The Music of an Arts High School Genius Must Be Special - Chapter 185



Only Krnovel

Episode 185. Making the Strings Dance (1)

From Friday afternoon to Saturday, I usually have the dormitory to myself.

At this time, I can’t tell you how comfortable it is to use Lee Seong-hyeok’s pillow as a backrest cushion.

I took out my tablet in a slouched position and accessed the school homepage.

There was a space provided where each individual could review their own written performance reviews of the concert.

“There really are a lot.”

Even if you just scroll down the screen and take a quick look, there are tons of posts.

I started reading articles that I could find helpful, cutting out as many stray notes as possible.

‘Hmm, I wanted some proper feedback, even if the water level is high.’

It was not an easy process.

Not only was there no constructive feedback, but even strong criticism was not noticed.

Since I have many friends who are ignorant of the piano, it’s only natural that most of the things they say are blatant compliments rather than anything that would help me grow.

Praise is said to make even whales dance, but I don’t think it really helps people grow. It can instill a sense of security and satisfaction in people, and possibly erase their desire to improve.

‘… … But the more I look at it, the more I feel secretly good.’

Still, the fact that there were many good words written with professional music description skills compared to ordinary people gave me a pleasant sense of fulfillment even though the development was different from what I expected.

Is this why kings live with villains by their side? My heart was pounding.

[It seemed like I could see colors in the sound.]

In the meantime, I happened to check out that post, as if I was entranced by the first sentence that stood out.

[How can you make that sound… It’s amazing how the mood changes so much as the phrase changes. The posture doesn’t change much, but if you look closely, you can see the power transmitted to the fingertips and the feeling when the fingers are lifted from the keys… … ]

This guy knows how to hit the keys to make a sound. It was most likely written by a piano major.

I straightened my back and read the rest with a serious mind.

[Ah, that, that, I think I asked that question often because I was curious about that kind of expression. If you just look at the force with which you press the keys, it seems like there shouldn’t be any sound at all, but in reality, it resonates enough to fill the entire concert hall… They say you have to understand the space, but honestly, I don’t really understand… ㅜ]

When my gaze reached the end of this sentence, my eyebrows naturally twitched.

‘This is Lee Ha-yeon.’

It was a small clue, but the conversations I often had while practicing with Lee Ha-yeon came back to me in a flashback.

[I heard that it’s good to listen to a lot of recordings, but by my standards, it’s still… ]

[… … I’m confused. Is there a right way?]

[I learned that musical expression comes naturally, and that I don’t need to be obsessed with sheet music, but I always feel a little lacking.]

As I read through the unexpectedly vast text, I couldn’t hide my confusion.

Lee Ha-yeon wrote a piece that was more of a reflection than an appreciation. She looked back on her own performance by comparing it to my performance.

The main keywords were emotions and expressions.

She wanted to make her sound a little more colorful. She was dissatisfied with her playing.

“I’m confused,” he said, tapping the phrase with his finger and letting out a shallow sigh.

‘I think I know what kind of performance and sound he wants… … .’

It is not easy to change the method and practice that has been maintained for a long time. Moreover, since he practices every day with his father who laid the foundation, it must have been an environment where it was difficult for him to freely develop strange or different ideas.

Inertia is a scary thing.

Not only does it have a physical form, but the mind also has a tendency to continue to exercise.

[Oh, but, here we go again. I told you to always be careful with your elbows, but since the arpeggios are faster, your body is moving along with them… haha. I think it would be good to practice fast tempo as well as slow tempo or one tempo.]

I was in a state of confusion and then unexpectedly hit a bone. The article ended with various comments on how to practice technique.

It didn’t matter because everyone wrote lightly, to the point where it seemed like the free-spirited review format was recommended, but there was something else that was even funnier.

‘Everything is good, but… … If it’s going to be like this, is there any point in using anonymity?’

I remembered Lee Ha-yeon, who had shyly said that she might be teased. This was more than teased; she had stamped her seal on the writing.

After capturing Lee Ha-yeon’s writing, I scrolled down, curious to see what else there was.

[Rather than focusing on balance, the performance that gave emphasis to each phrase and brought unity to the interpretation was impressive.]

What is this.

This time I found an expert who seemed to be wearing glasses.

