La Petite Niemand: The Hills(iary) are alive, with the sound of....

Today I’m going to write about something that has been maybe one of the important aspects of my life: Music. Everyone has a favorite type of music, whether it’s the mindless hits on Billboard’s Weekly Top 40, the classics from back in the 60’s, or the original classics of Mozart, Beethoven, and Chopin. Not many people I know now know this about me, but music has been a part of my life ever since about the same age that I learned how to read and write.
For most kids’ 6th birthdays they get cool hotwheels sets, Candyland, Barbie’s Malibu Dream House, Disney movies, doodlebears, etc, etc… But not me. I got “piano lessons.” One could tangibly feel my disappointment, as I learned that THAT was going to be my birthday present, and not that Princess Jasmine (from Aladdin) Barbie doll that I wanted to badly. Little did I know then, that I got the jackpot of all birthday presents- the one that keeps on giving all year long (that was for you my fellow Christmas Vacation fans).
Roughly two years after starting my piano lessons, I decided to kick my music career up a notch, and added the trumpet to my repetoire. The day I decided I wanted to play the trumpet was the same day my mom said, “are you sure?? It’s just so noisy and not-girly. Are you sure you don’t want to play the flute, or the violin??.” I was sure. I was immediately fascinated by the trumpet. I loved how loud it could be, how high it could play, and the feel of the cold steel against my mouth and hands. Although I was deathly embarrassed to be caught playing both piano and trumpet alone, some of my proudest moments and most treasured memories include my piano recitals and band/orchestra concerts and performances.
I know that band gets a dorky reputation, and to a degree I understand why. Generally speaking, the kids who choose music over athletics (ESPECIALLY at such an awkward age as pre-pubescence and teenage years) tend to be more awkwardly developed physically, but make up for it in theirtalents elsewhere. The great paradox of this however, is that while kids who take up classical music are looked at with such animosity and this overbearing umbrella term of “geek,” the kids who start a band and sing and play guitar or drums are somehow.. not? I don’t understand why there is such a discrepancy between rock music being “cool” and consequently those who are part of rock bands are also cool, while classical music is the exact opposite. I mean, who are we kidding, of course to a degree I “get it,” but when you get down to the principle basics behind both rock bands and classical orchestras, there really isn’t a whole lot of difference. In both cases, it is performed by people with an affinity for music, the talent to perform it, and the desire to share their talent with others.

And now im COMPLETELY off topic. Where I was TRYING to go with this post was the reconnect it with my LAST post where I was having a midlife crisis about my life. Anyway, since I’ve already drabbled on and on, I’ll make this part short. I was thinking about all my memories and experiences where I was truly happy and truly proud of myself, and most of my band and piano memories are my most treasured. But what about those kids who didn’t get piano lessons for their birthday? Should they be denied the same sort of gratification and happiness that I eventually got out of it?? What if these kids who aren’t getting piano lessons and trumpets are the same kids who live in really low-income neighborhoods and don’t get ANY opportunities- musically speaking or otherwise?? How is it fair that I grew up in Arcadia, which has one of the best established music programs arguably in the country, but my neighbors, literally down the street in El Monte or Downtown LA don’t even have a school-funded music program at all?? Anyway. Longstory short. I was thinking it would be “nice” (to use the most underwhelming word I could) to help these innercity kids learn music, and to bring the same sort of pride and sense of accomplishment I felt to them.

This was a very strange blog post for me. It’s probably the post I’ve felt most passionate about, and yet was the hardest for me to write (which I’m sure is evident in my writing style). I clearly can’t express in writing how important Music has been throughout my childhood and life, so I’m just going to post a few links to some clips that really inspire me and literally give me chills because of how great they are.

Enjoy.

Till next time.

HBP

Yo-yo Ma playing Bach. Unbelievable.

The final installment from Mussorgski's Pictures at an Exhibition: The Great Gate at Kiev. I saw this live played by the LA Phil and my ears were ringing a full DAY later because of the crescendo at the end.