About three months ago I began playing the violin, something I have procrastinated about for over 40 years. I took piano lessons as a child, and although I very much wanted to learn the violin, there was no orchestra in our town, nor any teachers nearby.
I suppose I didn't have to wait so long to play one -I played other instruments, why not the fiddle? But now that I'm taking lessons and practicing 15 hours per week, I realize that mastering the violin is like caring for a child - it takes a lot of time, dedication and patience. And since I'm not gainfully employed right now, I do have more time to practice than the average person.
One of the things that drives me is that I have a lot of years to make up for. Not like I intend to play in a symphony orchestra, but I want to play well enough so that I could sit in on a music jam without people sneering at me. I also remember that uneasy feeling in my stomach I used to get when I went to my piano lesson unprepared. I hated the way my teacher would look at me with disdain, and how guilty I would feel about playing with my friends instead of practicing my scales.
My teacher, Kris Mandrick, is a kind and patient instructor who encourages me with every lesson. When I think I can't possibly play a piece better because I don't have the natural ability, she shows me a technique to work on, and suddenly it sounds better. And although when I'm practicing at home I feel like my violin sounds terrible, I suddenly improve when I show up for my lesson. Kris and I are playing several classical duets together, plus some bluegrass, and a couple of waltzes - a little bit of everything to round out my musical portfolio.
Each lesson, Kris tells me that my violin must find its voice. That I should not be discouraged, that voice will come. This is something I have never heard of before. Doesn't an instrument sound only as good as the musician who plays it? Well certainly that is part of it, but apparently, a violin matures as it is played, and the sound developes as the musician developes. No two violins sound the same, even if they were crafted by the same luthier. Part of that depends on environment, too. My violin might sound different if I was playing it in New Hampshire rather than Florida.
Yesterday, Kris congratulated me. "Your violin is finding its voice! Can you hear it?" We played a traditional fiddle tune called Soldiers Joy, with Kris accompanying me on guitar. I messed up a lot of the notes because it's a new song, and we played it pretty fast, but she was right. The violin was singing in its own voice!
Happily, I am determined to practice my scales more often, and find my own voice in music, with guidance from Kris and my own violin, that has developed a personality all its own. Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote, "Take a music bath once or twice a week for a few seasons. You will find it is to the soul what a water bath is to the body."
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