An important part of becoming an adult consists of making decisions for oneself and considering how said decisions can affect one’s future. Deliberately choosing not to continue the violin in high school was the beginning of these kinds of decisions for me. It was the first time I stopped to reflect on what I wanted and the outcomes of my options.
My school year as an eighth grader was coming to an end, and soon high school would begin. But before that could happen, I had to choose whether to keep going with orchestra classes and violin lessons. I felt conflicted; I had been assigned the instrument in third grade--as is custom within my school system--and had learned how to play through the rest of elementary and middle school, but I struggled
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Can I see myself playing the violin in high school, in college, as part of a career? Are performing on stage, conducting an orchestra of my own, or teaching the violin goals that I truly want to aspire …show more content…
I could not see myself dedicating a lot of time to practicing in hopes of performing professionally one day. It wasn’t as though I hated the instrument; I enjoyed playing it for the sake of playing it. I loved to pull out my violin, hold it like a guitar, and pluck it pizzicato style when my cousins came to visit. It was rewarding to hear a song on the radio and just feel it out on the violin without sheet music. I was excited to have figured out how to employ vibrato and to use my left hand to jump to higher notes. But playing the violin for school began to feel like a chore. I didn’t feel the same spark in orchestra class that I felt when I would finally make sense of a new concept in algebra, when I attacked a volleyball just right, or when I’d immerse myself in the world of a fascinating book.
As I thought about it more, the decision became clearer. I did not want to be half-heartedly stuck with something that I was not passionate about when I could use that time to try new things or develop other disciplines or skills that I felt were more worthwhile. Back then, it was impossible to accurately predict whether or not I was making the best decision. A person does not know if a decision is right or wrong until he can look back on it later. He can only choose the option that he believes in the
I played well in the game. And I haven't touched the violin since because of that. " i. (Wiesel 93).
The first time I picked up an instrument was at the age of 7 when I was in third grade. You can call it fate, luck, or my destiny but I was one of the three students that was able to join my elementary orchestra. Of course like any kid, I was afraid if had the ability to do such a thing. I mean it’s not every day you’re recruiting into the arts. I kept asking myself “can I do this? Will I fit in this group?” in other words can I be part of the classical music culture? It wasn’t till my first school concert where I had my first solo of “My Heart Will Go On” the love theme from Titanic that I was able to express the countless hours put into a 15 second solo. After that experience I never questioned if I belonged to the culture. Instead I focused on the next story I would tell on stage with the music score in
Everyone makes at least one decision in their lifetime and it’s not always a good choice or decision. Some are small, domestic, and innocuous. Others are more important, affecting people’s lives, livelihoods, and well-being. Many of the simple decisions people make like what color pants they will wear today or whether or not they want spaghetti for dinner, etc. are often automatic or based on their preference at a given moment. Inevitably, we make mistakes along the way. So as you look back at your life and think about some of the poor choices you have made, you might find yourself wondering exactly why you made those decisions that seem so poor now in retrospect. Why did you marry someone who was all wrong for
Playing violin has always been an important part of my life. Aside from leading the Union Orchestra as Concertmaster, I served as an Assistant Principal in the Tulsa Youth Symphony. The Tulsa Youth Symphony has given me many opportunities to perform for the community and inspire people in the process. Every year, the orchestra has a Play-a-thon at the Woodland Hills Mall. Sometimes, after the event, the parents would point to me as an example and tell their children to practice harder and “be as good as that guy” (me). That absolutely made my day. A few months ago, our orchestra performed at a community event in Bristow. I highly enjoy playing at these types of events because we can reach many people with our music, who ordinarily may not be
Why would you ever want to be?! Is mainstream violinist what you want to be? Do you can to blend in with everyone else and not stand out? Violins are the smallest instruments in the orchestra. Who wants that tiny thing? It’ll get lost easily because of that size! They are the most played instrument and tend to have a large group of players so your sound will probably be masked by the others. Many times violists start on a violin because it’s a smaller size, but then change over to the viola as they grow older (that’s because we’re amazing). The violins are also the self-centered instruments because they always want to have the melodies and they think they’re the best when in reality they aren’t. OH! When they are played wrong, it is one. Of. The. Worst. Sounds. Ever. They sound like dying cats on that E string if they are out of tune! I can’t imagine anyone would intend to play
Probably one of the most important decisions I've made in my life happened this year. The decision was me , choosing whether i wanted to do drumline or play hockey. As a freshman going into the first year of highschool, it lead me to think of plenty of things. But one important fact that stuck out was me deciding if I wanted to pursue music or sports. As a freshman , I knew that I couldn't balance sports and marching band at the same time. Rehearsal for marching band happened everyday after school until 5 pm. I knew I couldn't do homework and study for tests with only 3 hours if hockey started at 9. So, I made the decision of choosing drumline over hockey. Not only would it help me balance my time doing homework, it would also help me on my
I began taking violin lessons at the age of four and have since shared my music with others in many ways. I have been in the community orchestra at Jacksonville University and am in the first violin section of the University of North Florida's string ensemble. When I performed on violin for 4-H's Share the Fun event, I placed first at the county and district levels and second at the state level, and was later asked to play at the 4-H Foundation Dinner and two Volunteer Recognition Dinners. The most unusual playing job I have had was when I played for a sale at Rhode's Furniture!
