The Music of an Arts High School Genius Must Be Special - Chapter 188



Only Krnovel

Episode 188. Making the Strings Dance (4)

The origin of the problem goes back to last month.

It started from a conversation about how our quartet members had busked several times but had not gained much popularity.

I thought it made no sense.

Four art high school students playing instruments on the street, surprisingly getting no attention?

‘Confidence is confidence, but I’m just purely curious.’

How on earth can one perform to completely dismantle public expectations and garner the indifference of countless passersby?

It’s not that these guys can’t play. They’re actually pretty good at it, and there’s definitely something about it.

“So I’d like you guys to busk tomorrow.”

“I can do it… … tomorrow morning? Suddenly?”

“huh.”

I wish there was no prior preparation.

This time, I thought that I had to minimize my interference and intentions as much as possible for busking so that I could truly reveal my pure and raw side.

The moment I interfere too much, won’t the past stages that recorded miraculous audience numbers never be confirmed?

“Hey, I don’t have any songs prepared.”

“Then how about next week? We can pick a song and practice.”

My friends laughed at my words as a joke.

Unfortunately, I’m not very good at telling jokes.

This means that I am always being scolded by Kim Joo-hee.

“I want to check out the unprepared performance, can we do it tomorrow?”

“Well, it’s not like I can’t do it… … .”

As I spoke in a refined tone of voice, the expressions on the quartet members’ faces became subtle.

I glanced around at my seniors in the rhythm section, who were starting to distance themselves from me as if it wasn’t their business.

“Seniors should do it too.”

“Us too?”

“why……!”

“I want to see what these guys do first, but I also need some seniors from the middle.”

I’m the guy who joined this club in the second semester.

In order to stand on stage with a team that I had previously worked with, I thought that I needed to see the ‘performance’ of these six people at least once.

“Senior Gayoung, you just said that they went to Jeju Island and that something seemed to have changed.”

“Oh, yeah, I told you?”

“If you practice in a similar way as I did back then, wouldn’t you be able to make a difference? Increased confidence? Something like that?”

“Yeah, yeah? Is that so?”

“Yes, of course!”

When I answered brightly and cheerfully, Senior Gayoung nodded with a lot of question marks next to her cheerful face.

When it was time to put a stop to the string quartet, Lee Chang-yong, who had been silent for a while, slowly shook his head with his arms crossed.

“… … No, guys. I knew it. Dohyun is looking at us right now.”

What? No?

I don’t think you should speak so seriously as if you were presenting such misinformation at a conference.

I’m asking you with all my heart.

“The one I asked you to play earlier, and the one I asked you to play outside. It’s a kind of test.”

“Oh, is that so?”

That’s not it.

“We have a good pianist who has not been taken away by our seniors, so we cannot leave him here.”

“Hmm, now that I think about it, I guess we should show something too.”

It would be nice if it showed something, but that’s not it.

“Well, we never showed ourselves performing on an outdoor stage in Jeju Island. We just kept practicing together inside.”

“Isn’t this the first time you’ve played a proper jazz song?”

“Am I right, Do-hyun? If that’s the case, then just say it directly.”

I don’t know.

Let’s just say that.

I immediately let out a fit of laughter and waved my hands.

“Oh, I kept quiet because I was afraid you’d be offended if I spoke out loud. Did it show too much?”

“We practiced while getting a lot of feedback from you. There’s no need to be considerate.”

“Okay, let’s do it. Can the seniors help me too?”

I rolled my eyes, following my friends’ mouths, desperately trying to erase the somewhat mysterious expression.

The introverted look from the performance earlier was already gone, and the friends discussing which song to play tomorrow looked full of energy.

‘Was it just a delusion that I lacked confidence…?

This time, on the contrary, I, who had been so confident, became confused.

Are you saying that this problem can be solved so easily?

So how do we explain the extreme average audience numbers they have recorded so far?

***

The area near the school gate was deserted in the early morning.

Soon, countless students who were not staying in the dorms would be passing through here.

“… … Weren’t you guys excited until yesterday?”

But the problem is that the quartet members, standing around with their instruments in hand, are slowly feeling impatient, like a boiling pot.

It seems like you can’t hear what I’m saying.

