capture what I thought were acceptable recordings, of me playing Ode To Joy, Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring and Cannon in D on the violin. And then I prepared for the worst. To my critical ear, my playing did not sound good. Ode to Joy was decent, Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring was OK and Canon in D made me cringe. I heard every pause, every off key note, every shaking bow stroke. The songs were flawed. Each and every one. So when I pushed send on my email, I reminded myself not to get my hopes up. I had given the bride the option to back out, and she very well could.
Much to my immense relief the bride, Dorrie, told me she loved them. She even said I sound "AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Canon in D made her tear up.
Based on her response I learned two things: 1.) I have an overly critical ear toward my own playing. And 2.) Holy shit! I'm playing a wedding! It's official. I'm am a violinist again.
My last public performance was toward the end of my senior year of high school. In other words, it's been close to a decade. And that performance was with an entire orchestra. This whole playing solo in front of 100+ people on the most important day of two peoples' lives is completely new to me. I try not to let the pressure of that scenario creep into my playing, but sometimes it does. And that's when I tell myself how horrible and unprofessional I sound.
But if the bride's happy, I need to be happy as well. I need to stop being so judgmental of how my music sounds. I need to just enjoy playing. And I do really enjoy my violin, especially when I am able to stop reminding myself of a missed note three stanzas ago. On the big day, I'll have four songs and a lot of stanzas to get through. And chances are I'll have a lot more on notes than off ones.
January 25, 2009
Learning Some New Moves
I was practicing my violin today and once again was working on my vibrato. As part of my New Year's goals, I began doing exercises to develop my vibrato a few weeks ago. It's not easy. If anything, it's made me realize I have some really weak wrists.
The vibrato is a quick wrist movement that turns a dull, flat note into a sweet, undulating sound. And, if I do say so myself, it makes slow, melodic music (the kind a person might play at, say, a wedding) sound much better.
I've been doing a series of exercises to help me develop this playing technique. My old violin workbooks from sixth grade have come in handy in recent weeks. I practice by waving at myself, then waving with violin in hand, then placing a finger on a string and moving my hand in a polishing the string, wrist waving motion. I've progressed to where I have the correct movement, but I just can't do it fast enough. I play the note and then the note just above it, sliding back and forth between the two as quickly as possible. Because I am slow, instead of the notes sounding beautiful and melodic my vibrato produces a sound akin to a drunk, mooing cow. "MOO-moo-MOO-moo-MOO-moo..." You get it. If you don't get it, trust me you don't want me to post video of my developing vibrato.
Since I have the technique down, what I'm realizing I need to do is strengthen my wrists so I can move them faster. They are so weak. And I've noticed their lack of strength in other areas as well, like when doing Pilate's or yoga. Any position that involves resting the majority of my weight on one or both hands for more than 5 seconds immediately becomes a challenging move.
It's been kind of a weird realization that I have weak wrists. I've never noticed it until now, but now that I have, I'm almost as concerned with strengthening my wrists as I am my legs or arms or stomach muscles.
I've never looked into strengthening my wrists but was not surprised to learn that Google provided many answers to my problem. This Web site has the most doable exercises, so these are the exercises I will be doing. While I strengthen my legs and lungs with my running routine, I also will be strengthening my wrists with the following exercises (in case any of you have weak wrists as well):
One, Two, Three Finger Exercises
- For the best hand function, you should be able to touch the tips of your fingers to the palm and straighten the fingers completely. Use the one-two- three approach to stretch and strengthen fingers.
- To bend fingers:
--(1) Begin bending the joint closest to the tip of the finger
--(2) Bend the middle joint
--(3) When your fingertips are touching the palm, or are as close as possible, bend the knuckle joint.
- To straighten your fingers, just do the movements in reverse. You can exercise your fingers individually or together, using your other hand to help if necessary.
