Chapter 20, Song 20...

Although Qu Jiaying and a few members of the symphony orchestra hang out together privately, she is not good at making friends quickly, and can only say that she is a little familiar with Qiu Xue and Lü Yueming.

They invited her because she was the orchestra's principal, but she ended up chatting with Ruan Qi the whole time, while they chatted quite well with Xiang Min.

The meager relationship between Qu Jiaying and them was not enough to make them willingly help her.

Here's what happened: the members of the school symphony orchestra were somewhat dissatisfied with Qu Jiaying. They didn't show it much openly, but they were gossiping about it behind her back.

Most of the members of the school symphony orchestra are third- or fourth-year students. Those who can get into the music academy have basically been learning instruments since childhood. If there are any truly outstanding ones, they would have already gone abroad to study through various channels.

Even at this top music academy in the country, most students only want to stay at the school or work in a good symphony orchestra after graduation, and teach piano to young students in their spare time.

Only a small number of people with goals and ambitions are still working hard to prepare for international competitions and participate in various activities.

Previously, most of the members of the school symphony orchestra were the former. After Cai Rui joined, students with superb skills and equally high self-esteem also joined.

If Ruan Qi were still the orchestra's principal, people probably wouldn't have so much resentment. She is very humble, has a peaceful personality, is happy to share her experience, and is a senior in college. Her childhood prodigy reputation still carries a lot of weight.

It would be different if it were Qu Jiaying.

She has a good temper, but it's not exactly mild either.

So far, because the solo has been changed to clarinet, students who haven't heard her play are not very convinced.

Cai Rui frequently snapped at these musicians who had previously focused solely on solo performances: "Cooperation! Do you even know what cooperation means? You must be in sync within the same section. Strings, pay attention to your bowing speed; wind instruments, pay attention to your breathing. If you can't remember that, go watch the actions of your respective section's principal player!"

That's fine, but Cai Rui always says, "Learn more from Qu Jiaying."

Unable to vent their anger on Cai Rui, they could only direct their frustrations at Qu Jiaying.

"I didn't see anything special about her at all."

Why choose her?

"Ruan Qi's performance was clearly so good."

After the rehearsal, Qu Jiaying asked Lü Yueming, "Did you make a copy of the score?"

Lu Yueming nodded, handed it to her, and asked curiously, "Is this for the guy I met at the bar last time?"

Qu Jiaying smiled and shook her head, waving the sheet music in her hand: "Thanks."

After Ruan Qi finished packing her things, Lü Yueming hurriedly went over to help her carry the violin case. He turned to look at Qu Jiaying, who was still not planning to leave, and asked in a low voice, "Aren't you going to say a few words in defense of us?"

Ruan Qi looked at him resentfully: "Why don't you explain?"

Lu Yueming was still dating Ruan Qi and wasn't that foolish: "I'm not that close to her." He was a little curious about what they talked about that day, as Ruan Qi seemed rather depressed.

Qiu Xue practiced her solo piece for a while, then looked at Qu Jiaying who was still practicing and called out, "I'm leaving now."

Qu Jiaying stopped and smiled at her: "Okay."

She practiced for a while longer. It was her first time performing in the orchestra, and she was the principal player, which was the most important role. Even if she didn't have a solo this time, she still had to practice this piece well. There were many difficult parts, and she had to make sure the tone was clear and accurate.

Qu Jiaying quickly ate at the cafeteria and then carried her instrument to the rehearsal room of the "Three Missing One" quartet.

Le Yi, Yan Zheng, and Xiang Min had already arrived and all stepped forward to ask, "Are you doing alright with the orchestra?"

Qu Jiaying, with a yogurt bag in her mouth, looked bewildered: "It's fine."

She was completely indifferent to all the outside noise, and the three of them understood why others said she was arrogant and looked down on everyone.

"Has the music been decided yet?" Qu Jiaying urged.

Xiang Min opened the folder and handed out the sheet music to them: "I received some great suggestions, so I changed it to this."

Yan Zheng took it: "You can mention Lü Yueming's name, don't worry about me."

Xiang Min smiled and said, "He understands the difference between disabled people and able-bodied people very well. Their senses are very sharp. Originally, I wanted Le Yi to continue playing the piano. The piano is loud, but it's not really necessary. The resonance of strings is better."

"You chose 'Can-Can'?" Qu Jiaying said.

The composer of this piece is not very famous among ordinary people, but most people have heard it. It is very cheerful, and no one would guess that it is the prelude to a light comedy adapted from a tragedy.

Qu Jiaying demonstrated some fingering techniques to Le Yi, while Yan Zheng and Xiang Min continued discussing the arrangement of the score. The four of them practiced for an afternoon, and afterwards went to a barbecue restaurant for a meal together, which had become a regular activity.

The pork belly sizzled on the hot plate, the fat slowly seeping out, and the aroma and smoke filled the air.

Qu Jiaying took out the score of the Clarinet Concerto in A major and handed it to Yan Zheng: "Take a look at it."

Xiang Min, standing to the side, watched Qu Jiaying. She was easily misunderstood. Although she cared about the people she cared about, she was always mistaken by others for being indifferent.

When she's kind to people, she's too attentive, which can easily lead to misunderstandings.

Xiang Min found it hard to understand her and was worried that she might get back together with Yan Zheng, but he didn't dare to ask too much. Given his relationship with Qu Jiaying, talking about these things would be crossing the line. He regretted agreeing to those rules with her back then, otherwise they wouldn't be stuck like this now.

