Violinist at a Wedding

April 2014

Service

I served as part of the wedding party at my Aunt's wedding by performing as the violinist during the ceremony. This experience is a great addition into my service record because I did not get and to do this event first off. Secondly, being a soloist for a wedding ceremony forced me out of my comfort zone by bringing my playing ability to center stage as a soloist. I have always performed with the Symphonic orchestra, never just as a soloist. Overall, this was an incredibly new and anxious experience for me. I remember feeling very nervous, wondering when I should pay as well as what should I play. I had a very limited music repertoire. I collaborated with the bride to find out which pieces she wanted to be payed at different events in the ceremony as well as what version of the wedding march she wanted to walk down the aisle to. I chose to uphold this challenge because I wanted to place a more important role on my violin career in my life, which also allowed me to see my strengths as well as my weaknesses when playing alone. Along with the traditional wedding march premise, I played a song I learned from class several years ago known as "Swallowtail Jig". My family is Irish, and loves the song. It is a challenge to play in itself because it is very quick at correct tempo. Keeping one's tonality in check is key. My performance, overall went very well and was deemed successful by the bride herself.I was better able to express my musicality and interpretation with this experience. This performance allowed me to give back to the community by performing a service in front of an audience. Before the day of the wedding, I practiced immensely over a week's worth of time. Because I am willing to further my violinist resume and I practiced extremely hard for my performance, I show how I am completely committed to my duties.

Outcomes of this performance:

• Undertook new challenges.
• Worked collaboratively with others.
• Showed perseverance and commitment.