Thumb Walk
Holding your wrist straight, form the letter "O" by lightly touching your thumb to each fingertip. After each "O" straighten and spread your fingers. Use the other hand to help if needed.
Hi and Bye
- To strengthen and limber your wrist, rest your forearm on a table with your hand over the edge. Keep fingers relaxed and bend your wrist up and down.
- To strengthen the small muscles of the hand, slide your arm back until your fingers hang over with your knuckles at the table edge. Keeping your fingers straight and together and your palm flat, move your fingers up and down.
Door Opener
This exercise stretches the muscles and ligaments that rotate the forearm, letting you turn doorknobs, use a screwdriver, of put your hand in your back pocket.
- Start with your forearm resting on a table, palm down.
- Keeping your little finger on the table, turn your hand so the palm faces up.
- If you use your other hand to help, grip your forearm, not the wrist or hand
The vibrato is a quick wrist movement that turns a dull, flat note into a sweet, undulating sound. And, if I do say so myself, it makes slow, melodic music (the kind a person might play at, say, a wedding) sound much better.
I've been doing a series of exercises to help me develop this playing technique. My old violin workbooks from sixth grade have come in handy in recent weeks. I practice by waving at myself, then waving with violin in hand, then placing a finger on a string and moving my hand in a polishing the string, wrist waving motion. I've progressed to where I have the correct movement, but I just can't do it fast enough. I play the note and then the note just above it, sliding back and forth between the two as quickly as possible. Because I am slow, instead of the notes sounding beautiful and melodic my vibrato produces a sound akin to a drunk, mooing cow. "MOO-moo-MOO-moo-MOO-moo..." You get it. If you don't get it, trust me you don't want me to post video of my developing vibrato.
Since I have the technique down, what I'm realizing I need to do is strengthen my wrists so I can move them faster. They are so weak. And I've noticed their lack of strength in other areas as well, like when doing Pilate's or yoga. Any position that involves resting the majority of my weight on one or both hands for more than 5 seconds immediately becomes a challenging move.
It's been kind of a weird realization that I have weak wrists. I've never noticed it until now, but now that I have, I'm almost as concerned with strengthening my wrists as I am my legs or arms or stomach muscles.
I've never looked into strengthening my wrists but was not surprised to learn that Google provided many answers to my problem. This Web site has the most doable exercises, so these are the exercises I will be doing. While I strengthen my legs and lungs with my running routine, I also will be strengthening my wrists with the following exercises (in case any of you have weak wrists as well):
One, Two, Three Finger Exercises
- For the best hand function, you should be able to touch the tips of your fingers to the palm and straighten the fingers completely. Use the one-two- three approach to stretch and strengthen fingers.
- To bend fingers:
--(1) Begin bending the joint closest to the tip of the finger
--(2) Bend the middle joint
--(3) When your fingertips are touching the palm, or are as close as possible, bend the knuckle joint.
- To straighten your fingers, just do the movements in reverse. You can exercise your fingers individually or together, using your other hand to help if necessary.
Thumb Walk
Holding your wrist straight, form the letter "O" by lightly touching your thumb to each fingertip. After each "O" straighten and spread your fingers. Use the other hand to help if needed.
Hi and Bye
- To strengthen and limber your wrist, rest your forearm on a table with your hand over the edge. Keep fingers relaxed and bend your wrist up and down.
- To strengthen the small muscles of the hand, slide your arm back until your fingers hang over with your knuckles at the table edge. Keeping your fingers straight and together and your palm flat, move your fingers up and down.
Door Opener
This exercise stretches the muscles and ligaments that rotate the forearm, letting you turn doorknobs, use a screwdriver, of put your hand in your back pocket.
- Start with your forearm resting on a table, palm down.
- Keeping your little finger on the table, turn your hand so the palm faces up.
