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Friday, July 1, 2011

when sounding like a dying duck pays off.

Today I got a letter.
And it said that I got accepted into a wind ensemble on bassoon.
WHHAAAAAATTTTT.

That means that I didn't mess up my audition as much as I thought I did.
I completely bombed my E flat scale, but I guess it wasn't that big of a deal.
I'M SO HAPPY ABDLKJLBWEGLVKJSFKDSFJ.

If you're not sure what a bassoon is, it looks like this.
It's big. Very big. It's almost as tall as me.

I started playing it six months ago, and I sounded like a dying duck that was having gas problems.
It was awful. The first day of band, everyone stared at me because I sounded so incredibly bad. Like, everyone was playing this song, and then in the middle I managed to create this horrid monster of a note that clashed against everything.
It's as if I summoned a giant, ten-foot troll that stomped all over the garden of pansies that was music.
Did you like that analogy? Yeah, I liked it too. 

And when I was practicing at home, my parents would excuse themselves from the house because they couldn't stand the sound of it.
It was humiliating. 

But I kept going.
And it payed off because I don't sound like a duck anymore. Somewhat.
People still laugh at me, but I want to be good enough when I get back to school, that it blows their minds.
Then I'll have that self satisfaction of being better than them in the course of a few months.

I'm such a band geek. I love it.

16 comments:

Jodie-Ann Muckler said...

LOL! You'll be better than them. I'm like you for acting. XD
(I voted for you as well. Thanks for your vote!)

Natalie said...

good for you :)

all my friends were in band when i was in school. but i wasn't. i tried to play piano, but my fingers are too short to span an octave, so i quit. but they snuck me into basketball and football games a time or two :)

Jay said...

I was in band in school, played trombone because it was manlier than the flute, not as dorky as the tuba, and the only other brass instrument I could get a sound out of.

Natalie, I know at least one very famous piano player who's hands don't span an octave either

Yana said...

Congrats! That's exactly how I felt when last year, after only playing the saxophone for one year, I got accepted into my school's wind ensemble even though my audition sucked. It just feels like all that embarrassment was worth it.

Unknown said...

I can't play any musical instrument. So I really admire people who can. I'm sure your going to be the best.:)

cricketfreak said...

ahhaha good for you!!! Practice pays off :)

Furree Katt said...

yay, you! ♥ i loved your analogy haha. and i'm totally proud of the fact that i finally know a band geek.
i voted for youuu in the circle of moms thing, yayyy :D

Miss H said...

In my school, unless you played an instrument outside of school you could only try out for either the flute or clarinet. I passed the clarinet test but unfortunately I couldn't continue with the lessons :(

Would love to learn the violin someday though! And good on you for sticking it out! :)

Anonymous said...

Aw congrats! That's great!
Your analogy was awesome. So awesome that it made me laugh and spit out my mouthful of water. Well not really a spit. More like a waterfall erupting from my mouth all over myself.

Yay for not sounding like a dying duck!

Delilah said...

Wind ensemble on bassoon. sounds SO WHOA-ish!
So, WHOOOOOOOOAAA! =D
Congratulations Fiona. Luck with being the best among your lot. And thank you for telling me what a bassoon is. you saved me a google trip *sheepish smile*
p.s VOTED!

zaynab. said...

> : D Woo Congratz on getting into that ensemble. You probably gonna own everyone else there ~
Band Geeks FTW.

Elliot MacLeod-Michael said...

congratulations!
+followed

~BB~ said...

congrats! That's exciting news! {band geeks always had more fun in HS anyway!} Hope you meet your expectations! I have to say [ashamedly] that I have never heard of a bassoon until now. I'm sure I've been under a rock.

Jessica Thompson said...

Haha great! Congrats! alphabetalife.blogspot.com

Fiona said...

Jodie-Ann: Acting is so hard. I applaud you for doing it.

Natalie: Thank you!
And I think piano is one of the hardest instruments, because you have two sets of rythms and notes to keep track of. I lack hand eye coordination, so it's a real struggle.

JW: Trombone is amazing, since it can do that sliding thing that no other instrument can do.
And now that you mention it, I've never seen a guy play the flute.

Anna: Saxophone is such a sexy instrument ahaha. And I agree, that embarrasment was totally worth it! (:

Mayen: It's not that hard to start. You could always try the piano! [:

Cricketfreak: Thank you! And yes, it does.

Furree Katt: Ahaha, thank you. I try.

Hazel: I'm surprised you couldn't try out for violin, since it's a pretty common instrument. I hope you can learn it sometime.
Clarinet is a really nice instrument. It has a nice sound. Unlike the oboe. Ick.

Ashley: Oh dear. I hoped the waterfall didn't damage your computer (:

Delilah: Ahaha, I know right!
And it's ok. I didn't know what a bassoon was until I started playing it.

Zaynab: Thank you!
And band geeks are the best. (:

Elliot: Thanks!

BB: True true true.
Don't worry, I feel like I'm always living under a rock because I never have any clue what's going on.

Jessica: Thanks!

Rose said...

I know I'm a bit late for this post, but... I'm a bassoon player also, and so I understand how difficult it is. It's stressful, tiring, and at points so frustrating I want to chop it into pieces and quit, but we don't. Because us bassoonists are a special breed. Congrats on your placement in the wind ensemble! And shame on those who don't know what a bassoon is! :)