From Tantrums to Tunes: How My Music Journey Started

Throughout my life, I’ve tried my hand at different hobbies, explored various interests, and, at times, even found myself leaving endeavors unfinished. However, music is something that has been a constant presence in my life; not because I enjoy it, but because it has profoundly impacted me. Let me clarify – I won’t tell you that I fell in love with music the moment I started learning. This isn’t that kind of story. Just thinking about it makes me want to laugh.

How It Started

Here’s how it all began: I was an incredibly energetic and wild kid, more active than most boys my age. My mother, in an attempt to keep me engaged, enrolled me in various art classes. But patience wasn’t my strong suit, and those activities didn’t hold my interest for long. There are sayings that go, “Children who learn music won’t turn out bad,” and “Learning music is an excellent way to teach patience;” that’s the reasoning my mom had when she dragged me to my very first piano lesson.

The piano lesson experience was excruciating for both my piano teacher and me. I refused to sit still in front of the piano – literally the only thing I had to do, just sit and listen. In my mind, I thought it would be torture. Instead, I ran around the piano and even hid underneath it. Those 30-minute lessons felt like an eternity. I would scream, cry, and throw tantrums, all to show that I didn’t want to be there; I just wanted to go home. No amount of encouragement, threats, or even bait could make me comply. When my mom came to pick me up and witnessed my behavior, she was furious, embarrassed, and speechless.

How It Went

For some reason, my erratic behavior didn’t scare away my first piano teacher. She suggested to my mom that we should keep trying. The struggle lasted for over a month for me to simply sit in front of the piano. It’s been so long that my memories are a bit blurry. What I do remember is that during all my craziness, my teacher remained unfazed by my screaming and yelling. She simply sat there and played the piano for me, occasionally weaving in stories about composers during her piano performances.

Looking back now, I’m not entirely sure if I was the one being trained or if it was my teacher, or maybe even my mom. She had to turn a blind eye to my seemingly wasted piano lessons. It was a long and challenging journey to kickstart my musical education.