- If you use your other hand to help, grip your forearm, not the wrist or hand
November 23, 2008
Wedding Update
This past weekend was fun, really fun. My best friend Jenny and her mom came into town to do some wedding dress shopping. This was Jenny's first round of wedding dress shopping. It went very well, so well that Jenny fell in love with a $4,000 dress that she has no intention to buy. I am pretty sure she is online right now researching fabrics and searching for gowns to see if there's any way she can find a similar dress or a way to have her seamstress make it cheaper.As for me, I am now preparing to be Jenny's maid of honor. It turns out her intentions for visiting this weekend were two-fold. Sure she wanted to try on some dresses but she also wanted to ask me to be her maid of honor. I of course accepted, after she made me and her mom cry by the very sweet way she asked.
This offer makes it official that I will be in two weddings this coming year. I also said yes to Dorrie's offer to play the violin at her wedding. We've selected four songs and I've been practicing them for about a month already. (Yes, poor Mike is loving my four-song repertoire these days.) In a few months I'll send her recordings and let her determine if I'm good enough to provide music for her walk down the aisle. If not, then Dorrie has promised I can be the person to tell the guests it's time to start by yelling, "Hey! Sit your punk a$$es down, b!tches!" Either way, I'm in the wedding.
October 16, 2008
The Odds
It looks as if 2009 may be a year of weddings. I am not unaccustomed to years where multiple wedding invites show up in my mailbox. And actually, upon closer review, I realize they often happen show up odd-numbered years. I was in my friend Lexi's wedding in 2003 and attended another friend's nuptials a few months later. Two years later, in 2005, I was in my friend April's summer wedding and Kelsa's that fall. Then again in 2007, I was in my friend Wendy's wedding in May, and Mike and I attended his friends James' wedding that December (in Mexico!). So it really should be no surprise that this coming year, 2009, I already have two weddings to look forward to.
My best friend Jenny got engaged on September 12. I was elated for her and her now fiance Luke. In fact, I was as elated for Jenny as I was for Dorrie. Dorrie, my sister's best friend, had called me a few weeks prior to announce her engagement. I am already looking forward to both their weddings next year - Jenny's in August and Dorrie's in September - as both have been a part of my and my family's lives for so many years. Jenny and Dorrie have both been on more than one family vacation. What's even more exciting is that I'm being asked to be a part of both. Jenny and her mom will be visiting in a few weekends to go wedding dress shopping. As the Chicago resident, I'll be leading the charge to various bridal boutiques and promptly handing Jenny's mom handkerchiefs at each location.
My sister will be a bridesmaid in Dorrie's wedding, and I may play my own special part. Dorrie called me tonight with a few details that she has planned for her big day. One being that she doesn't want to walk down the aisle to a musical recording. She wants to walk down the aisle to live music, specifically a violin - a violin played by me.
This proposition took me by surprise because no has ever asked me to play at anything, let alone one of the most important day's of their life. It seems pretty big, so I'm thinking about it. Dorrie and I talked about music selections. I told her I'd poke around and try to find some tunes she might like and I might be able to play. It would be pretty amazing to be a part of Dorrie's wedding in this unique and special way. So although I'm thinking about it, I'm pretty sure I'm going to do it. Besides, I've got about 10 months to perfect whatever song we choose. Besides, I need to build up my repertoire for whatever weddings I will most certainly be invited to in 2011.
My best friend Jenny got engaged on September 12. I was elated for her and her now fiance Luke. In fact, I was as elated for Jenny as I was for Dorrie. Dorrie, my sister's best friend, had called me a few weeks prior to announce her engagement. I am already looking forward to both their weddings next year - Jenny's in August and Dorrie's in September - as both have been a part of my and my family's lives for so many years. Jenny and Dorrie have both been on more than one family vacation. What's even more exciting is that I'm being asked to be a part of both. Jenny and her mom will be visiting in a few weekends to go wedding dress shopping. As the Chicago resident, I'll be leading the charge to various bridal boutiques and promptly handing Jenny's mom handkerchiefs at each location.
