I started playing the violin when I was 5 years old. Initially, I picked it up just because my brother played and I wanted to be an adult and play too. However, playing did not automatically make me an adult-I was, after all, only five. In any case, I started private lessons immediately, different from most people who begin private lessons through the school (when they start in 3rd grade). For the last 10 years, I have taken lessons with Mrs. Louise Auld. She is a wonderful teacher and a wonderful person, and she had become my friend in addition to being my violin teacher. In fact, last year I tried switching teachers, and although my new teacher was a very nice person, I had a very difficult time adjusting to a new style of teaching. I play the violin purely to enjoy making music; I'm not going to be a professional, so although I know how important things like scales and etudes are, I want to play concertos and sonatas and learn as much as I can while I am still in high school (because playing interesting and complex compositions is where the real joy of classical music lies). In all honesty, I used to be a MAJOR slacker and I never practiced (I hated practicing, but I loved to perform). But in the last couple of years, my willingness to practice has increased a great deal, and I kind of enjoy it now (kind of). However, I still, probably like many of you musicians out there, don't particularly enjoy my scales and etudes, and I have to be pushed to practice them. I know they're good for me, but they're SO boring!!! Anyway, they do help and I have resolved to practice them diligently this year. I hope I do...
My favorite piece that I have performed thus far (aside from the Bruch Scottish Fantastie, which I adore) has been the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto. That has been my standard audition piece for the last few years, and I continue to enjoy it. The third movement is a lot of fun, but the first is quite passionate and lovely as well. My favorite composers are Brahms and Tchaikovsky (although I have yet to try either of those violin concertos..they're a little-note the sarcasm here-too difficult for my present level of expertise...or lack thereof...) and George Gershwin (because I also love jazz and so I adore his style), and my least favorite composers are, without a doubt, Vivaldi and Handel. Vivaldi composed what I consider to be okay background music, but usually it sounds like nothing more than repeated sixteenth notes. The Four Seasons is the only Vivaldi piece which, at times, sounds different than its brothers and sisters. Handel just annoys me; I don't know why. I also can't stand Bartok; sometimes he's just too weird...But my least favorite piece is not by any of these composers...it's Pachabel's Canon. In my own words, it's incredibly retarded. Perhaps I would be able to tolerate it if I weren't ALWAYS asked to play it for something or other.
Completing the Beethoven Violin Concerto could take a while, as I hope to use it for my college auditions next year, but after that I would like to maybe learn one of the "next level" violin concertos, like Brahams or Dvorak. It would be fun to try anyway : - ). I am hoping to take lessons in college; even though I know I will be really busy, I don't want to lose all that I have achieved because I can't make time to practice my instrument. It would be a shame to lose the fruits of my labor, especially because playing the violin is something I enjoy so much.
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