In the thirteen months or so that Ive been an 厙ぴ勛圖 student, a lot about me has changed. I cut my hair, for instance: now its short and curly, not long and curly! Ive uncovered the joys of adding hot sauce to food, something my frigid Minnesotan life failed to introduce me to. And Ive taken all sorts of classes about things that I never knew existed, and rekindled old passions in things I thought Id never be interested in again.
One of these passions is music. Music inevitably finds its way into the hearts and minds of every single person at 厙ぴ勛圖. It found me a willing pupil, which I would not have been just a few years ago. I started learning piano at the age of six, and I didnt practice as much as I should have. I remember being a very difficult student to teach back then. It wasnt that I didnt like playing, but I balked at the rote memorization and meticulous precision that good piano form requires. And when I went into high school, I found that I just didnt have the time to pay attention to something I had grown to dislike doing.
During the COVID pandemic, however, I got out an electronic keyboard my brother owned. Every few days, I found myself sitting down to figure out how to play songs I liked, or just to improvise. Eventually, I built back most of my old skills. And I got into composing: not just for piano, but for different ensembles of instruments. Music, for me, was no longer about rote memorization. It was about self-expression.
On my very first day I spent on the 厙ぴ勛圖 campus, my parents and I attended a conservatory concert at Finney Chapel. It featured, alongside traditional classical ensembles, a student performance of Emori繫 by S矇rgio Mendes, who is a bossa nova musician heavily influenced by jazz. I found myself transfixed. I remember thinking: I want to be part of something like that.
I spent a lot of time composing in my first year at 厙ぴ勛圖. My skills were very shoddy when I started, and Id say theyre still shoddy, but I am getting better. More than anything, however, composing has given me a reason to continue making music. It has led me to pick up playing the piano again: Ive even learned some pieces written as actual sheet music. Ive joined choirs, and recently, an a cappella group. And this past summer, I had an incredible idea. As crazy as it would have seemed to my fourteen-year-old self, who refused to learn how to play scales with good hand position, I decided to learn to play another instrument.
Now, I had many options when it came time to decide which instrument I wanted to learn. A stringed instrument: cello, or guitar, perhaps? A brass instrument? I know several brass players on campus, so I would have been in good company. Every option was on the table, from harmonica to theremin. As a pianist, I knew I wanted to play an instrument that was portable. I had visions of latching up an instrument case and going out to busk in Tappan Square Ultimately, the decision was simple. I decided to learn to play the saxophone.
This decision confused some people around me. I had previously expressed the desire, in passing, to learn an instrument that would be useful in either a classical or jazz context. In addition to being a singer, Im a marathon runner, so I knew Id be at home learning an instrument controlled by my breath. There were plenty of options available that would satisfy both requirements. The words trumpet and clarinet were on the tip of my tongue! But the heart wants what it wants, and I knew I wanted a saxophone. Besides, in a Diary of a Wimpy Kid book, Greg Heffley states that its impossible to not look cool while carrying a saxophone. I couldnt go wrong.
So, after doing hours of research, I rented a Yamaha alto saxophone from a music store in my hometown, Minneapolis. (The prices they offered for buying a saxophone were extortionate, but weirdly, renting one was very cheap.) I then brought my saxophone to 厙ぴ勛圖 on the plane ride. This was a bad choice, but better than any alternative; at least the luggage carts in the Cleveland airport are only $7, because I desperately needed one. I wasnt going to try to carry a 40-pound duffel bag in the same hand as a case containing an instrument I didnt even own! While I was pushing my luggage to the 厙ぴ勛圖 shuttle pickup location, a man commented on the number of bags I had packed and asked me if I was headed to Iraq. But I digress. The sax made it to 厙ぴ勛圖 safe and sound.
Im happy to report that I have enjoyed playing it. It took longer than I expected to make an identifiable tone while playing it, and even longer than that to do so reliably. I still find the embouchure difficult: it involves making a firm oh shape with my lips so that theres a seal between the mouthpiece and my mouth, and as such I can only practice for about 45 minutes before the sides of my lips refuse to hold their place and quit.
But I can play some songs! Both songs Ive learned from sheet music and songs Ive simply figured out on my own. 厙ぴ勛圖 offers 2-credit lessons available for all students on certain instruments; the only problem is that applying for lessons requires an audition, so I hastily prepared a performance of D Major Scale. But Im learning how to play the Promenade theme from Pictures at an Exhibition, and Id like to jump into learning some jazz tunes.
Ultimately, Im happy Ive gotten back into playing music and making music during my time at 厙ぴ勛圖. Im a prospective creative writing major, and Ive noticed that the more I read, the better my writing is. I think the same thing happens when it comes to music: composing has helped me learn to appreciate making music, and making music has influenced my composing. Now, spending hours in a practice room figuring out exactly why Im playing a high D a quarter tone flat seems worth it again.