My sister will be a bridesmaid in Dorrie's wedding, and I may play my own special part. Dorrie called me tonight with a few details that she has planned for her big day. One being that she doesn't want to walk down the aisle to a musical recording. She wants to walk down the aisle to live music, specifically a violin - a violin played by me.
This proposition took me by surprise because no has ever asked me to play at anything, let alone one of the most important day's of their life. It seems pretty big, so I'm thinking about it. Dorrie and I talked about music selections. I told her I'd poke around and try to find some tunes she might like and I might be able to play. It would be pretty amazing to be a part of Dorrie's wedding in this unique and special way. So although I'm thinking about it, I'm pretty sure I'm going to do it. Besides, I've got about 10 months to perfect whatever song we choose. Besides, I need to build up my repertoire for whatever weddings I will most certainly be invited to in 2011.
September 3, 2008
Rewinding the Past
As I was preparing for my fiddle three class (take two) last night, I stumbled upon a little bit of my past. We don't get sheet music for fiddle three, so we're encouraged to bring recorders to tape the song and play it back in the coming week while practicing our tune. I have a small tape recorder I have had for years now. I think it was given to me as a college graduation present from an editor of mine.
I cued up the tape and let it run for a bit. After a little bit of static, the tape cut and suddenly my recorder sounded with the roar of cheering and hollering over the results of a roll call vote. I knew instantly what it was. My coverage of the Reed City bond vote of 2004. This is a story I covered for months and probably spent more time on than anything else I covered in my two-and-a-half-year reporting career.
I was instantly transported back to that night. For me, it was the culmination of hours of sitting through school board meetings, talking with teachers, talking with students, touring the facilities and listening to people in the community say painstakingly that as much as they wanted to give their kids a new school, it just wasn't in their budget. That same year, Reed City had lost hundreds of manufacturing jobs - the backbone of the community - to Mexico and China. In the end, the bond passed by less than 30 votes. The whooping and hollering on the tape was the result of that board's and those parents' hard work to get their kids and the district a new school.
What followed next on the tape was the sound of my own voice. It was my congratulations to members of the school board as well as my interview with the district superintendent. I didn't usually tape my interviews, but I considered this to be such a big story that I didn't want to miss a thing.
It was weird to hear my voice, even weirder to be back in that moment. I remember being nervous for the outcome of that vote because I had become so engrossed in the lives of these people. It really was what I considered to be my biggest story as a young, fresh faced reporter. And looking back, I still am very proud of the work I did on that issue. It was a a few years ago now, but I remembered for a moment how great it was to be terribly invested in my job which really was being invested in the community I served. Sure, reporting in small town America was far from glamorous. I covered more events where the main feature was a tractor pull than I care to admit. But still, it was fun. And there is still a part of me that is sad my business card no longer reads reporter.
I rewound that tape and briefly thought about how after that night's fiddle class I wouldn't have portions of that tape any more. But I figured that didn't matter. because my business card no longer reads reporter.
I cued up the tape and let it run for a bit. After a little bit of static, the tape cut and suddenly my recorder sounded with the roar of cheering and hollering over the results of a roll call vote. I knew instantly what it was. My coverage of the Reed City bond vote of 2004. This is a story I covered for months and probably spent more time on than anything else I covered in my two-and-a-half-year reporting career.
I was instantly transported back to that night. For me, it was the culmination of hours of sitting through school board meetings, talking with teachers, talking with students, touring the facilities and listening to people in the community say painstakingly that as much as they wanted to give their kids a new school, it just wasn't in their budget. That same year, Reed City had lost hundreds of manufacturing jobs - the backbone of the community - to Mexico and China. In the end, the bond passed by less than 30 votes. The whooping and hollering on the tape was the result of that board's and those parents' hard work to get their kids and the district a new school.
What followed next on the tape was the sound of my own voice. It was my congratulations to members of the school board as well as my interview with the district superintendent. I didn't usually tape my interviews, but I considered this to be such a big story that I didn't want to miss a thing.
