One With the Music

I step on stage and my heart beats at a million miles an hour. As I let my fingers take over, I relax and immerse myself into the song. When I’m playing guitar, I don’t have to worry about anything else, like the colossal amounts of homework due, my next big game, or even the seemingly astronomical crowd staring up at me. It’s like taking a hiatus from the real world, where all your problems melt away into music. All I have to fret about is hitting the right note and staying on beat.   

This hidden oasis in the vast desert of reality wouldn’t exist without the modern classical guitar, an acoustic wooden guitar that originated in Western Europe. It belongs to a family of wooden instruments called chordophones. It typically has six strings made of nylon. The design of the modern classical guitar can be attributed to Antonio de Torres, the most influential guitar maker in the 19th century.  Francisco Táregga was a guitarist and composer who was considered the father of modern classical guitar playing. He determined many aspects of the modern classical technique and raised the prestige of the guitar in the classical music tradition.

My pick hits the last note and I let it ring out as applause erupts from the audience. Walking offstage after a performance is the best feeling. it’s an adrenalin rush, and really boosts your confidence. It’s a feeling of relief for getting past it and not having to be the center of attention any longer, and of exuberance for conquering any fears about performing. It’s also a little sad because the music stopped and reality dawns on you again. I am so thankful for people like Francisco Táregga and Antonio de Torres because they assisted the foundation of the instrument I love. Without them, there wouldn’t be that feeling of stepping of the stage, or the butterflies that tickle my stomach before I perform. There would be no interruption of actuality, and because of that, I am truly appreciative of this instruments and all people attributed to its creation.  

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_classical_guitar

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_classical_guitar

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_guitar

Images
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/vAqS-e1fIbEwHQNmOl0ZwjR-9UCQYorRYjXD07ePlL1jOokAa-QQHf9Fs6u4aKTdMx8qfOkqbjM9nU9HgjQf4r4NjWWCziyea_8j_h48OF-TDFA587YzBF6oBsieH2cIcU6qw_em
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/6moRzUclPRssacbxnptPUV40gTQ4_fADx5xrczwLdSCRD1QsIkSZzu1-AGZj8P0g7PkjAaY1KCrANjrIrf4LHWUc71CqwEfDYauHe2nxEA1QcPGBg-SfNk_v1mTTmcjh5849BKHP

Video
https://youtu.be/B43xHBpNUWk

The start of something great

All I knew before I started playing guitar was that electric guitar had that rock tune and acoustic guitar was played mostly in country music. I had already played the WII game, Guitar Hero, and I loved it so much. Guitar Hero
was based off of electric guitar. At first, I thought of electric guitar players as "already part of a band."

But my thinking soon changed when my mom started taking drums lessons and performed on stage with others taking instrument lessons, such as for electric guitar. I convinced by mom to sign me up for electric guitar lessons at the beginning of the summer prior to 6th grade. I learned so much that summer and performed in front of a grocery store, Whole Foods, in November with the song: "Sunshine of Your Love" by Cream.

"Practice makes perfection" is a common saying that reflects well on learning electric guitar. Soccer, gymnastics or practicing the words for a Spanish quiz are some examples that need practice to get good at. Electric guitar takes persistence and patience, like if you can't remember a chord on the guitar and you've tried so many times, you have to keep calm.

When you're performing with other people, you have to pay attention not only to your own sheet music but also pay lots of attention to the other music parts. Like if the drums go off beat, then I would have to play my guitar a little faster or slower depending on the beat. Even though we have one rehearsal to prepare. This is all cooperation which can also be used when you're working with a group of people at school to create a presentation, a poster, or a speech.

I've had so much fun playing electric guitar both practicing and performing. I love the feel of playing in a band. I'm thankful that my mom was willing to sign me up for lessons. I continue to perform electric guitar and I have done songs like "21 Guns" by Green Day with my mom playing drums and my older sister playing acoustic guitar, or "Ho Hey" by the Lumineers. My favorite part of playing electric guitar is to find out the guitar chords online for songs from Portland's pop music stations like Z100 or 107.5. So my advice to you is that if you're committed to any activity, you can do it!

Image Sources: Second picture is taken by me
http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/aberration/aberration0912/aberration091200015/6066122-blue-electric-guitar-isolated-on-white.jpg
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51SqQTSFKCL.jpg