"are you serious?"
Zhang Xiaomi asked suspiciously.
“Is there ever a time when I wasn’t serious?”
"That's not necessarily true. I've only known you for two days."
Well, Xia Yu was speechless. He and Xiaomi had only known each other for two days.
"But if you're serious, I'll find someone to ask for you?"
Zhang Xiaomi took out his cell phone and raised it.
Although she is a country girl from Luzhou, her mother is a music teacher at the school, and she has classmates who teach at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.
"Will it bother others?"
"What's the big deal? If you hang out more, you're an acquaintance. If you don't hang out, you're a familiar stranger."
As expected of a child from a wealthy family, he has understood this principle since childhood. Xia Yu had never thought of this.
"Then please help me!"
"Hey, you're my brother-in-law's good friend, so it's only natural that you help."
Zhang Xiaomi, a smart boy, patted Xia Yu on the shoulder and made a phone call.
"Auntie Tingting, I'm Xiaomi. Are you at school today? My cousin is getting married, so I came to your school today..."
After the contact was completed, Zhang Xiaomi led Xia Yu to the teaching building. On the way, she talked to Xia Yu about Aunt Tingting.
Aunt Tingting's real name is Zhu Yuting. She is a lecturer in the Orchestra Department of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, teaching double bass. Her words should be able to give Xia Yu some useful advice.
It’s possible to find information yourself, but it’s less efficient because not only do you have to look for information like sheet music, but you also have to research what brand of cello to buy.
He placed the order for the suona directly on Taobao, but he couldn't be so casual when buying a cello. A good Western musical instrument can be worth millions of US dollars, and those that are too cheap are just for show and can only be considered toys, so one must be careful in choosing.
At this time, it is more reliable to listen to the advice of professionals than to search on the Internet.
Arriving at the third floor of the teaching building, the two found Zhu Yuting's office. She happened to have no classes this afternoon, so it was a coincidence that they came.
"Aunt Tingting, this is my cousin's friend Xia Yu. He plays the suona very well and recently wants to learn the cello. I brought him here to ask you for advice."
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Zhang Xiaomi introduced Xia Yu to Zhu Yuting and explained the purpose of their visit.
"Oh? From suona to cello, from folk music to western music, from wind instruments to string instruments, young man, your major switch is quite big!"
"I'm sorry to bother you, Mr. Zhu. I'm just an ordinary music lover. I learned suona entirely on my own and took a lot of detours. This time, I want to learn cello and I want to seek systematic guidance from professionals."
Xia Yu said modestly.
"It's a good thing to like music. Let's go to the classroom and talk."
Since they couldn't chat in the office, Zhu Yuting led the two of them directly to an empty classroom.
The cello, bass and harp are all in the same classroom, so all three types of instruments are available in the classroom. Compared with the cello, the double bass is like a huge object, more than one person tall, and one needs to stand or sit on a high chair when playing.
Sometimes it is not good to be too big. Although the cello is big, you can carry it with you. But there is no way to carry a double bass. Its size is not much more convenient than a piano or a harp.
"Here, this is the school's piano. It's not expensive, but the quality is good. Hold the resonance box between your legs and play it a few times to get a feel for it."
Xia Yu sat down as he was told and began to play the violin just like in the videos he had seen before.
Perhaps because he had activated the music buff before coming, he quickly found the feeling and the right pitch.
"Yes, you have a talent for string instruments."
Zhu Yuting's eyes lit up and she didn't hesitate to give her praise.
"Teacher Zhu, you're too kind. I'm just a beginner."
Xia Yu said modestly again that without the buff, he would not have been able to find the pitch so quickly.
"You're quite impressive even as a beginner. I was much dumber than you back then. So, I'll make a list of books for you, and we'll learn step by step."
As Zhu Yuting spoke, she wanted to find paper and pen, but where could they be found here?
"Teacher Zhu, let's add each other on WeChat. You can just send it to me directly."
"That's right, WeChat is convenient."
The two took out their phones and added each other on WeChat, and soon Zhu Yuting sent a long list of books.
"Excuse me, teacher, do you have any good recommendations for cello brands?"
Xia Yu continued to ask.
I can look for these books later, but without a piano, what’s the point?
If you want to do your work well, you must first sharpen your tools. Xia Yu plans to buy a good piano.
"Rather than talking about brand, it's better to talk about price. Music is still very expensive. Beginner pianos can cost a few thousand yuan, but professional pianos can cost tens of thousands of yuan."
Xia Yu was brought here by Zhang Xiaomi. Zhu Yuting was straightforward and if she was asked to make a recommendation, it had to be based on the budget.
"Teacher Zhu, I plan to study hard and go straight to a professional course. Price is not a problem."
Xia Yu's current daily check-in salary is two million. It's not too much to spend one or two days' salary on a good piano, right?
To be honest, it's a bit too much. The cello students at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music use cellos that cost more than 50,000 US dollars, and there are also a few that cost 100,000 or 200,000 US dollars. But Xia Yu's budget is 500,000 or 600,000 US dollars, which is enough to buy a more expensive antique cello.
"Xiao Xia, your budget is a bit high. Among our domestic luthiers of this generation, no one dares to ask for more than 300,000 yuan. The older generation would ask a little higher, but never more than one million. If you don't lower your budget, you'll have to look abroad."
Zhu Yuting said with some embarrassment.
Her own piano is only worth 150,000 yuan. Rich people are really extravagant.
"Brother, is your restaurant business so profitable? I only bought my pipa for 66,000!"
It's not the catering industry that makes money, it's the system that's powerful. Xia Yu is reluctant to spend the money he earned, and he invested it all in expansion. What he spends now is all the salary and bonus given to him by the system, so of course he doesn't feel sorry.
"I think it's okay to spend a little more money on a hobby, and antique guitars also have collectible value. As long as they are not deceived by others, they are very suitable for passing on."
Xia Yu explained briefly and also thought that classical music should be played with antique instruments so that it would have soul.
He remembered seeing a video before, in which a YouTube blogger played Bach's Cello Suite No. 1 using cellos worth US$5,000, US$180,000, and US$1 million respectively.
At that time, he didn't understand music, but he could feel the obvious difference just by listening. The bass of the one million dollar antique cello was very nice, fuller and more charming.
The other two are a bit out of place, and the $5,000 one has the most flaws.
According to the price-performance ratio, the one that costs US$180,000 is the most suitable, which is just over one million RMB.
"Thank you, Mr. Zhu. I'm going to Europe in a few days, so I can go to a local antique music store to have a look. Could you help me check it out?"
Xia Yu continued.
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