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Post by NAKAMORI TAKUMI on Jul 3, 2010 20:13:21 GMT -5
[/b] I got acid,[/b] I got tabs and aspirin tablets[/b] I'm your brother when you need,[/b] some good weed to set you free You know me, I'm your friend,[/b] when you need a mini thin I'm Slim Shady-- I'm Shady!~~~[/center] Nakamori took a sip of his melted smoothie and nodded. "Japan's music programs are adequate, but still very far behind Europe." It was part of why he wanted to visit Europe; its orchestra was definitely superior. The great composers of the classical, romantic, and baroque eras were all from Europe, anyway. When he was younger, he used to think it was something in the water that made them so musically talented.
Prodigies, he mused. How great it must be, to play an instrument with such talent--without any of the sweat and tears the average person would have to use?
He used to envy them, but by now he was over it. Music, to him, didn't mean the same thing to him without the work and tediousness. It was through his work that he'd managed to stand where he was, and would never trade that for virtuosity.
Still, he wondered where he'd be, if he were a virtuoso.
"The Suzuki method,"
[/b] he murmured. "Yes, that was what I'd been taught with. I suppose it's fairly effective."[/b] Not always, though. He knew his parents had hoped he'd grow up with a love for music--and for the most part, they'd succeeded. But having violin lessons forced down your throat wasn't the best way to embrace music. He frowned a little as he thought of it. Music meant so much to him now, whether they (or Takumi) liked it or not, so there was nothing to be done about it now, he supposed. "You dislike playing solo pieces?"[/b] he inquired, surprised. "Do you prefer accompaniments?"[/b] There was an odd statement. Most musicians lived for solo pieces. Of course, there were the few who preferred orchestral pieces--but what musician didn't like playing solo? Conveying one's interpretations to the audience wasn't something that could be done playing in an orchestra, after all. Or maybe she didn't like the pressure solo musicians faced. After all, there was nobody to cover up for one's mistakes when one was playing alone. Yes, there's always that, he thought. If the musician couldn't face up to the pressure, though, then he didn't deserve to be called one. Oh, was that it? "I'm sure your playing is fine,"[/b] he said briefly. Her tone changed a little when she started talking about her family. It wasn't a warm tone--but not resentful, either. It was... detached. "They suggested you move out,"[/b] Takumi repeated slowly. Her family didn't seem to be the nicest people, but he wasn't one to judge. In any case, his family wasn't entirely normal, either. His family had far too many expectations. Hers didn't seem to have much. His parents forced their expectations on him. Hers didn't seem to care. He wasn't sure which was worse. "Yes, parents can be very fickle,"[/b] he said.[/font][/blockquote][/justify] ~~~ words: 467 tag: junko who should play piano for taku someday comments not emo. junko has every right to be, anyway. and taku's being insightful! kinda.[/size] |
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Post by KUROSAWA JUNKO on Jul 5, 2010 18:36:13 GMT -5
Kurosawa Junko decided not to comment on the superiority or inadequacy of the various music programs around the world. She was interested, of course, but it was not a topic she was particularly well-informed in, and she did not want to appear foolish in front of a man she had met not two weeks ago.
She had never thought very much about foreigners - they were not exactly uncommon, particularly in areas of Tokyo that attracted tourists, and she was not the sort of person who was fascinated by anomalies. Rarities, abnormalities - these things did not register very much with her. She had often been told she was quite abnormal herself.
If society was an equation, then she was a variable.
"Really? That's interesting," Junko said, after listening to him speak. "I hadn't thought about how you were taught music. If you don't mind, it would be good to hear you play violin, too."
It was a little out of the blue, but he'd asked her to play piano, and Junko was sure that it was not a rude request to make.
"Maybe we could do some kind of duet," she suggested, as politely as she could. "I don't like playing solo. It isn't that I don't think I'm adequate as a pianist, it's just that..."
Just that what?
Even she didn't have the answer.
"I just don't have very good memories of it."