I grew up in Yazoo City the middle out of nine children, and like the rest of my siblings I was almost entirely homeschooled. Music was possibly the most important subject, which incidentally happened to be the only one my mother didn’t teach. While my parents never actually said it, we all knew that it was a given that we would be taking piano lessons from around fourth grade to graduation. But when I was little I had zero interest in piano. I –for no reasons I can remember anymore- was very draw to violin and tried my hardest –without actually coming out and asking- to get my parents to let me take violin. As a six year-old my idea of “subtle hinting” was cutting out a violin shape from cardboard, and using a pencil as a bow to show my mom how well I “played”. In the end when I turned eight my
At the age of ten, my parents decided that I should learn how to play an instrument. In addition, they also chose which instrument I should learn, the guitar. I had no interest in learning the guitar, because all I wanted to spend my leisure time on was improvising my soccer skills. However, my parents believed soccer was a waste of my precious time, time which I should be using to focus on school and expanding my brain by taking on a difficult task, such as learning to play music. This was contrary to what I believed, but I had to do it or else my parents would be displeased. Therefore, the following week, I began taking guitar lessons.
During the Baroque era, music itself was what provided the main force to keep refining the violin bow design. While the focus during the 17th and early 18th century was on fulfilling the increasing demands of challenging compositions. The compositions were orientated towards solo performance. The emphasis for compositions shifted during the 18th century towards bourgeois concert performance, which called for a powerful sound. The more powerful sound was so that it could assert itself in larger spaces. The violin had become established as a solo instrument that was able to hold its own in larger ensembles such as symphonic orchestras. The musical world of today is focused more and more on outstanding virtuosi. A virtuosi is someone who is a master or genius at something. The performance style of these virtuosi was defined by a multi-facetted bowing
I am majoring in violin performance and music has been my passion, life and soul for the last fourteen years. I am devoted to study violin in order to develop all the necessary musicianship, techniques and skills to become a well rounded and solid professional in music with specialty in violin performance.
Before I had even begun sixth grade (the point at which a person can join a band class), I knew I wanted to play an instrument. Like many others, I had this epiphany while watching the eighth grade concert band perform for my entire fifth grade class. I was mesmerized by the vast array of musical instruments. At first, I could not focus on one instrument for too long because they all seemed so equally fascinating to my young eyes. Possibility upon possibility flooded my mind— I could play trumpet!
While my sister was in orchestra, I went to every concert and I got to see how each group did and what song they played, but every time the concert began, I didn’t care much about the concert until the older kids started to play. They played the “James Bond Theme”,” The Pirates of the Caribbean”, and other great songs. Which made me want to play to just like my sister and the rest of the older kids. During the three and half years of playing the viola with my orchestra, I learned that I wasn’t the best of the
He played it so easily and without trouble. I wanted to be able to play just like him. So from that point on I tried my hardest to do the best I could in elementary music. We had a few concerts every now and then to show the parents what we had learned. My mom and dad were the only ones that came because, well, they were the only family I had in Montana or surrounding states.
The process of choosing a career is, many times, a difficult decision. Many factors must be taken into account while deciding a career. Such factors usually include pay, work environment, and most importantly, what the person is interested in. Becoming a musician would be a highly fulfilling career for the reasons of broadening one’s musical abilities, people enjoying something that an individual made, and traveling the country, possibly even the world, for musical opportunities such as teaching, performing, and writing.