Lassel Village

On Sunday I went to Lassel Village, a home for the elderly with many others, to play violin.  We played Rachmaninoff's Vocalise, Vivaldi concerto for four violins, and all of the Vivaldi four seasons as an orchestra.    Our orchestra only had 8 violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos, and one bass, but we played really well.  I think the audience liked it a lot but the program was so long that I bet that many people got tired during the concert.

 I was the 3rd violin for Concerto for Four Violins.  It was very fun to play that piece.  After we were done I wanted to play it all over again.  I also think the rest of the soloists did really well, especially the season Summer's since the Summer has a pretty hard solo part.  And playing with a whole orchestra is pretty scary.

Prior to that, I played in a piano quartet. We played Mozart Piano Quartet in g minor.

I think that it was nice to go to Lassel and play. I hope I have the experience again.

Breeze

As the yellow warbler chirps softly
In the cool morning air

As the light wind blows gently
between the trees

As the airy day fades pass slowly
with the sun

We don't mind what awaits us
Just what is Here

Octaves

Octaves

Ups and downs
Highs and lows

It ends with the same sound
Just a different octave

Octaves
Just another word for live

The Buzzing Button

One day, during my violin practice, the G string on my violin had an unexpected buzzing sound.   It sounded like a sick bee, not that loud,  just annoying. 

My dad and I checked the bridge to see if that was the origin of the problem.  He moved it back and forth, left and right. 

The  buzzing was still there!

Next we took off the fine tuners since we had just put fine tuners on a few days ago.  At first, everything was good... ... BUT THEN THE BUZZING CAME BACK!!!

My dad examined the violin.

"Perhaps it's too old!" he remarked.  Then grumbled, "C'mon...we just bought it!"

We examined to see if it wasn't attached properly then took off the chin rest.  The buzzing ceased, then abruptly started again.

We switched strings...

                        You know what happened~ The buzzing didn't stop

We checked to see if there was anything inside the violin, through the f holes.  NOTHING.

FINALLY, DEVASTATED WE GAVE UP.

I started practicing violin and suddenly my violin touched a button on my shirt.  My dad yelped, "What's that!"

 "My button", I replied.

Along the cuff of my shirt there were lots of patterned buttons.  I put a sweater over my shirt and played.  An amazing thing happened!  The buzzing stopped.

I played again.

No buzzing.

So, it all comes down to a button that caused all this trouble.

My New Violin

    Yesterday I got my new violin.  Yippee!  I've been waiting for this moment.  Before I knew my violins would come and go so there was no point loving them.

    My new violin is in-between light and dark colored.  It's pretty old and was made by Maline Koel.   If you look through the f holes, you will see the name stamped inside the violin. I think we might need to switch the pegs since they keep slipping. It looks very dirty but I like it that way.  It has a mellow and dark sound.  But you can still make it bright if you try hard.  I really like it. 

    There are also lots of thingamajiggers in the case.  One was a ticket that was for a performance on my mother's birthday!  I think this violin will bring a lot of good to me.

I played The Bee

Today I played The Bee (L'Abeille) by François Schubert (of Dresden). While I was playing, I realized my violin was out of tune . It sounded terrible! When I played an A, it sounded like an A flat! The bee sounded more like a fly. I abruptly stopped playing, and announced "I think my violin is out of the tune!". (My dad had tuned it before we came to the concert!) Then someone tuned it, and I played again. It sounded much better.

The violinist

I took a deep breath,

And sang;

I sang in a language,

A voice rarely heard;

I opened my mind, heart, and soul,

To ... ... the world.

The Violin

I heard the solemn playing of the violin;

The twists and turns of the music;

And the memories that appear;

The music is within ... ...

You.