Solo A Musical Journey V

Kelski takes violin lessons from Mosa and searches for Little Rhaus at the same time. [Weekend Challenge]

(This is a thread from Mizahar's fantasy role playing forum. Why don't you register today? This message is not shown when you are logged in. Come roleplay with us, it's fun!)

A lawless town of anarchists, built on the ruins of an ancient mining city. [Lore]

Moderator: Morose

A Musical Journey V

Postby Kelski on November 12th, 2018, 3:39 am

Image
Timestamp: 55th of Fall, 518 A.V.

Continued from: A Musical Journey IV


Kelski loved the sounds Mosa pulled out of her violin. She hoped to someday be as good as the woman was, and knew it would take lots of practice. But gemcutting had taken a lot of practice. So too had dagger. Kelski was wiling to put in the time and put in the work. That had to count for something. And she could tell already, much like she knew the first time she’d laid eyes on Kynier that she loved him… that the first time she’d heard a violin she’d felt a calling to it as well.

But Mosa had more bowing techniques, so Kelski could not pick up her midnight dark violin but instead picked up her quill and ink again.

“Loure is a Eyktolian movement where the bow stroke is used to slow the tempo, slurring and separating the notes to slightly articulate them without stopping the bow. It’s normally used in a passage of a cantabile character. And before you ask me what a cantabile character is, I’ll tell you. A cantabile character indicates a measured tempo and flexible, legato playing. Legato means your playing notes with a full bow, which have the shortest silence, often barely perceptible between notes. Its like a pause in a sentence that’s not really a pause but you notice the hesitation. These are done with controlled wrist movements of your bowing hand, and can be masked or enhanced with vibrato or finger shaking motions. It makes a very basic student sound advanced. That’s why its important.” Mosa replied to Kelski, as she frantically took notes.

Then Mosa stepped up, set the violin under her chin, and began to play, demonstrating all of those techniques in a row including Loure and vibrato along with legato. And as she played she moved into a strange motion she hadn’t explained yet that looked like a bouncing stroke. Kelski tilted her head, curious, and listened until Mosa was done. Then the old woman explained.

“Arpeggio is a bouncing stroke which you play on broken chords so that each note of the arpeggio is played on a different string. It was the second one to the last that I showed you. The last one is called Termola, and is used in small group quartets or trios. It consists of moving the bow back and forth in short rapid strokes, unmeasured by rhythm, that is quite lively and fun. You will excel at it because its very beginner friendly.” Mosa said as Kelski noted down that technique as well. The jeweler felt like she was filling up her Songbook rather fast.

“Relax girl, there is just a few more left.” She said, raising her violin again and tucking it under her chin.

Kelski watched and thought she heard an echo of the violin playing some of the unusual techniques Mosa had just reviewed. The Sea Eagle was more than annoyed now. Little Rhaus was driving her crazy and she didn’t even know if he was doing it on purpose.


Count: 502
Image
They laugh at me because I am different.
I laugh at them because they are all the same.


Painted Sky Jewelry (The Wildlands) | Crossroads Jewelry (The Outpost)
User avatar
Kelski
Freedom is earned. Fight for it.
 
Posts: 1598
Words: 2015452
Joined roleplay: July 3rd, 2014, 11:08 pm
Location: The Wildlands of Sylira & The Empyreal Demesne
Race: Kelvic
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes
Medals: 11
Featured Character (1) Featured Thread (2)
Mizahar Grader (1) Trailblazer (1)
Overlored (1) Donor (1)
One Thousand Posts! (1) One Million Words! (1)
Sunberth Seasonal Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)

A Musical Journey V

Postby Kelski on November 12th, 2018, 3:42 am

Image
She played a repetitive pattern that sounded like slurs and accents for a few moments, letting Kelskli hear how it worked. It reminded Kelski of some of the busking she’d seen on the street. “This is a shuffle..” Mosa said, pausing in her playing. “It’s usually considered theatrical or a sort of street performance. It’s meant to draw a crowd. It is repetitive and dazzling, and has nothing technical about it. But it merits its own name because its so common among bards who are trying to show each other up or show off to a crowd.” Mosa commented, her opinion on the technique very clear. She was sharing knowledge, but she wasn’t going to encourage what she considered bad musical behavior.

Finally, Mosa said a word Kelski was looking to hear. “The LAST technique I know to teach you is Chopping. It’s a percussive - meaning to hit or drum – technique in which the hair near the front of the bow is struck against the strings with a quick scratching sound of the indeterminate pitch.” She said, demonstrating it with a flourish. It was something Kelski had heard before… something Little Rhaus played often.