It was weird to hear my voice, even weirder to be back in that moment. I remember being nervous for the outcome of that vote because I had become so engrossed in the lives of these people. It really was what I considered to be my biggest story as a young, fresh faced reporter. And looking back, I still am very proud of the work I did on that issue. It was a a few years ago now, but I remembered for a moment how great it was to be terribly invested in my job which really was being invested in the community I served. Sure, reporting in small town America was far from glamorous. I covered more events where the main feature was a tractor pull than I care to admit. But still, it was fun. And there is still a part of me that is sad my business card no longer reads reporter.
I rewound that tape and briefly thought about how after that night's fiddle class I wouldn't have portions of that tape any more. But I figured that didn't matter. because my business card no longer reads reporter.
August 14, 2008
Fiddler In The Classroom
I received an email from my fiddle instructor the other day. He wrote to inform his students of the upcoming last class as well as say how much he enjoyed this most recent group of Fiddle 3 students. He added that this group was one of the best he's had and its passion for fiddling is one of the reasons why he continues teaching. I thought that was incredibly nice, but I was instantly jealous. You see, I am not in the Fiddle 3 class. I am in Fiddle Two.
For those of you who do not know, I have been taking fiddle classes at Old Town (the same place I took belly dancing) for about 7 weeks now. I originally signed up for the Fiddle 3 class, pretty much dismissing the fact that I had not really picked up my violin consistently in eight years.
I showed up to my first class wholly unprepared. One of my string was completely out of tune, and given that none of my pegs would budge, the remaining three were iffy at best. Before we began to play our first tune something struck me as incredibly odd. There were no music stands. There was no sheet music to put on the non-existent stands. There was no music to read. How could I play without music? Never in my violin-playing life had I attempted to play a song without having the aid of notes to read.
My instructor began to play. He played a note. Then we played that note. Then he played a few notes and we repeated back those same notes. Eventually we had enough notes to create a phrase. Then he played the phrase and we repeated it back. It was very akin to a musical version of Simon Says. (By the way, how cool is that link!) I was trying my best to keep up, but there happened to be a lot of very good Fiddle 3 players, and they did not need to take it as slow as I did. I tried hanging in, playing about one of every three notes. And then my string broke.
That’s right. My A string broke, the string that happened to be featured in this particular fiddle tune. I stopped and my instructor noticed. He advised I go next door to Old Town’s store and purchase a new A string. As I walked to the store I contemplated just walking home. I was clearly going to miss a large portion of our fiddle tune, and it did not seem like I’d ever be able to pick it up. But I also did not want to give up after having sat through less than one class.
I walked back into the class 20 minutes later, all my strings intact, only to realize my fellow fiddlers were half way through learning the second half of our tune. Every fiddle song has an A part and B part. My string broke half way through the A part, and I walked back into class half way through the B part. It was official. I was never going to learn this tune. I struggled through the rest of class, now getting only about one of every five notes. My eyes kept darting from my instructor's finger placement to the clock.
I breathed a sigh of relief as my instructor played the tune one last time so we could record the song to practice it during the coming week. Did I mention I also forgot to bring my recorder? I forgot to bring my recorder.
One saving grace of the class was that a guy who brought his laptop offered to email the tune to those of us who were less prepared. That is how is came to be that I was not in Fiddle 3 but received emails for the class none the less.
