Growing Up...Musically

November 2, 2005 at 10:24 PM

I went through the strangest experience today.
Flipping through my stockpile of music, I found Kreisler's Praeludium and Allegro. I had never played it, and at camp I had been told it was "above me". I had commenced to play it (I'm one of those people who seem to think that a "yes" is a "no" and finds a "you can't do it" is more motivation than "you can do it!") and found that my camp instructor was (miserably) right. But for some reason, today, I decided to attempt it.
To my surprise and delight, I found it wasn't half as hard as it had been just months ago. After going through the chords at the end several times (which had tied me in knots over the summer) to convince myself I actually was playing it in tune and accurately, I played through the entire piece.
That left only one piece in my stash that i had not yet attempted; the dangerous Tchaikovsky. Now, I knew (and know) that the Tchaik was way above me, but wasn't it possible that maybe I could stumble my way through a few pages? Just to get a feel for it. I toyed precariously with the idea; only a few months ago I had looked and attempted it, commencing to mark the concerto as one of the many pieces "I will never ever ever be able to play". Heck, only last year I had looked on the Accolay as a hard piece. Finally, I decided to try the Tchaik at a snail's pace, just for the heck of being defiant...
And I could play it.
It was an amazing feeling! Yes, it was slow, the technique (I'm sure) wasn't of the highest caliber, and there were many spots that needed serious work, but the fact was, what had been impossible just months ago was now within my grasp!
It was one of those impossible "firsts"; the first time you put makeup on your face and it looks good, the first time you go out with a guy, your first time playing with an orchestra, your first kiss...all those things that seem impossible and than one day, SNAP, you've just done it.
Maybe I'm just weird, but I think I can assure myself that I've advanced a lot with the help of my teacher and my friends and family. And THAT, my friends, is a wonderful feeling.
Signing off,
Natasha

From Sydney Menees
Posted on November 2, 2005 at 10:37 PM

Weird! So weird! I was doing that (the Tchaik) a few weeks ago and found that I could play it too! I was also working on PandA in the beginning of the year, but I'm not going performance level with either of them right now because I have other stuff.

From Eric Stanfield
Posted on November 2, 2005 at 10:55 PM

Grats! You are still young enough that you should never consider anything (music or otherwise!) beyond your grasp. As you see, hard work pays off and we never know what we are truly capable of until we make the attempt. Grats again, very inspiring!

From Gwen Falconer
Posted on November 3, 2005 at 12:49 AM

That's lovely to hear!

From Pauline Lerner
Posted on November 3, 2005 at 6:15 AM

Congratulations! That sounds like a great experience.

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