“So that’s the end of the techniques for bowing? The rest of the world of the violin is more straight forward?” Kelski asked, looking hopeful. Mosa laughed, shaking her head.

“About time.” A ceramic voice muttered then groaned as Mosa continued.

“Not at all, child. There’s another thing, closely related, that I should tell you. We have a technique that’s not a bowing technique but one you have to know either way. Its called a snap pizz or a pizziacato. We can pluck our violins like celloists do. But this is a fancy form of plucking. Its denoted by this mark here.” Mosa said, wandering over, taking Kelski’s quill, and writing out a snap pizz on a hastily sketched music bar. The mark was a circle with a singular line rising from the center of its top arch, almost like an upside-down lollypop.

“You just grasp the strings and pull them away from the fingerboard so that’s when you release them it rebounds with a significant force onto the fingerboard. It creates a very unique sound… a sharp percussive snapping sound. Violins are so flexible. Musicians have made them create all sorts of sounds. With a snap pizz, violins have their own words and can mimic human speech at times.” Mosa said, laughing then demonstrating the snap pizz herself. She also plucked the violin for Kelski’s benefit, adding soft almost rain-drop-like sounds.

Mosa smiled at Kelski, seeing that she was tired but not willing to stop… not just yet. The little aspiring bardess hadn’t yet played her first song, nor did she know the full extent of what Mosa liked beginner students to learn.


Count: 469
Image
They laugh at me because I am different.
I laugh at them because they are all the same.


Painted Sky Jewelry (The Wildlands) | Crossroads Jewelry (The Outpost)
User avatar
Kelski
Freedom is earned. Fight for it.
 
Posts: 1598
Words: 2015452
Joined roleplay: July 3rd, 2014, 11:08 pm
Location: The Wildlands of Sylira & The Empyreal Demesne
Race: Kelvic
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes
Medals: 11
Featured Character (1) Featured Thread (2)
Mizahar Grader (1) Trailblazer (1)
Overlored (1) Donor (1)
One Thousand Posts! (1) One Million Words! (1)
Sunberth Seasonal Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)

A Musical Journey V

Postby Kelski on November 12th, 2018, 3:46 am

Image
Kelski called a halt then. There was just one more place she could legitimately search and that was the deck outside her workshop. The workshop had already been searched so there wasn’t any use lingering. She stretched, used an excuse that something in the workshop needed checked, and ran downstairs and out onto the deck to look around the yard. Two horses were grazing unconcerned in the distance, and the deck chairs were empty. Even the fire pit was cold. Kelski frowned. He had to be upstairs. He just had to be!

So she headed back upstairs and keep her eyes open even as Mosa continued her lesson.

“There’s one more thing I want to teach you… and that’s using a ‘mute’ correctly. A mute is a small wooden device that attaches to the bridge of your violin. It adds mass to the bridge and reduces its ability to vibrate freely. In doing so, the volume is decreased and your songs mellow out in tone. I have an extra I will lend you.” Mosa said, slipping one out of her violin case and hobbling over to Kelski wherein she showed her how to affix it to her violin. The one she put on Kelski’s violin looked significantly larger than the one she’d originally shown her. “We also can use larger wooden practice mutes to drastically reduce the volume when playing. I want you to ‘mute’ your violin from here on out because it will allow you to play and practice all your chords and learn to read music without disturbing others.” Mosa said with a grin, making sure the mute was affixed correctly. “You won’t sound… wonderful when you are first learning. Your tones and timbre will be off, you won’t find rhythm quickly, and it just takes a lot of time.” The old woman said, laughing slightly.

More chuckling joined Mosa’s laughter. It sounded a lot like Little Rhaus. Kelski frowned, and started to resume the search when Mosa distracted her. Finally playing! Mosa was going to finally let her play!

“Now… are you ready to play? Stand up, and I’ll teach you a simple violin song that you can practice.” Mosa said, rising and turning to get her own violin. She pulled out some sheet music entitled "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" and set it up. Then she began to teach Kelski fingerings. Slowly, ever so slowly, Mosa would play and Kelski would copy her until the two were playing the simple song over and over again, happily. It had a unique title, all about happy places and dreams and blue skies existing somewhere over a rainbow. Kelski liked it and after a few work throughs, and horrible squeaks from her violin, she was able to play it almost decently. She forgot the notes, dropped her bow, and looked thoughtfully embarrassed a time or two.

