“We don’t make no’s shake us. We feel how we feel and we keep pushing.” “Waitlisted doesn’t mean no. It means we’re going to wait and see. And while we wait, we keep pushing.” “Playing the viola is hard and you’re killing it! We’re gonna keep refining and keep going.” I had some nerve to say these things to my student.
As my students began to feel their first rejections by the classical music world, it breaks my heart. Up until this point, they have experienced music in a bubble. They go to orchestra rehearsals, attend private lessons, and often are the leaders of the pack among their peers. When they leave this bubble however, they realize there are many musicians their age doing the same thing they are doing and some of whom are doing it better than them. And here they are for the first time, not getting something they went after. What can I say to them when I struggle with the same thing?
I have a viola student that I am so proud of, to the point that I brag about her to my friends. In spite of the circumstances of quarantine, she has improved significantly. With two lessons a week, she comes excited and ready to learn every time. For the past several months, we have been waiting to hear from a local arts school about her acceptance. Although I she did not consult me in the preparation of her application materials, I was still confident she would be accepted. I asked her every couple of weeks if she heard anything from the school and finally she did...Read the rest HERE!