For me, this has been an extreme year of change. I still want to be a cellist, but sometimes I wonder if anything else is still the same. This is in part because of the people I have met and the experiences I've had. The trials I've gone through and tribulations I have survived. Throughout the year, I have traveled to many cities, participated in clinics, and given some life altering concerts. The fact that my senior year has come to a close usually brings me to a state of overwhelming depression. I have to say goodbye by to so many things: My day to day life, my friends, my teachers, my mentors, and my family.
But today, while driving down highway 153, I was stricken with a much better, my different feeling. I was listing to the Pops station when "An der Elbe" came on. It is a very stereotypical waltz that was written by Strauss II. I am not saying it isn't beautiful. I mean come on... who doesn't love a good waltz by Strauss. The flying melody and familiar "1, 2, 3" would put anyone at ease. The waltz is after all a dance. I know it is one woman's opinion but I'd like to think that everyone is at least slightly in tune with Rhythm and movement. That is the basic reason why music is a universal language.
Anyways, as the music progressed and the waltz took shape I began to really love summer.
And let me tell you, I was anything but happy with this season at the time. My cars air condition is out, so I was extremely hot and on top of that my legs were itching like mad... I hate mosquitoes. I know hate is a strong word, but I don't care. They suck blood which seems like a thing that is okay to hate.
Now comes the part where I explain why this insignificant waltz made me love the sticky heat and sweltering sun. On several occasions when I was young my parents would take us down to Coolidge Park in downtown Chattanooga. There are wide open spaces, a fountain with animal statues to climb on, and a merry-go-round. The ride wasn't extremely spectacular. Of course I had my favorite horse, Rose, and as a young kid it was very exciting, but looking back there was only one thing on my mind.
I was always mesmerized by the music... the waltzes. I always thought that they were extremely beautiful. It is why I've always said, if I had to play only waltzes for the rest of my life, I would.
(Quick explanation: I am a cellist... that means I would be stuck playing "boom, chuck, chuck" forever.)
But for me, the "1, 2, 3" reminds me of when I was young and the most thrilling thing I could think of was to was riding that silly merry-go-round in the dead of summer. When everything is hot and gross. The time of summer when you wouldn't be caught dead outside. For me, I can find joy in that time because of the insignificant waltzes.
I thought I had lost my childhood excitement of the merry-go-rounds. I want bigger and more flashy things. I have not, however, grown tired of waltzes. They come on and in a second my entire day is changed. That is crazy. It is a piece of music. a common rhythm. How can that even be possible?
So yes, this year has been an exciting, crazy ride. But I am certain that the pieces of music I have played will give me an unbelievable window into this time of my life. If any random waltz can take me back to being 6 years old, than can't Tchaikovsky Serenade for Strings bring me back to CCA? Can't Mambo bring me back to All State and "Blow it up, Start again" bring me back to my last youth orchestra concert?
P.S. Sorry if there are any grammatical errors... I tried my hardest to catch them but my mom usually proofs my stuff.
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