Music
has been a big part of my life, giving me many music related
memories. My interest in music came pretty early, mostly because of how much a
part of my parents’ lives it was. Growing up I was surrounded by music in many
forms including music on the radio, records that my parents played, cassettes
belonging to my sisters and I, and music at church.
One of my most vivid memories of
music as a child was at my church. In Sunday school we would learn songs and
then perform them in front of the congregation every once in a while. Being the
mature five-year-old that I was, whenever we performed, I was slightly
embarrassed by my classmates (mostly the boys) who during our performances
would frequently mess around and not sing. I took these songs very seriously
and would sometimes practice at home to make sure I knew the words and
corresponding hand motions that went with the song. I specifically remember one
performance where we sang the song, and throughout the whole thing I was
looking around making sure that I wasn’t doing anything wrong or standing out
from everyone else. As I got older and started developing a pride and sense of embarrassment
I began enjoying these performances less, but I still cherish the memories of
singing as a group when I was young and carefree.
Another early memory of music comes
from piano recitals. I began playing piano early in my life because whatever my
older sister Grace was doing (in this case taking piano lessons) was what I
wanted to do, as a typical younger sister. My first few piano recitals were
actually some of my best performances, because I was able to actually enjoy
them! As a 3 ½ year old I didn’t yet understand what there was to be afraid of,
and I thought it was no different from practicing at home. I only remember
pieces of these first recitals, but according to my mom, anytime I got stuck or
forgot a part of a song I was playing, I would turn to my teacher sitting in
the front row of chairs and ask her what came next. Sadly, I’ve since realized
that this isn’t the best plan of action when forgetting notes in a piano
recital. I distinctly remember being about 5 years old and at a piano recital.
While I was watching some of the older kids play, I was just astonished at how
good they were. I couldn’t believe that they were able to move their fingers
that fast and play so many notes at the same time. These experiences were a part
of what has inspired me to keep playing piano to this day.
One thing that my sisters and I did
to entertain ourselves at the ages of 10, 6, and 4 was daily dance parties. We
got our own CD player when I was about 5, which introduced us to a whole new
realm of opportunities when it came to our own music. Some of our favorite CDs
were a Kids’ Bop track, a collection of bible story songs, and the soundtrack
from Veggie Tales’ “The pirates who don’t do anything”. All three had lots of
good dance songs that we would use as background music to run in circles around
our shared room, jump up and down and yell. This was always a fun time, but the
second we heard one of our parents knock on the door, we would begin the quick
and rehearsed protocol for such occasions. Grace would run to the door, I would
run to pause the CD, and Laura would pick up anything from the floor. That way,
we made sure that our parents never knew what a party we were having. All of us
probably had some sort of idea that our parents could here every word and every
thump of feet through the floor, but ignoring that was what made it fun.
Overall, my early memories of music
are very positive, and there are many of them. Though some of my most vivid memories
are the ones that I didn’t enjoy, like realizing that people actually pay attention
when you get up in from of them and play piano, I know that there were many
more positive experiences with music in my childhood, and I know there are more
to come.