Among them, Lee Chang-yong spoke with a surprisingly indifferent expression while plucking the strings of his cello.

“Dohyun, do you know why they’re nervous?”

“why?”

“When we were performing on the street, there weren’t many audiences so it didn’t matter, but this is the first time I’m performing in front of you. I want to do well.”

“I guess so? It’ll be different once you start playing.”

Luckily, one person is still of sound mind.

Just when I thought I could put my worries aside, the guy’s hands started to get busy.

Soon, the cello strings began to vibrate from side to side.

“… … Of course, busking, I have some experience so far, huh. 10 people will gather. 10 people… … .”

I was about to ask if busking with virtually no audience counted as experience.

I thought I shouldn’t touch it any more.

“Guys, let’s just do what we’re going to do. Just think of it as practicing once in the morning. Don’t be too conscious of the audience size.”

I never thought I’d come all the way here to cheer these guys on.

I came here today simply as a bystander to see how busking is usually done.

“Seniors, have you ever tried busking? Even just playing music outdoors.”

“No… … This is my first time.”

“I thought it would be okay if I just tried to match their style since they’ve already tried it before… … .”

I’m starting to get worried because of the state of the seniors who are supposed to lead inexperienced people.

But worry was worry, and time did not wait. Now it was time to prepare for the performance in earnest.

“Then the seats are over here… … .”

“Huh? Wait, what are you doing?”

He let out a dejected voice as he watched the members slowly moving towards the shade of the evergreen tree.

That’s the place that my senior Jinseong chose when I first appeared on YouTube so as not to disturb other people.

“No, I said we were going to perform, so why are you going to the corner? I need to play music.”

“Ah, out of habit.”

“lol.”

… … I hoped I had misheard.

It’s a habit.

If you play in a corner like that and act so gloomily, no one will listen to you. Is this the reason why Lee Chang-yong got such a miraculous number of audience members that he talked about like a heroic tale?

‘How can you come up with the amazing idea of ​​busking in a corner?’

Creativity to that extent is an art.

There were so many things I wanted to ask, but I didn’t have time. I thought I should investigate this later rather than ask questions.

“Come out here first. Let’s do it in a brighter place.”

“Oh, isn’t that too obvious?”

“… … Sorry, but busking is something that is usually done openly.”

After swallowing my breath and directing the performers to take their places in appropriate places along the path, I stood far away and pretended to be an audience member.

If there is one person who appreciates it diligently, wouldn’t others also become interested?

The area near the school gate began to get more and more crowded.

“Steel Jazz Fighting.”

After sending a somewhat awkward gesture for a fighting spirit, those who had finished preparing began to play.

The feeling I had was similar to yesterday.

‘It’s not a jazz bar, but it feels more like a jazz cafe… ‘

It was the perfect atmosphere for the shabby street performances you sometimes see, with open instrument cases and coins for payment.

It is said that it is not suitable for performers who prepare for a performance, as it is dry and lacks any kind of romanticism.

It’s just background music, and you wouldn’t even notice it unless you listened closely.

‘Okay, we’re going to play. You have to listen to this.’ That kind of energy was lacking.

“hmm…….”

“What are you doing?”

“It’s Dohyun! Hello.”

As I was watching the performance with half-worried and half-concerned eyes, someone came up to me and spoke to me.

Kim Joo-hee was sucking on a candy and Seo Ye-ri was acting like usual.

“Why are you guys here, Geeks?”

“I slept at Yeri’s place last night.”

“Is that okay?”

“Yeah, if you ask your mom to speak to you more nicely.”

Unlike Kim Joo-hee, who calmly explained the strategy, Seo Ye-ri smiled awkwardly.

“You tell the teacher everything. Even Yeri, you’re the class president who sets an example for others.”

“Ah, Dohyun… … .”

Kim Joo-hee, who had been secretly giving me a look of rage, silently opened a piece of candy and forced it into my mouth.

“Cola flavor?”

“huh.”

“exorcism.”

A 250 won candy was a reasonable price for a gag order.

Two girls who noticed our club members’ performance also came next to me and started to appreciate it.

“What are they doing?”

“They’re members of our club, and they’re just busking.”

“Ah.”

“Wow, you’re good… … .”