[A performance that focuses on details can easily feel unfriendly, but the flow was well controlled under the consistent delivery of sound, making it enjoyable to the ears.]

It was a post full of praise.

The performance was evaluated for almost every measure of the score, and for a student, the descriptions were quite specific and detailed, which was excellent.

I also liked the fact that the tone was not too sentimental, but rather had a dry and objective perspective.

[As for the downside, it seems like it would be boring to mention techniques. Some expressions are a bit excessive? We need to be careful about interpretations that are too assertive. I think it would be better to think of it as a process of finding one’s place.]

I’ve been wondering if there’s anyone out there with this level of musical understanding.

First of all, the author is a guy who is good at playing the piano or knows it well. I couldn’t help but think he majored in piano or composition.

[I hope he develops further in the future. He is a talented person who can do that.]

As I was thinking about it, I felt a tingling sensation at the last sentence.

Suddenly, Baek Ji-ho came to mind.

‘If you look at this, there’s a very, very high chance that it’s Baek Ji-ho… … .’

If you assume that the author of this article is Baek Ji-ho, a rather funny situation will arise.

Lee Ha-yeon and Baek Ji-ho’s playing styles seem similar, yet different.

If we look at just the two, Lee Ha-yeon is intellectual and Baek Ji-ho is emotional. The characteristics that come out in each other’s performances are slightly different.

‘But the review is the exact opposite.’

On the contrary, in the sentence, Lee Ha-yeon was emotional and Baek Ji-ho was intellectual.

I found this difference interesting.

As I snickered and scrolled down again, I came across a sentence that really caught my eye.

[Not so good]

The title is the content.

That was the end.

‘What does this kid do?’

For a while, I was dumbfounded and stared at the author’s column that said ‘Anonymous’.

I didn’t feel bad. I just felt empty.

‘Could it be Seol Yu-jin?’

No matter how much I think about it, the only person who could write something like this is Seol Yu-jin. Didn’t she say with her own mouth that she changed in the second semester?

Still, I have to ask what I have to ask.

If the author was Seol Yu-jin, I would want to hit her with a chestnut.

***

“Hey, Seol Yu-jin.”

As soon as Monday came, I went to Seol Yu-jin’s seat and shoved my cell phone in her hand.

“why.”

“You’re the one who wrote this.”

Not really.

Seol Yu-jin, who was looking at the screen with only those three letters written on it, crossed her arms and laughed in vain.

“It’s not?”

Oh my god, this is not real.

Because Seol Yu-jin learned that it’s easy to tell when someone is lying or evading something.

Suddenly she frowned and grabbed my sleeve.

“… … Hey, Kwon Do-hyun, you wait a minute. Why are you suspecting me of such a shameless kid?”

Well, well, you… … .

I was wiping my dry nose for no reason when I approached Seo Ji-hee, who was sitting next to me.

“Jihee, it’s been a while. What did you do during the vacation?”

“Dohyun~. I went to Japan. Do you want to see the pictures?”

“Want to see?”

“There are so many cats in this town… … .”

Seol Yu-jin, who had been looking at me with displeasure, came in and got angry.

“Answer me… …! Why are you avoiding me!”

“I’m sorry for doubting you, Eugene.”

Because my expectations were so wrong, I couldn’t overcome my frustration and changed the subject.

Of course I thought it would be Seol Yu-jin… … .

‘No, do you usually manage your image well?’

Of course, it was my fault for killing a living person, so I apologized sincerely.

After listening to Seo Ji-hee’s travel story, I spoke to Seol Yu-jin in a friendly tone to lighten the awkward atmosphere.

“Are you preparing well for the improvement?”

“Of course. I’ll do better than you, so just wait and see.”

“Oh, do your best. Fighting.”

With my unchangingly high self-confidence and self-consciousness, I changed my attitude 180 degrees and answered dryly.

It wasn’t that surprising anymore. After all, a person’s personality wouldn’t change over just one vacation.

As she was about to return to her seat, Seo Ji-hee, who had been giggling, opened her mouth after noticing Seol Yu-jin’s expression.

“Do-hyun, Do-hyun. There’s Eugene. Do you know when he was watching your performance during your improvement, he was so moved by it? He just covered his mouth and stuff.”