But in the end, she was picking it up. And it was becoming increasingly clear that only practice practice practice would let her be something other than terrible. And as she finished what felt like her hundredth work through of the song, she set her violin aside, hugged Mosa and thanked her profusely.


Count: 525
Image
They laugh at me because I am different.
I laugh at them because they are all the same.


Painted Sky Jewelry (The Wildlands) | Crossroads Jewelry (The Outpost)
User avatar
Kelski
Freedom is earned. Fight for it.
 
Posts: 1598
Words: 2015452
Joined roleplay: July 3rd, 2014, 11:08 pm
Location: The Wildlands of Sylira & The Empyreal Demesne
Race: Kelvic
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes
Medals: 11
Featured Character (1) Featured Thread (2)
Mizahar Grader (1) Trailblazer (1)
Overlored (1) Donor (1)
One Thousand Posts! (1) One Million Words! (1)
Sunberth Seasonal Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)

A Musical Journey V

Postby Kelski on November 12th, 2018, 3:51 am

Image
The old woman yawned, claimed it was past her bed time, and carefully packed up her violin, leaving the tuning forks, pitch pipe, and the mute to Kelski’s care. Kelski packed up her own violin, settled back on the couch after carefully setting it aside, and propped her feet up on the table. She leaned back and stared at the ceiling thinking to close her eyes and relax.

Movement caught her eye and Kelski spotted Little Rhaus up near the ceiling, clinging to the candle chandelier like a monkey in a tree as it gently swayed back and forth. She frowned a moment, trying to puzzle out how he got up there. Then she held her arms out and the little statue let go of the chandelier and jumped. “Did you overhear all of that?” She asked when she caught him and set him beside her on the couch. Little Rhaus settled down and nodded.

“Yes. She wasn’t a great teacher, but she knew her stuff. I think you made her year asking her to teach you some violin lessons. I’m sorry I got upset. I don’t know nearly what she knows. You were right.” He said softly, reaching out a ceramic hand to lay it on her knee. She covered his tiny hand with her own. “I care about you Little Rhaus. I’d be honored to learn from you and play with you as well. But we need to cherish our elders, learn what they know while they are still here. I wasn’t choosing between you two. I was choosing her knowledge for now… in this time and place. Plus its going to be frigidly cold outside tonight. I didn’t want her staying in her tent tonight. I want to talk her into moving into The Gem if she can. Today wasn’t about you, Little Rhaus. I know you had it rough. Today was about her, and showing her she could be something more here… “ Kelski said softly, hoping the magical statue could understand. She squeezed at his ceramic hand out of habit, knowing it would have worked with Ebon or Ember. But with something magical and inhuman or even non-Kelvic it was harder.

Little Rhaus slowly nodded, his almost ancient elderly ceramic eyes studying hers. “I understand, Kelski. I really do. I just needed to pout today. It feels nice sometimes to be first, to be the most important. I feel that here, and once you feel that, you don’t want to let it go.” He confessed. “Thank you for making me feel first sometimes… making me feel important.” Kelski reached out and touched his ceramic head with her other hand. “Everyone is important. Thank you for understanding about Mosa.” She said softly.

The two souls sat side by side, contemplative, holding hands as Mosa’s lessons slowly sank into both of them. Kelski was glad he wasn’t lost anymore… wasn’t hiding really. She knew what life was like without her loved ones in them. Kelski seemed unable to release Little Rhaus’ ceramic hand. Little Rhaus seemed unable to release her hand as well. They just enjoyed the moment and being together.


Count: 524
Image
They laugh at me because I am different.
I laugh at them because they are all the same.


Painted Sky Jewelry (The Wildlands) | Crossroads Jewelry (The Outpost)
User avatar
Kelski
Freedom is earned. Fight for it.
 
Posts: 1598
Words: 2015452
Joined roleplay: July 3rd, 2014, 11:08 pm
Location: The Wildlands of Sylira & The Empyreal Demesne
Race: Kelvic
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes
Medals: 11
Featured Character (1) Featured Thread (2)
Mizahar Grader (1) Trailblazer (1)
Overlored (1) Donor (1)
One Thousand Posts! (1) One Million Words! (1)
Sunberth Seasonal Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)

A Musical Journey V

Postby Kelski on November 12th, 2018, 4:11 am

Image
Little Rhaus finally turned to Kelski. He looked her over carefully and said suddenly. “I really wanted to be the first one to play violin with you. I don’t know many songs or even complex songs, but how about I teach you one really quick.” He said softly, reaching around to unsling the instrument that always seemed to be on his back. It changed too, depending on Litlte Rhaus’ needs. Yesterday it was a guitar and today it was strangely enough a violin. He pulled it to his front, produced a bow from somewhere and smiled at Kelski. The Kelvic glanced towards the guest room and then notices as Little Rhaus stroked his violin and a muter magically appeared on his pegboard. Kelski smiled.

