Thursday, December 14, 2006

Yeah, sometimes I miss it...

I started playing the violin in third grade. I took one year off (7th grade) and missed it so much that I rejoined the orchestra in 8th grade and continued all through h.s. I was not the best violinist ever, but I was pretty good (improving from a 2nd violinist to 4th chair first violinist in a year's time*).

I loved it. I loved how so many different people could come together and create a such spectacular sounds; ensemble pieces really are quite cool. I think you also become close to the people with whom you make music. Perhaps that is because everyone transitions from suck to (hopefully) great with each new piece of music leaving little room for peer judgement, but quite a bit for encouragement and camaraderie.

When I went to college I again stopped playing the violin. I was not nearly good enough to be in college orchestra, and playing the violin solo was just not for me. Piano - that's a solo job. Violins belong in an orchestra. So, I hung up my violin and have rarely looked back.

Occasionally I find myself missing it, however. Like tonight. Tonight I'm sitting here writing a paper on the rise of China's soft power and I'm listening to a CD of my old violin teacher's quartet. The tone from the instruments is just beautiful and right now, at this moment, I miss playing in an orchestra.

Ah well... that is all.

*Having played both, I don't think it's quite fair to assume 2nd violinists aren't as talented as 1st violinist (although that is how we were ranked in my h.s. ). Generally, 1st violinists play more of the melody, and many times that is easier than what the 2nd violinist had to play.

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3 comments:

Amanda G. said...

light of day + 8 hours sleep = realization that this blog post is rather sappy.

Anonymous said...

sappy or not, i totally know how you feel. i played saxophone (alto) from 5th grade all the way through high school and i really enjoyed it, but never got that good at it. i was 1st or 2nd chair, 2nd sax usually. i haven't really played it since i graduated high school-- almost 10 years now! and i really regret not playing for so long. i've always loved the sound of the saxophone (and violin as well). i can't even play it anymore though. i mean, i can blow some notes, but i'm nowhere near as good as i used to be (which wasn't that great). so, i can totally relate with you.

also, i think violin is great solo or with a band. i've seen a few bands lately that incorporated violin into a few of their songs. playing/creating music with other people is one the coolest things for me. i always wanted to be in a band (besides the school band). so i'm learning bass guitar now (and i like to play around with keyboards and drums). we should both start playing again though. pick up your violin and start practicing! teach yourself to play again, or maybe take some lessons! i would love to be able to play sax again. it's frustrating practically starting from scratch again though. anyway... i guess my point is that it's sad when people waste their talents.

Amanda G. said...

sadly, I sold my violin several years ago (after several years of it collecting dust). :(