It would be equally difficult for him to give up, and it is precisely this kind of Qu Jiaying that fascinates him even more. It is this entangled and troublesome relationship that allows him to make frequent breakthroughs in his creative work.

Xiang Min glanced at Le Yi, who was grilling meat with his head down across from him. Sometimes he envied him. He seemed to have noticed something, but he didn't care at all.

Yan Zheng happily accepted the score.

Qu Jiaying then said, "After you finish reading it, tell me about Cai Rui's handling of the matter, and why it differs so much from the instructions in the original score."

"This is the first time you've taken the initiative to learn about these things," Yan Zheng said with satisfaction.

"There's no way around it. I can certainly excel in violin technique, but I'm not just one of the musicians in the orchestra. I'm the principal, so I can't ignore the conductor's intentions as a whole, can I?" Qu Jiaying ate her meat with gusto.

When Xia Xiaolei taught her, she focused on handling every detail specifically for solo performances, but the conductor judges from the perspective of the entire symphony orchestra.

The quartet practice helped her a lot, but with only four instruments, even with Yan Zheng and Xiang Min's talent, they still played many parts awkwardly.

Le Yi placed a freshly grilled scallop onto Qu Jiaying's plate: "Is it a work by Mozart? You said I'm suited to Mozart, maybe I can tell you about it?"

"I couldn't ask for more," Qu Jiaying said with a smile.

Le Yi reached out, and Yan Zheng reluctantly handed him the full score.

As Le Yi flipped through the pieces, he mentioned the piece: "It was Mozart's penultimate composition."

"Before 'Requiem'? That must have been a period of poverty and hardship, right?" Qu Jiaying asked.

“Mozart was already seriously ill at the time, and this piece was written for a friend who often helped him,” Xiang Min added.

Yan Zheng retorted, "His friend played a clarinet that was different from the ones we have today. It was four and a half to the lower. This instrument has been lost, and the publisher has rearranged the score to be more suitable for the modern clarinet."

Qu Jiaying then taught a lesson during the four-person dinner.

Returning to Mozart's Clarinet Concerto, technically speaking, Qu Jiaying shouldn't have too many problems. However, she couldn't grasp the velvety texture of the original work, and she couldn't interpret its simplicity, warmth, and subtle melancholy.

Cai Rui's interpretation amplified the sorrow, making it even harder for her to control the character.

It was time for the symphony orchestra's rehearsal again. Cai Rui stood at the front, opened the score, and began to conduct.

After several rehearsals, Qu Jiaying noticed that Cai Rui's movements were not very wide, and if you only looked at his conducting, you couldn't feel any special features, but he was very precise and had a keen ear.

This clarinet concerto has three movements. Each rehearsal had to be interrupted several times at the end so that Tsai Rui could remind everyone of every little detail, down to the individual level.

Qu Jiaying is rarely nominated, but today she was mentioned for the first time.

Cai Rui still had high hopes for the school symphony orchestra, hoping to train some good students. Despite having expectations, he was still very disappointed knowing that the students could not compare with the symphony orchestras he had worked with before.

He has led symphony orchestras of relatively poor overall quality before, but they are experienced and at least understand what coordination is.

The school symphony orchestra was the complete opposite. Some of the musicians were outstanding, but the rest were just barely passable and had no idea what coordination was.

Apart from the better musicians, most of them had intonation problems in different measures. Even if it was just a slight deviation, he could hear it clearly. He emphasized it a few times, and it got a little better. Some were in tune, but their fingers were unsteady and they didn't press the strings firmly, so the tone wasn't good. There were still some who were not in tune.

"Pay attention to the pitch!" Cai Rui reminded him again, and then they started over from the beginning.

The second time, Qu Jiaying's pitch was also off.

Cai Rui frowned and called her name: "Qu Jiaying, what's wrong with you?"

Most of the students in the school symphony orchestra were watching the spectacle, causing a minor commotion and laughter.

"I'm sorry," Qu Jiaying said softly.

Cai Rui sighed inwardly. He had chosen Qu Jiaying as the chief, hoping that she and Ruan Qi would form a healthy competition, but it seemed to have been of no use at all.

Ruan Qi seemed to be stuck in some kind of mental block, completely lacking motivation, while Qu Jiaying was full of fighting spirit, but too honest.

He understood why Qu Jiaying had mispronounced the notes earlier; she had done it on purpose to match the other violinists. But he didn't want a terrible orchestra where the principal had to compromise herself.

However, her good intentions were not appreciated by others, and she instead received a lot of gossip.

Cai Rui prefers soloists who are outspoken and have a strong personality; even if they are difficult to work with, they are better than those who have no personality at all.

"Qu Jiaying, stand up and play this part properly. Don't give in to them; I want them to keep up with you," Cai Rui said.

The violinists were indignant, whispering amongst themselves, wondering what they meant by "accommodating them."

Qu Jiaying stood up and began playing from the first section. The opening violin introduction was very light and cheerful. Even a layman who didn't understand pitch or bowing could hear that the tone was extremely beautiful and the sound was very loud, directly reaching every corner of the rehearsal hall. Even if you couldn't understand any of that, you could still feel the relaxed and pleasant beauty from her violin playing posture.

Qu Jiaying is enjoying the music and the moment.

Cai Rui looked around: "Does anyone have any questions?"

No one answered. Ruan Qi touched her arm again and looked at Qu Jiaying in front of her seat with a complicated expression.

"Alright, let's continue rehearsing," Cai Rui said.