Scott BresslerThroughout the painstaking process of college applications, students are reinforced with the idea that elite universities are becoming more and more selective. Applicants are told that they need a gimmick, something that sets them apart from the rest of the applicants with high GPAs and perfect SAT scores.
I was personally of the mindset that I had better find a cure for cancer soon, or I’d have no chance to get into a good school. A few students at Wash. U., however, had no problem satisfying the standout trait requirement. While taking breaks from studying, they learned to play some incredibly unique musical instruments.
“The way that people would play [the flute] in their tribes is that they would use it to tell a story,” said Nachman. “That’s how I think-I just let my hands do the work. You play with how you’re feeling and how you want to express yourself.”
The relaxed quality of the woodlands flute is precisely what attracts Nachman to playing this particular instrument. The flute is available whenever he is in the mood for its rich, cedarwood smell or its soothing, natural sound.
“Everything sounds prettier on the ukulele,” said Hu. “It’s nicer and happier.”
Hu began playing the ukulele after being exposed to the instrument by two friends from home. After only four or five months, his repertoire consists of three Backstreet Boys songs, some Hawaiian music and other popular songs that he has picked up. Currently, his main endeavor is learning Daft Punk’s album, Discovery. Since ukulele is not a very popular instrument Hu often has trouble finding sheet music, so he usually sticks to playing by ear or using the chord progressions from guitar tabs.
The fact that Hu has come so far in such a short time is a testament to his talent. Having played the violin and guitar have certainly aided Hu in learning to play the ukulele, but he claims that it really is not a difficult skill to pick up. Aside from learning Daft Punk, Hu’s main goal right now is to spread his art.
“People usually don’t believe me when I say that it’s actually ridiculously easy to play the ukulele,” said Hu. “I do intend to recruit as many people into ukulele as I can.”
So far, four of his fellow Umrath residents are learning on what he calls his “crap ukulele.”
“The thing about the bagpipes is that it’s very physically difficult to play,” said McClain. “So you have the music to learn and also [must physically train] the muscles in your mouth and arms.”
When her dad got her lessons for her 14th birthday, McClain started out by learning to play the chanter, a kind of recorder. After about three years, she was able to start on the actual bagpipes, a switch that she found to be very rewarding. Her boss at Coldstone Creamery certainly felt the same way-he started having McClain play her bagpipes in the parking lot as a marketing gimmick on days they were giving out samples.
McClain explained that the physical aspect of mastering the bagpipes was the most difficult to get used to. The bagpipes only have a nine-note range, so reading music is not too much of a challenge. What the music lacks in variety, it makes up for in speed.
An avid fan of world music, McClain noted that the history of the instrument is part of what initially interested her to study it.
“I always like to learn different things that are new and exciting, and I like to be well-rounded,” said McClain.
As a 21st century female, she certainly achieves distinction by playing an instrument that has been traditionally male for hundreds of years.
In contrast, senior Jeff Roy has spent the past two years studying an instrument that is quite new, in fact, there are only four or five of this instrument around the world. The Imrat violin, invented by Washington University’s very own music professor, Ustad Imrat Khan, is an Indian take on the classical Western violin. It retains the same basic shape, but has five playing strings rather than four as well as sympathetic strings that vibrate when the other strings are played. The cumulative effect of these strings makes it sound like the music is coming from more than one instrument.
The 10 years that Roy spent playing the Western violin was certainly a benefit when it came to learning the Imrat, but some techniques were still very different and challenging.
“I’ve had to retrain my ear,” said Roy. “Indian music uses a lot of micro-intervals. There are different shades of a single note, so you can play a C-sharp-but there are hundreds of different approaches to doing so.”
Roy also cited his freshman experience singing with The Amateurs as a great help, since the style of playing the Imrat violin is based on singing. During lessons Khan will play on the sitar or sing and Roy must repeat the sequence back without using any musical notation. The process of learning a song takes an entire year, culminating in the performance of a 30-45 minute piece. Roy completed his first performance just a few weeks ago.
The unconventional and “holistic approach,” as he described it, is what initially attracted Roy to the genre of Indian music. While abroad in France he was strongly influenced by the religious and philosophical aspects of the Impressionist paintings he was studying, and he wanted to bring that to his music.
“I like to think that when I play I’m painting a picture,” said Roy.
Regardless of the form or function of their instruments, all four musicians are sure to attract attention when they emerge with their instruments and start to play them in public. Since none of these musicians are currently in any organized groups though, I can’t guarantee you an opportunity to witness a performance. If you wander into Ursa’s one night, you just might be lucky enough to catch Hu serenading the workers with his ukulele in hopes of getting a free bag of gummy bears.
As for Roy-when asked if he would play for his friends, he coyly responded: “If they ask nicely, maybe.”