Kim Joo-hee stood on one leg while rolling the candy in her mouth diligently, and Seo Ye-ri quickly enjoyed the performance with her eyes shining and clapping her hands softly.

I think it was called Saminsungho.

As the three people were watching the performance, it felt like the students on their way to school, who had not shown much interest, were actively looking in this direction.

‘You must have noticed that it’s different from the usual performance near the school gate, right?’

It’s not just a simple scale exercise, a march, or a school song, it’s jazz that’s not easy to hear.

Why did I recommend busking to our members today?

First, to check if the introverted performance was due to a lack of confidence.

Secondly, to find out how the number of busking audiences can be so small.

‘The second reason seems to have already been revealed… … .’

The first one is still too early to be sure.

Since there were so many people gathered, I wanted to make sure, so I raised my voice.

“Well done!”

“Okay, good job! That’s cool… … !”

Seo Ye-ri also raised her voice timidly, following me. She nodded with a curious look.

It looks like the cheering is working.

Beyond just glancing around as they walked along, the students gathered around us and started hanging out with the performers.

‘No, at this crucial time?’

But it’s a disaster.

The volume of the performance was completely dead.

The members glanced in this direction as if checking the mood, and their eyes widened in surprise at seeing more people than expected.

Their loud emotions, such as the feeling that they couldn’t miss the opportunity and the embarrassment that they couldn’t hide, began to be reflected in their voices.

The atmosphere grew in size in an instant, riding the momentum, but it was unable to maintain its upward momentum and staggered, growing and shrinking.

The rippling waves of sound even caused unnecessary anxiety in the audience, which soon broke the concentration of the performance.

The reason why he couldn’t keep up the flow seemed to be because of his lack of confidence, as if his face was covered with an iron plate. The more shameless he is, the more he can freely show off his skills on the mat.

But just like yesterday, wasn’t today’s performance passive from the start?

On the other hand, I thought there might be a more fundamental problem.

“It’s ambiguous. Is it because only the first graders played?”

“Isn’t that pretty good?”

“I don’t know, let’s go.”

I tried to catch the ankles of those walking along the bleak road with pitiful eyes, but it was in vain.

Our kids did really well in Jeju Island… … !

You haven’t even watched YouTube?

“Yeri, are you confident when you play?”

“Huh? Hmm… … Well, I guess it’s hard to say that. I’m not always satisfied.”

“Then what are the characteristics of kids who don’t get nervous on stage and are full of confidence?”

When I asked absentmindedly, two girls gave me strange looks.

“That’s you.”

“lol.”

Should I call this confidence?

I’m just happy to share my music with others, and playing the piano is always fun, so I don’t think I’ve ever been scared or timid.

“You know, but I somehow understand that feeling?”

Seo Ye-ri clasped her hands together with a pitiful look in her eyes and stamped her feet slightly as she spoke.

“That heart?”

“Except for the exams in the first semester where I really worked hard thanks to Dohyun, I don’t think I was able to show everything with confidence every time. I just kept wondering if I could do well.”

Are you talking about the third evaluation in the first semester? Seo Ye-ri did well then.

I smiled playfully and nudged her shoulder.

“Do you want to play there too?”

“Ah, no, that’s… … !”

Seo Ye-ri waved her hands vigorously in super strong wind and rotation mode, as if she really thought she could do it.

Looking at that cute face, I briefly relaxed my tension.

Because our quartet members were still struggling.

“Jojang-ah.”

Kim Joo-hee, who had been silent for a while, took out the candy and opened her mouth for the first time in a long while.

“Is that how you originally busk? Don’t you have to be really vocal and do all that? Like the uncles you were with.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

That’s right.

I realized that up until now, the members had been playing silently without even saying a word of greeting or introducing their pieces.

They only picked out acts that could gather an audience.

“And this isn’t something I’m trying to say to your club friends.”

“No, just tell me. I’ll filter it out.”

“I don’t really know what the band does, other than the fact that they play jazz.”

I exchanged blank glances with Kim Joo-hee.

“You’re a jazz band, so you play jazz?”

“That’s not it… … What should I say, I don’t feel anything?”

“feeling?”

“You know, back when you were busking? Those old men could tell right away what kind of vibe the band was.”

(continue)