Today while I was teaching piano lessons to my dear students, I noticed a huge difference in the form in which they express themselves and the way they dress. The students I will mention here have the same age, two are 16 years old and one is fifteen.
So, the girl of sixteen came in a Harley-Davidson jacket, very strange jeans and a pink t-shirt worn over a white long-sleeved shirt. She plays pieces from Bach, Chopin to songs by Elton John, Queen or John Newman. She is talented, learns fast but reads the notes with more difficulty.
The second student from today, also 16, has got a tattoo on his arm, dyed semi-long hair, and sometimes paints his nails with black nail polish. He also wears rings, black tight trousers and boots. Plays also Bach, Beethoven, Chopin and songs by Imagine Dragons and some Japanese or Korean music I don't even know the names, as he learns them by himself. His note reading abilities are a bit weak also.
The third one, fifteen years old, is not at all as extravagant as these two first mentioned. His clothing is simple, I would say even a little childish for his age, he is quiet and has no problems with reading notes. But, he doesn't play Chopin or those cool songs my other teenage student ask for, he is satisfied with the exercises and studies I give him. He can not express himself through difficult pieces and doesn't ask for attention. But he is persistent, practices and as I already said reads well the notes.
So, while the first two have similar characteristics as a weak reading of notes but playing very well at a higher level, they also dress quite strangely. Their life turnes around piano :) They even asked me if they could play La Campanella by Liszt.... Well, they will have to wait a little longer with that. Maybe the third one who doesn't stand out but who practice will play it one day too. Time will say.
I wondered if it was necessary to be somehow special to succeed in the world of music. I mean to achieve fame on the world stage. Would an ordinary musician achieve this or does he have to stand out in some special way to gain the attention of listeners and fans?
In the music industry, we can see all sorts of extravagant musicians who have managed to breakthrough, but what is happening on the classical music scene?
Today I will introduce you two violinists, who started with classical music but their appearance also influenced them to be famous.
This is Nemanja Radulovic, a violinist born in Serbia and now living in Paris. He’s a couple of years younger than me, and I listened to him live at one concert when I was finishing my studies. He was already studying in Paris at the time and had achieved results on the international stage. We were all fascinated by his curly black hair that fluttered on the podium to the sounds of the violin. And his extraordinary violin playing! He was a star that just had to start to shine. Look at him 💙 He is talking here about his album Baika
The second violinist is also virtuous and has a similar appearance. He is Ara Malikian. He is a Lebanese violinist of Armenian origin, but now he lives in Spain. I have listened to him live in one concert held in the town next to mine. Wow, I still remember the vibes and the energy.. imagine, in some moments he is jumping while playing!! Also, he makes mimics, dance, and talk to the audience. Amazing experience. His song Pisando Flores, with his symphonic orchestra:
Bombastic!!
He also plays classical music in his arrangements and some other songs or soundtracks covered by him. Here is Pulp Fiction Theme.
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I have chosen to show those two violinists as I listened to both of them live. They achieved big popularity, coming from classical roots to a more extravagant way of playing and dressing, expressing... Their spirit and energy brought them to the path of stars. They achieved a lot of success, partly because they knew how to present themselves to a wider audience. I don't think it is a bad thing, although I am more of those shy ones and would not be able to do such a great achievement.
What do you think? Is it legit for you? Do you like it?
P.S. Please let me know if you don't see the videos, so I can edit from another frontend. I am publishing through PeakD and I don't see the videos already for two or three days.
Thank you for your time :)
