Before I joined the beginner band here, I had forgotten how much instruments can sound like animals in pain (or pleasure).
Trumpets? I sometimes imagine them a bit like the sound of elephants mating. Clarinets? Who's whacking a Canadian Geese with the end of a canoe paddle? Flutes? A small child trying to get a sound out of a sharp blade of grass rubbed between two hands on an August afternoon. Put it all together and what have you got? Auditory chaos and a big headache!
But, after a mere 6 weeks of learning an instrument, we did manage to put on a little concert thanks to our mentors - Wendy - and her husband Derrick, former professional trumpet player turned veterinarian.
And, just to confuse everyone, we had orders to dress in a combination of black, white and red, (no psychedelic prints or tie-dye allowed and leave the Birkenstocks in the closet), we arranged ourselves in our usual spots in the Mexican Restaurant where we normally practice.
After transforming Jingle Bells from a holiday favorite into the fugue version, and to celebrate that our audience survived listening to our seven-song concert, beer, nachos and chicken wings were sent all around to wash down the knowledge that performance anxiety can truly be conquered if we keep on practicing.
That's right, given enough time, we too can become members of the Saltspring Community Concert Band. That's my goal. I'm not leaving the island until I've played in at least one concert.