After my foray into Fiddle 3 I hemmed and hawed and weighed my decision to stay in the class drop down to Fiddle Two. I decided that remedial was better for me, but felt a little sadness in doing so. This class was over my head - or was it. I didn't really get the full experience with the string break and all. But I didn't want to spent my entire Fiddle 3 session frustrated at my lack of playing abilities. Honestly though, did I think I was never going to pick up Fiddle 3? Did I imagine myself as the slowest girl in class, the one the teacher would always be stopping and correcting because she was the one who just couldn’t get it? Yeah, I think part of me was afraid. I’ve always felt more comfortable sitting on the end of over qualified than I have under qualified. But as I walked out of Fiddle 3 that night, I remember thinking what a great accomplishment it would be to just jump into the class, play sloppily and then one day just get it. My fears didn’t let that happen, though and I remained in Fiddle 2 secretly though, (somewhat voyeuristic ally) receiving the Fiddle 3 songs via email.
I guess it serves me right that after weeks of peaking in on the Fiddle 3 activities I was able to find out that I had missed out on a whole lot of fun. The lesson here is I shouldn’t let my doubts get the best of me. I guess now I can only hope that when I take Fiddle 3 this next session, my instructor will find my group as delightful as the last one. Really though, I'd just like to be half as good as these kids. Or her.
For those of you who do not know, I have been taking fiddle classes at Old Town (the same place I took belly dancing) for about 7 weeks now. I originally signed up for the Fiddle 3 class, pretty much dismissing the fact that I had not really picked up my violin consistently in eight years.
I showed up to my first class wholly unprepared. One of my string was completely out of tune, and given that none of my pegs would budge, the remaining three were iffy at best. Before we began to play our first tune something struck me as incredibly odd. There were no music stands. There was no sheet music to put on the non-existent stands. There was no music to read. How could I play without music? Never in my violin-playing life had I attempted to play a song without having the aid of notes to read.
My instructor began to play. He played a note. Then we played that note. Then he played a few notes and we repeated back those same notes. Eventually we had enough notes to create a phrase. Then he played the phrase and we repeated it back. It was very akin to a musical version of Simon Says. (By the way, how cool is that link!) I was trying my best to keep up, but there happened to be a lot of very good Fiddle 3 players, and they did not need to take it as slow as I did. I tried hanging in, playing about one of every three notes. And then my string broke.
That’s right. My A string broke, the string that happened to be featured in this particular fiddle tune. I stopped and my instructor noticed. He advised I go next door to Old Town’s store and purchase a new A string. As I walked to the store I contemplated just walking home. I was clearly going to miss a large portion of our fiddle tune, and it did not seem like I’d ever be able to pick it up. But I also did not want to give up after having sat through less than one class.
I walked back into the class 20 minutes later, all my strings intact, only to realize my fellow fiddlers were half way through learning the second half of our tune. Every fiddle song has an A part and B part. My string broke half way through the A part, and I walked back into class half way through the B part. It was official. I was never going to learn this tune. I struggled through the rest of class, now getting only about one of every five notes. My eyes kept darting from my instructor's finger placement to the clock.
I breathed a sigh of relief as my instructor played the tune one last time so we could record the song to practice it during the coming week. Did I mention I also forgot to bring my recorder? I forgot to bring my recorder.
One saving grace of the class was that a guy who brought his laptop offered to email the tune to those of us who were less prepared. That is how is came to be that I was not in Fiddle 3 but received emails for the class none the less.
After my foray into Fiddle 3 I hemmed and hawed and weighed my decision to stay in the class drop down to Fiddle Two. I decided that remedial was better for me, but felt a little sadness in doing so. This class was over my head - or was it. I didn't really get the full experience with the string break and all. But I didn't want to spent my entire Fiddle 3 session frustrated at my lack of playing abilities. Honestly though, did I think I was never going to pick up Fiddle 3? Did I imagine myself as the slowest girl in class, the one the teacher would always be stopping and correcting because she was the one who just couldn’t get it? Yeah, I think part of me was afraid. I’ve always felt more comfortable sitting on the end of over qualified than I have under qualified. But as I walked out of Fiddle 3 that night, I remember thinking what a great accomplishment it would be to just jump into the class, play sloppily and then one day just get it. My fears didn’t let that happen, though and I remained in Fiddle 2 secretly though, (somewhat voyeuristic ally) receiving the Fiddle 3 songs via email.
