►An end has a start

Got you curious with that title? (I borrowed it from one of the albums of the band The Editors). Then, read on 🙂

Two days ago,  I had the last important exam at university (classical guitar) which I managed to do with very satisfying result and which means that I’ve almost completed my bachelor in music.

Almost, because I’ve yet to do a last test, next week, in a discipline that has only 3 credits (it’s one of those you can choose freely) and which I shouldn’t have chosen, because I didn’t manage to pass the first two tests and I do need the 3 credits to complete my bachelor, arghh :S… but if I’m not totally unlucky, I guess I’ll manage to do it, and there’s still the possibility to repeat the test in september (special rules for students who are finishing).

Anyway, these 3 years at Évora University were totally awesome, I’ve learned so much and made a big evolution in my guitar playing skills (which doesn’t surprise, having had the great Dejan Ivanovich as my teacher), but also gained a lot of knowledge and improvement of my musicianship in general.

Then there are all the fantastic people I met and friends I made, not to mention concerts, partys and events I participated in, or certain academic traditions in which I took part.

Or even the city, which is beautiful (classified by the UNESCO as World Heritage), just one  quick photo for you, so not to forget what I wanted to say 😉 :

Évora (Diana Temple)
Évora (View of the Diana Temple) - Autor: Rita Faleiro

Thinking again about my musicianship, I guess I know today what I didn’t, 3 years ago:

this was just the beginning. When I started at university, I imagined it as the highest degree I’d make (and it might really be), but I never thought that there was so much I’d still have to learn and discover by myself, probably over the whole rest of my life.

I did know that one never stops learning and I also had full perception that my playing was far from perfect, but I had to go through these 3 years of intense learning to realize how “ignorant” I still am, although I already do know quite a lot and became like 10 times a better musician then when I started, 3 years ago. But still, I now am fully conscient of the fact that this is only the beginning…

There’s SO much to learn, to listen to, to discover, to read and to experience, and I’m not even talking of my instrument yet. Just musicianship in general. There’s so much history I don’t know yet, composers of whom I only know their name, works I never listened to, even instruments I’ve never seen or heard.

And then there’s my instrument. So many fantastic pieces to learn, to play, so many scores to discover, so many technical improvements I can still make, so many musical and interpretational aspects that I still don’t fully understand (one thing is to do what your teacher says, the other is to fully understand why and be able to get to that conclusion by yourself).

And then again, the’re so many other instruments. I do play (at least to a basic level) one more, the piano. But that’s not enough. Not only do I have plans to improve my piano playing, but I also have “fallen in love” with the sound of the saxophone and so I want to learn to play it, at least to a “medium” level, one day…

Oh, but I could go on and on. I want to improve my skills in composition (so I can produce my own songs more easily, quicker and better…), want to take my project to the next level (live concerts), and also integrate (or start, that depends) other projects (especially chamber music). But I guess that you, my reader, are getting already a little tired, so for now that’s all, and I finish this post with an announcement I’m very proud of:

In exactly one week from now, I’m GETTING MARRIED!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂

LOVE YOU, RITA FALEIRO 🙂 🙂

 

4 thoughts on “►An end has a start

  1. Ich liebe dich auch… Je t’aime aussi… I love you so much… Nem que eu pusesse aqui todas as línguas do mundo conseguiria transmitir o quanto te amo. Adorei este teu post, está muito simples e ao mesmo tempo emotivo. A vida é uma aprendizagem constante, mal daquele que se contenta em ficar com a licenciatura, ou com os conhecimentos desta. Mesmo que não se tire mais grau académico nenhum, há que continuar sempre a estudar. E eu fá-lo-ei contigo. E no exame de terça-feira, tudo vai correr bem, tenho a certeza!!!

  2. É isso aí, amigo!
    Isto na música (se não em relação a tudo) há sempre mais a aprender, a evoluir, a descobrir, e há que ter apetite para isso. Mas, sobretudo, acho que o mais importante é conseguirmos saborear cada momento desta evolução, descoberta, aprendizagem. É deixar as desculpas habituais do “ainda não sei isto”, “ainda não consigo fazer aquilo”, sair do quarto e fazer coisas, partilhar experiências, arriscar e… deixar a música acontecer.

    Grande Abraço e até sábado

    • Disseste tudo! 🙂
      Sobretudo as desculpas e os receios são aquela parte que mais impede as pessoas de fazerem progressos…
      Grande abraço também 🙂

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