She could have told him a sob story about how her parents would be unsatisfied with her playing no matter how hard she tried, and about how being alone onstage would make her freeze up no matter how she detached herself from the proceedings - but even she knew that was extending into the realm of self-pity, and possibly fantasy. The last thing Junko wanted was to be the "woe is me" girl, the harbinger of angst and despair.
She probably wasn't far from it anyway, but she was sure it helped to be extremely self-aware.
Or maybe that was just adding to her problems.
She was also pretty sure that sort of thing had never happened.
"I'd have to do a lot of practicing first, though, I think. I can sight read pretty well, but it's better to be in... good shape."
She wasn't particularly good at playing traditional, classical pieces in general, but she decided that wasn't a good thing to admit. He didn't seem to be interested in other genres of music.
She was particularly fond of improvising sections involving glissando, too, which would probably make her seem like she was more rebellious than he'd initially thought.
And her parents were - well.
"Well, they have their own problems. I guess I'm past the age where that sort of thing would really be debated." She looked toward the window again. She was not looking outside, but rather at her reflection in the glass.
This was her.
Kurosawa Junko, would-be translator.
She fixed her hair and glanced back to her now-empty smoothie cup, the ice melting at the bottom -
- it occurred to her that she was still thirsty.
"Excuse my manners," she said suddenly, a solemn expression crossing her features, as she uncapped the drink and - gravely - ate one of the remaining pieces of ice.
There was nothing about it that was strange, and yet it was not something one would generally do in public. Ultimately, it didn't really matter, but Junko was feeling a little embarrassed all the same.
Her features remained stoic.
[/justify] - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - words: 585
tag: a very insightful nakamori takumi
comments: the more embarrassed junko is the more she tries to hide it... [/left] |
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Post by NAKAMORI TAKUMI on Jul 6, 2010 19:49:58 GMT -5
He nodded. "I wouldn't mind playing for you,"
[/b] he said honestly. Even if she wasn't a music expert, she had some understanding of it--nothing shallow. She seemed to understand the importance of an interpretation, and it was always nice to play for somebody who realized that. Somebody who wouldn't answer with a monotonous, "That's pretty." "You could accompany me,"[/b] he offered, smiling a little. "If you'd like. Brahms's Sonatas--have you heard them before? They're duets."[/b] He liked Brahms's Sonatas; he'd had an obsession with them in fifth grade, and listened to them at least twenty times a day, for over half a year. Then he'd gotten incredibly sick of them for a year. And then he went back. He couldn't really help it; they had a trickling, watery sort of quality. It sparkled, almost. It did. He was startled--well, not startled, but mildly surprised, maybe?--when she said that she didn't have good memories of her early lessons. He was tempted to say something like, "That's awful," but that would have been an obvious thing to say. He wondered, though. Did her parents force music onto her, too? Takumi still didn't know if being forced into music was worth it, or not. He couldn't live without it now--but that was both a positive and negative thing. "I have some poor memories of it, too,"[/b] he said finally. In his opinion, everyone does, at some point. Nothing stayed gold, anyway. "You could pick a piece now, if you want. And practice it until the next time we meet."[/b] He wondered what genres she liked. Something classical? Contemporary? Pop? He'd always held a certain predilection for classical music, but the arts was one of the few things he was fairly liberal with. "Innocent,"[/b] he suggested. "It's for a string quartet, but I'm sure there have been piano transcriptions made. It's by Bond."[/b] He turned away for a moment and took out his tennis bag. His iPhone was fairly new, and he only had a few songs on it. He looked through the pieces, pressed play, and handed her a set of headphones. He dropped the subject of their parents and settled for deciding that all parents were a little--odd. "That's the piece,"[/b] he said, gesturing to the iPhone. "Tell me what you think."[/b] His smoothie was practically emaciated, anyway. Without a second thought, he took his smoothie and (what was left of) Kurosawa's, and tossed it out. He stood up to order two more.[/font][/blockquote][/justify] ~~~ words: 416 tag: junko, would-be translater, woe is me girl comments: taku is such a food/smoothie waster.[/size] |
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