If it take diligence and discipline to play an instrument, then Chinese have those two qualities. To be an advanced Chinese reader(like the average college student) the Ministry of Education says you should know 8000 Chinese characters. I'm sure I'm still less than 1000 characters and I'm struggling.
I heard that to learn an instrument like a violin or piano to continue in college requires 10,000 hours of practice and lessons. Where does anyone get that much time? ( 10 years * 350 days * 3 hours per day = 10,500 hours ). Certainly diligence and discipline are required before "artistic" ability can distinguish players.
But walking the streets you see music stores everywhere. Here are some:
Stores like this one sells all instruments, Western, Traditional, Classical, ...
This one sells both Chinese and Western instruments. The window is filled with violins looking for owners.
All Classical instruments in one shop.
Music teacher gives piano lessons
Learn Western guitar techniques
Here's a big breakfast
1. Fried onion bread
2. A fried egg wrapped in bread
3. A bowl of hot soybean milk
3 comments:
I enjoyed your observations on Western music in Taiwan. My piano teacher that I've been working with for many years is from Taiwan and started her studies there as a child. She has the deligence you refer to, won some competitions, and eventually went to the UW on scholarships. Her whole family was musical and took music lessons seriously. A music historian I heard lecture said that there is something innately appealing about Western music, that we're wired up to like it. Maybe he's right. Have you attended any concerts of traditional, Western, or pop yet?
Thanks for including pictures of the food you try. I start thinking of cooking when I see them.
I had piano lessons while i was a kid, but I had to go to teacher's home to practice along while others are all sleeping in early morning, that was a not very good memory.
About western music..guess what? I am going to Guns and Roses concert in Dec. I was a fan of them long ago, also the only heavy mental band I like..I hope my ears can still function well after concert in Dec...
Music is not so music to my ears. I was never a music lover and I feel it is a distraction if I listen to the music while I am working.
My parents did not have money to have me learn any music instruments. Learning music for most Asian parents are a noble action and consider it is a high class. They believe music somehow will transform the kids and help the grades. So with each family has fewer children, parents are sending their kids to learn music regardless they like it or not. That is why there are so many music classes after school. Certainly it is better than sports. While Taiwanese parents are sending their kids to different after school classes, very few of them are sending their kids to sport activities. This is quite different from American parents. Asian Parents in US have much more work to do. They not only have their children to take music lessons, they also have them to play sports, poor kids! They don’t have much freedom. Mike and I did not send our kids to take music lesson, neither we encourage them to take sports! We are such bad parents! Luckily, they turn out OK. Otherwise they will blame us for the rest of our lives.
Post a Comment