I’m learning to play the mandolin. I go to 30th and Church on Thursdays after work to the tiny apartment of a British woman. I seem to remember her resume in the book at the music school said she had an advanced degree in a natural science. Her apartment is possibly even smaller than mine is, but there’s plenty of room to get crazy with the mandolin. I’ve only had one lesson, so for now, I only get to practice striking open strings. There are only 4 strings (well 4 pairs), and only 4 patterns I’m to practice. I got a metronome, so I can practice this at different speeds. I can also practice this piano or forte. That’s all I’m allowed to practice for now. Pretty exciting eh?
The actual exciting part is that the mandolin is tuned like a violin, so if I were to get proficient with it, I might be able with a little practice, to play some violin. Or, to get crazy with the fiddle. Chances are these lessons will get my music reading skills to erupt with heretofore-unknown power. It’s a good thing that I am not only a soprano, but that I only choose instruments written in the treble clef. F the bass clef anyway. It’s probably too early to get excited about the NEXT instrument I might want to learn, since I’ve only had one lesson, and my guitar skills are limited to crappy tab reading while I sing retarded folk songs, but I have a picture in my mind of my future spare room where all my instruments are lined up, and I spend my crazy-old-lady-hood in there tuning them to each other for hours on end.
Posted by allison at September 22, 2004 05:43 PM