Garret Rohan

English 101
Dr. Dev Bose
2-20-15
Revision
Learning a New Type of Expression

Expressing ones thoughts and ideas can be a daunting and difficult task. In a sense you
are sharing with others a little of yourself. This sharing doesnt always need to be in the form of
words it can also be in the form of music. When I was just four years old I began to learn how to
play the piano. At the time, being only four, the choice for me to learn to play the piano was not
made by me, but rather by my parents. Little did I know, this choice my parents had made for me
would provide me withnot only joy but also the tools for a new way of expression in the
expressing myself and my feelings that would remain with me well into the future.
TheAlthough the beginning steps of my piano learning are vague in my memory due to
my young age., I have several memories of the experience. At my home my parents had a
beautiful old piano. Our home was built in 1901 and the piano was there from that time. It was
from the late 1800s. The piano was very large, made with beautifully carved black wood and
had extremely white ivory keys. Having this beautiful instrument to play on definitely
encouraged me to play. What I do vividly remember is the happiness and thirst for more with
every note I played. The fact that I could create such beautiful noises by the press of a key
amazed me. I remember when I first started playing I would just sit by the piano and play
random keys and combinations of keys for hours on end until it got to a point my parents would

ask me to stop. I loved the feeling of the ivory keys on my fingers and would enjoy playing until
my hands began to hurt. I dreaded the piano lessons as a child but it was not because of my
dislike for the piano but that I did not like my teacher at allEven though I enjoyed playing the
piano very much, I dreaded my weekly piano lessons as a child. I think this was more because I
really enjoyed making my music on the piano, combining tones and creating my own songs. The
piano teacher who taught me did not allow for this type of foolishness. She would march me
through her standard set of songs that I had to memorize. This did not allow for the creative
expression that I enjoyed so much from sitting in front of the piano.
As I grew older, I developed more and more skills. I had learned to read music as if it was
a second language to me. Through dedication and practice I was now able to play songs that
required technique and skill. No longer was I playing random keys and combinations but rather I
was playing pieces written by great composers such as Ludwig van Beethoven and Mozart.
My favorite pieces to play and still are todaywhen I was young were Fur Elise and Moonlight
Sonata composed by Beethoven. Today, these pieces are still favorites to me. I would spend
hours upon hours practicing these songs until I met perfectioncould play them perfectly. I would
often find myself wishing my fingers where just a little bit longer and become frustrated because
I knew exactly what I wanted to do, but I just couldnt get my fingers to do the same. OnceEven
after I felt as though I had felt that I perfected the two songs, thatit was not enough for me. I
wouldcontinued to practice with great repetition sorepeatedly I could play the songs without
looking at a sheet of music or even with my eyes openclosed. I loved these two pieces. and my
ability to play them so well gave me a great deal of pride.
Once I had gotgotten to athe point where it seemed as if it was more natural for me to
play these piano pieces than to take a breath of fresh air, I decided to add my own modifications

to them. To go about this, I would play the songs at a slower tempo or a faster tempo to see how
they sounded. After that I would slowly add more chords to the songsongs testing which worked
and more importantly which fit with what I was trying to express. This was a process was
exhilarating yet filled with great frustration and failure. It took me days to find the keys that
matched, the tones which I had in my head. I was not onlysimply looking for whatever sounded
right but rather for what I wanted it specificallyinstead I was trying to sound like.match the
feeling and emotion that I wished to express.
After finishingcomposing my own version of the pieces, I discovered something that
made the piano even more special to me, a new way to express myself. My previous goal of
playing the piano was to be able to play great pieces by respected composers. My new goal now
was to write and create my own piecepieces. I would go about this in almost the same way I went
about first learning the piano, but instead of pressing random keys and combinations I know I
would play different chords.now had the tools to generate more complex chords and harmonic
patterns. Depending on the type of mood I wanted to express, I would change the type of key
and tempo I would use. If I wanted to express a high-energy, high-tempo song that sounded
bright and cheerful I would play in the key of E. The same would go if I wanted a more serene,
slow type of song I would play in the calm key of C. These are just two examples of the different
keys I would use to present my musical expressions.
It wasnt long before I had composed my first song. My first song was a short piece that
could be played in just over a minute and it was played in the key of E. While the song did not
have any lyrics to it, my main goal was to make a song that expressed my happiness and joy
created from the piano. Through the piano lessons I had been taking, there was a yearly recital
for all of my teachers students to present two of their favorite songs to everyone. The majority

of the past recitals were very bland and boring events that I didnt care for, but this one was
different. To this day I can still remember this recital as if it was yesterday. It was set up in the
back of an old church in a small room. The room had pale light blue wallpaper that was in poor
condition due to the age of the church. On one end of the room there were three rows of fold out
chairs set up for the parents and friends to view the performers. On the other end sat an old
wooden piano with a brown worn down bench. I was one of the last people to perform. MyThe
two songs that I had chosen to play where Pachelbels Canon and my very own piece. When I
was told that I was up next, I could not calm my nerves. This was my opportunity to present my
own work to a group of people other than my parents. At this moment I was filled with nothing
but fear and anxiety because I had no idea what the response I was going towould receive from
this audience. As I stepped up to the piano, I pulled the bench out, set my sheet music up, and
began to play Pachelbels Canon. It seemed as if I didnt even play the first song because all I
could think about was presenting my own song next. After the applause from the first song died
down I began to play my own piece. Due to my nervousness it seemed as if with every key I
pressed resonated inthrough the church and was being dissected by everyone. It seemed as if the
room had gotten ten degrees warmer. As I was playing my heart was beating like a pounding
drum. I couldnt believe I was playing my very own song in front of an audience! As the end of
the song drew closer I felt more and more confident and comfortable. When I finished playing
another applause followedmy piece, the audience applauded. When it was revealed that the song
was an original piece, an even greater round of applause followed. Hearing this applause gave
me a type of high I will always remember. I couldnt believe how nervous I was at first. Looking
back at it my extreme fear of being poorly criticized seems so superfluous. This experience

wasof sharing my first composed piece with others is something that wouldwill stick with me for
the rest of my life.
TheMusic in a sense is a very sophisticated language which allows us to communicate
our thoughts and emotions to an audience. When we successfully convey those thoughts and
emotions it provides us great satisfaction. So in a sense music is a complex and sophisticated
literacy skill. Instead of the alphabet we have musical notes and instead of grammar we have
rhythms and harmonies. At the end of the day, it is a language which allows us to convey
concepts expressively to our audience. This is the language which my parents introduced to me
and for that I am grateful.
To this day the piano will always have has a special place in my life. The process of
learning the piano and the individual goals I made for myself through it, showedthis process
taught me valuable skills. It revealed the gratification that one can achieve by setting goals and
accomplishing them. The greatest outcome that the piano has provided me, is not the image of
gratification but rather a great and is a personal way to express myself. Having a form of
expression that one holds so dear and personal is not something that every person has but it is
something that everyone should seek. Finding this form of expression droveallowed me to get
out ofescape my comfort zone, and introduced me to a talent I did not know I obtained, and has
provided me with what I believe is the best form of self meditation.had.