I guess it serves me right that after weeks of peaking in on the Fiddle 3 activities I was able to find out that I had missed out on a whole lot of fun. The lesson here is I shouldn’t let my doubts get the best of me. I guess now I can only hope that when I take Fiddle 3 this next session, my instructor will find my group as delightful as the last one. Really though, I'd just like to be half as good as these kids. Or her.
January 19, 2008
A Not So Perfect Pitch
My violin is in good working order for the first time in years. I picked it up from the repair shop today and was a giddy as a kid. In the store, I held the violin, placed it under my chin, picked up the bow and pulled it across the strings.. and they hummed perfectly. It sounded amazing.
I took it home and couldn’t wait to play more. I’ve kept all my old scale books, beginner books and advanced books. The good news is I can still read them, I still remember how the notes should sound and I still can play the rhythms. For it having been so long since I played, I thought I wasn't sounding too bad.
I don’t think everyone agreed, though.
Oscar started meowing within five minutes of my playing. And then another five minutes later, I heard a neighbor of mine turn up his or her music very loud, I think in an effort to drown me out. I didn’t care though. I played on, with Oscar meowing and the neighbor’s music going the whole time. I did eventually stop, but not because I felt they wanted me to stop. I stopped because I was getting a headache.
I still maintain I sound pretty good.
I took it home and couldn’t wait to play more. I’ve kept all my old scale books, beginner books and advanced books. The good news is I can still read them, I still remember how the notes should sound and I still can play the rhythms. For it having been so long since I played, I thought I wasn't sounding too bad.
I don’t think everyone agreed, though.
Oscar started meowing within five minutes of my playing. And then another five minutes later, I heard a neighbor of mine turn up his or her music very loud, I think in an effort to drown me out. I didn’t care though. I played on, with Oscar meowing and the neighbor’s music going the whole time. I did eventually stop, but not because I felt they wanted me to stop. I stopped because I was getting a headache.
I still maintain I sound pretty good.
December 6, 2006
Bridging the Gap
Today I learned that a violin bridge costs about $6. I looked this up online not long after the bridge on my violin snapped. For those who may not know, I played violin from 5th grade until I graduated high school. And every year since, I’ve at least picked it up. I am always amazed when I do that I remember songs I played over a decade ago. Tonight was one of those nights. However, when I picked up my violin to tune it, the bridge, which had been holding up my strings since 1997, finally gave out. It snapped like a twig, and my hopes of playing a note or two any time in the near future vanished too.
Now I’m looking at bridges and thinking if I’m going to get a new bridge, I might as well restring my violin while I’m at it. And actually the pegs seem to slip more and more, so maybe I’ll swap those out too for a new set while I'm at it. But if I’m going to get new strings, I really should re-hair the bow because it doesn’t grab the strings all that well anymore either. So really this $6 piece of wood is now probably going to cost me about $200.
What was to be a small purchase is becoming an investment - an investement in something that I only use a few times a year, at best. I always told myself I didn’t want to become one of those people who said “I used to play the violin.” I did not like the sound of the past tense, but my violin playing is pretty much past tense these days. I guess it's time to consider if I want to bring it back to the present.
Now I’m looking at bridges and thinking if I’m going to get a new bridge, I might as well restring my violin while I’m at it. And actually the pegs seem to slip more and more, so maybe I’ll swap those out too for a new set while I'm at it. But if I’m going to get new strings, I really should re-hair the bow because it doesn’t grab the strings all that well anymore either. So really this $6 piece of wood is now probably going to cost me about $200.
What was to be a small purchase is becoming an investment - an investement in something that I only use a few times a year, at best. I always told myself I didn’t want to become one of those people who said “I used to play the violin.” I did not like the sound of the past tense, but my violin playing is pretty much past tense these days. I guess it's time to consider if I want to bring it back to the present.
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