Stories

cellochan is off to a really nice start this fall. We have a "gallery" this year. Everyone was asked to bring a framed picture 8x11 or larger of something that has some meaning to them for the studio wall. Something appropriate of course! :) It's very interesting to see the variety of things that have come in. I'm still waiting for a few stragglers. One student did a very well done pencil and ink drawing of the word Allegro with the letters made out of the musical staff with music written on them. Messages within messages! The title is: Music to words. Lovely. He obviously gets that not only is music a language but that words and music are not completely seperate and ultimately come from the same place. Another adult student brought a painting of a small girl in a garden full of sun flowers. My guess is that she might be this little girl of a long time ago. A former cello major at the University of Michigan who chose not to make his living playing the cello but wanted to begin studying the cello again brought a picture of a rock musician who inspired him long ago. He decided he had time to play, a need to play, inspite of having 10 month old twins! Then there is one of the new boys that brought a beautiful drawing of a sailing ship done with a light pencil in a bright blue frame. Maybe he wants to go somewhere and is a bit cautious ( given the light touch of the drawing ) but wants to go on an adventure? Stories. We can make them out of anything. There are severel pictures of the students themselves holding beloved pets smiling out at themselves as they have their lesson. All these cellochan gallery contributions convey something about the students who brought them and maybe hint at what a student wants from the cello. When students come in for their lesson, I see eyes darting quickly to their "spot" on the wall as if to take note that this is their place, not just my studio. I hope it is place where they can feel safe to make mistakes and thus gain skill and confidence. So, whatever a given gallery offering means to me, of course they are just my little stories, here one second, gone the next. What is important is that I put the stories aside and pay full attention to who is in front of me. That is one of the best ways I can help a student pay full attention to what is in front of him or her ---the music, the cello, the challenges, and him or herself........the cello is a mirror.