“You covered my mouth?”

“… … !”

Seol Yu-jin, who had been releasing steam for a moment, covered Seo Ji-hee’s mouth instead of her own this time.

“Why are you saying that here and now… … !”

“Ah, sorry, sorry! I was wrong… … Heh heh, I was wrong! Eugene!”

The sight of her desperately trying to stop her friend from laughing and falling asleep was unmistakable, like that of a girl of this age.

Wouldn’t it be nice if it were like this on a regular basis?

Only after a fight could she calm her messy hair and feverish heart at the same time.

“Hmm, hmm.”

Seol Yu-jin, who had been looking up at me while coughing for no reason, suddenly frowned.

“What you looking at?”

Going crazy.

It seemed like the only thing that had changed since the second semester was my hairstyle.

“No problem, I’m going.”

“Or so.”

“It’s Monday, cheer up and cheer up.”

“……you also.”

What the heck, did I hear that wrong?

I stopped, holding onto the back door, and turned my head quickly, but Seol Yu-jin didn’t even give me a glance.

Surely she greeted me kindly, though her voice was nothing more than the squeak of an ant crawling along.

‘But where is that?’

Are you really determined to change?

The first year of high school is not too late to develop social skills. You can still get on the same level as other people!

I walked out into the hallway, praying for her bright future.

Seol Yu-jin was Seol Yu-jin, and there was an equally important issue left.

So who is the author of ‘Not So Good’?

More than anything else, I was impressed by the courage to write something that even the teachers would check in that way. The review is also part of the test that is reflected in the evaluation score.

‘Is there someone who looks at me with disdain?’

I thought that even though I couldn’t be kind to everyone, I didn’t make any enemies, but my doubts continued to pile up.

“Dohyun!”

As I was walking, I ran into Seo Ye-ri in the hallway.

I always felt like my mood was lifted by that bright smile.

“Yeri, where are you going?”

“I was going to class to look for Dohyun, and I ran into him.”

“me?”

“Yeah, teacher Lee Bo-ram called me. I guess it’s because of the club.”

I also had a lot of questions about club activities.

Before the festival, regular evaluations were simple, and there was nothing else to do except for individual practice time.

Since it is difficult to focus on club activities when the end-of-year orchestra and major practical exams overlap, this was the right time to start full-scale activities.

“Okay, thanks. I’ll go now.”

“Hehehe, Dohyun, I really enjoyed your performance! Your clothes suit you well too.”

“Really? Now that I think about it, Joohee said she was wearing a dress. What about you, Yeri?”

“Hmm~ I’m thinking about it for now. I’m going to start by practicing properly!”

Unlike others who choose their outfits, you have such unique ideas.

I smiled happily.

“When will the improvement happen?”

“I’m in my third week. The week after next.”

“After three weeks… … It’s the same day as Seol Yu-jin?”

“Yeah, so I’m a little nervous, but I have to do my best!”

He responded to Seo Ye-ri, who clenched her fists, with a light smile.

***

I heard an explanation of the overall club system and meeting times from Professor Lee Bo-ram.

Today, they are holding an OT to welcome new members and introduce the club.

And that too, just for me.

Why am I the only one being given special treatment?

That’s because there’s only one new member in the second semester.

I’m Kwon Do-hyun.

‘… … Don’t kids at art high schools usually do club activities like this?’

I walked down the hallway after school, half excited and half worried.

The club room is said to be located near the instrument storage area in the main building, in a classroom that is no longer in use and whose nameplate has fallen off.

Arriving in front of the office, I took a moment to catch my breath and carefully opened the door.

The lights were clearly on, but somehow an ominous aura enveloped me.

“Excuse me, is this the jazz club room?”

There were only two people in the room.

They were seniors who quietly held the cello and violin in their arms.

“what?”

“who……?”

They turned their heads with a stealthy movement, and when they saw me, their eyes suddenly lit up.

The fluorescent eyes of wild beasts often seen in documentaries came to mind.

“Oh, it’s the piano!”

“What? Grab it!”

“No, why are you holding on?”

Who am I? What am I that you want to catch?

I hurriedly closed the door and turned my back to block it.

‘Should I run away now? I don’t think it’s too late.’

I felt like I had joined some weird club.