The first chapter is an unbelievable story of a man who was struck by lightening. He was an orthopaedic surgeon and was completely unaffected after the being struck, aside from having a sudden strong desire to learn piano! He would dream music, but had no way of notating it, since he had no music education. He began to devote himself to learning piano and theory in every moment outside of work. This did not go over very well with his wife and they eventually divorced.
My oboe teacher suggested that perhaps she chose oboe as a result of being hit in the head with a baseball as a child. She pondered further over the fact that there are not many hockey players that play the oboe.
I don't remember if there was a key moment when I decided to get serious about piano. I was young and we had a piano at home and my parents put me in lessons. I am always curious to hear why my adult students start piano though.
I chose the oboe in high-school because it seemed the most interesting. It is also a great instrument to accessorize (unlike the piano) and I pride myself in my colourfully tied oboe reeds and purple polka-dotted reed case, fun!
I started piano at age 8 because my parents signed me up after the director of the choir I was in encouraged everyone to take piano as a way of learning more about music. I started flute at age 14 because my piano teacher said I had "flute fingers." It was really nothing deep, just circumstance that led me to flute playing, but it was a snap decision that brought more inspiration, experiences, and joy than I ever would have expected.
ReplyDelete