Junior Year Part 2 – Memoir Continued

Toward the end of the school year, I tried out with the choir director, Mr. Meyer for my senior year. I also brought in and sang for him, To the Evening Star from Tannhauser by Wagner, which I sang at the City Auditions after Mr. Meyer approved and assigned me a piano accompanist. And guess who he assigned me… Rosalin, my freshman crush (then a music college student). I had no idea she played piano too. I went to her house to practice a couple of times. And when we performed for the auditions, we got a #1 rating. Mr. Meyer’s favorite senior in the competition only got a 2. I was the only one of my high school’s contingent to get a 1.

Mr. Meyer encouraged me to enter the State Auditions. But he didn’t want me to use the same piece that I used in the City Auditions… I don’t remember why he insisted that I learn a new piece, but I do remember thinking the reasoning stupid. Well, I had to learn Schumann’s Two Grenadiers in German. Yes, I was taking German in school, and I sang the City Audition piece in German too. But the Two Grenadiers was more difficult in that we only had a couple of weeks to learn and memorize it and the German alliteration was also more difficult than in my previous selection… Again, no sheet music allowed… if you wanted a high rating. The ratings were 1 through 5. A rating of 5 questioned why you had bothered to enter, as you either didn’t actually try or you had no musical talent.

For me, this one was a disappointing experience. The pressure got to me, and even though I had memorized the piece. When Rosalin hit the first chord, my mind blanked. It took me a couple of minutes to get myself together, and we started again. Mr. Meyer, Rosalin, and others who heard it said I had nailed it, and I thought so too… but the judges did not concur. They rated me a 2. Not only had I blanked out at the beginning, they claimed my German pronunciation was not good enough to warrant a 1 rating… Well, I know what it feels like to be ‘a one hit wonder’… Then summer was upon us, and I had to work with dad, and I never saw Rosalin again.

By then, I had been driving for more than a year. So, I also drove one of Dad’s plumbing trucks to and from whatever job we happened to be working for the rest of the summer. I had also started Judo at 16, leaving me no spare time at all. I was still taking violin lessons and singing in our church choir, so I had to keep working at those, too.

To be Continued

–LE