I hope this makes you smile as much as it warmed my heart
✨ Flashback to the concert at CityU few days ago
When I saw the 200+ audience in the hall, I was overwhelmed with joy and thankfulness-- due to the government policies on group gathering, it has been over a year since I last performed live for a bigger group of audience. If you saw my Instagram Story, you probably remember I ended up playing music with my friends until 3am that night because I was very excited.
And there's more...
Do you remember my 9-year-old student who was so excited about going to a concert for the first time and asked if she could bring popcorn?
Before going to the concert, she had no idea what a concert was and what to expect. I refrained from telling her it could potentially be boring as it would be a lot of Classical music. (When I showed her recordings in lessons, she could rarely watch or listen to it without getting distracted within the first 10 seconds.) I thought she would be disappointed because she would have to be quiet and sit through an hour before she gets an intermission. After concert, I didn't get any text messages from her so I thought maybe she didn't enjoy it.
What's next?
She came to my lesson with the most uplifting energy ever. She asked me about the programme, the backstage, and told me she laughed when she heard the Poulenc Flute Sonata as she thought it was cute and funny. Her mom asked me if I perform regularly because she was surprised to see how much her daughter enjoyed the concert and would love to bring her to more events.
This is such a great reminder of how relatable Classical music can be when it is made accessible. Often times Classical musicians and adults are the ones who underestimate the power of music in resonating with the untrained ear. We assume they only like music they know. It also proves how irreplaceable live performances are. A person that does not enjoy watching performances on YouTube CAN still enjoy live performances.