They wouldn’t disturb the old ladies rest.

“This song you can sing to as well, Kelski. It’s called ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’. It’s a classic. I bet this song has been translated in every language and in every land. I think its one of Rhaus’ favorites as well.” He added, then carefully he ran through the lyrics so she had some idea of how the notes would go.

“Twinkle, twinkle, little star
How I wonder what you are
Up above the world so high
Like a diamond in the sky
Twinkle, twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are

When the blazing sun is gone
When he nothing shines upon
Then you show your little light
Twinkle, twinkle, all the night
Twinkle, twinkle, little star
How I wonder what you are…”


Kelski smiled, loving the song already. Together, the two friends sang through it again, the simple lyrics easy enough for even a child to sing.

Then he did something astonishing. He reminded her of the fingerings, and then sang the song to her again in its notes.

“CC GG AA G….
FF EE DD C….
GG FF EE D….
GG FF EE D….
CC GG AA G….
FF EE DD C….”


Kelski blinked and then listened as Little Rhaus ran his violin through the song, playing it so sweetly. The Kelvic lifted her bow, placed it on the strings, and started to join him. Her playing was rough and she missed the notes, having to stop often and figure out where say F was verses D… but she muddled through it, playing it over and over again. Finally, after about another bell of practice, they made it through the song together. Putting their bows aside and carefully setting down their instruments, Kelski and Little Rhaus stared at each other and grinned.

“That was amazing. I want to play that song every night until I can make it as pretty as you play it.” Kelski said, laughing slightly at herself knowing how badly she did play and how much practice she needed. The violin would give her something to do that would take her mind off her jewelcrafting and give her something to recharge her brain with after a long day of work in her workshop or worrying about Kynier and whether he would be home or not that day.

“I hope you teach me a whole lot more.” She practically begged. Little Rhaus grinned brightly.

“Of course, Kelski. Of course I will.” He said, just wanting to be necessary and needed. His smile shone brightly and once more his hand found Kelski's.

Count: 558
Image
They laugh at me because I am different.
I laugh at them because they are all the same.


Painted Sky Jewelry (The Wildlands) | Crossroads Jewelry (The Outpost)
User avatar
Kelski
Freedom is earned. Fight for it.
 
Posts: 1598
Words: 2015452
Joined roleplay: July 3rd, 2014, 11:08 pm
Location: The Wildlands of Sylira & The Empyreal Demesne
Race: Kelvic
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes
Medals: 11
Featured Character (1) Featured Thread (2)
Mizahar Grader (1) Trailblazer (1)
Overlored (1) Donor (1)
One Thousand Posts! (1) One Million Words! (1)
Sunberth Seasonal Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)

A Musical Journey V

Postby Kelski on December 24th, 2018, 9:15 pm

G R A D E S
Kelski

Violin +5, Investigation +1

Violin: Loure – Bowing Technique, Violin: Arpeggio – Bowing Technique, Violin: Termola – Bowing Technique, Violin: How To Shuffle, Violin: How To Chop, Violin: Snap Pizz – plucking that can match human speech, Violin: Using The Mute Device, Violin: How To Play Somewhere Over The Rainbow, Violin: How To Play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star




PM me with questions or concerns.
Image
They laugh at me because I am different.
I laugh at them because they are all the same.


Painted Sky Jewelry (The Wildlands) | Crossroads Jewelry (The Outpost)
User avatar
Kelski
Freedom is earned. Fight for it.
 
Posts: 1598
Words: 2015452
Joined roleplay: July 3rd, 2014, 11:08 pm
Location: The Wildlands of Sylira & The Empyreal Demesne
Race: Kelvic
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes
Medals: 11
Featured Character (1) Featured Thread (2)
Mizahar Grader (1) Trailblazer (1)
Overlored (1) Donor (1)
One Thousand Posts! (1) One Million Words! (1)
Sunberth Seasonal Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests