Chapter 10, Song 10...
The story begins from the beginning. After leaving Chen Li, Qu Jiaying went home to rest, while Le Yi and Yan Zheng also returned to school together.
Xiang Min didn't leave. Luckily, there was a piano in the bar, and no one was working during the day, so he could borrow the piano to revise the score immediately.
That evening, he moved his cello back to the rehearsal room, where there was also a piano. He continued revising the score, working day and night for two days before finally finishing the initial revisions.
“I’ve simplified many parts, but I’ve tried my best to retain the style of the original,” Xiang Min said wearily, his eyes dark and swollen.
"Are you going to let me play the piano?" Le Yi looked at the score; the second violin had disappeared, replaced by piano sheet music.
“Yes, we don’t have wind instruments, which reduces the variety of our music. Adding a piano would be even better,” Xiang Min said.
Le Yi flipped through the sheet music, her tone calm: "It's okay, you can just say so. My violin skills can't be improved in such a short time."
Xiang Min was already exhausted and hadn't rested much, so he didn't have the energy to argue anymore: "You guys look at the sheet music first, I'm going to sleep for a while." After saying that, he leaned back in the soft chair and fell asleep.
Qu Jiaying was still looking at the sheet music when Yan Zheng started doodling with a pen: "This isn't right...this is still wrong..."
Beethoven's original work was a symphony, which required many parts to create a grand atmosphere. A quartet, with only four instruments, would inevitably be much weaker.
Qu Jiaying didn't really understand the implications, but she thought the changes were great and that adding the piano brought a lot of novelty.
Xiang Min breaks down the harmonies of the wind instruments into those of the viola, and has the cello simulate the timpani. Different parts take turns leading the theme, and with the participation of the piano, it becomes more dramatic and symphonic.
But what Yan Zheng was most dissatisfied with was changing Le Yi's second violin into a piano.
After resting for a while, Xiang Min had just sat up when Yan Zheng pulled him aside to discuss the sheet music: "The piano is a percussion instrument, and its integration with string instruments is very low. Its timbre will overpower the viola and cello!"
Xiang Min rubbed his eyes wearily and replied, "I've thought about it carefully. With Le Yi's piano skills, he can make up for these problems with technique."
"To put it bluntly, you still don't trust his violin," Yan Zheng said angrily.
"With such a tight schedule, how did it become my problem that I revised the score to coordinate the piano and strings?" Xiang Min was also unhappy.
“I can master it,” Le Yi interjected, clearly unconvinced.
Xiang Min sighed, "So now I have to spend another two days revising the score? There's even less time available."
"Why didn't you communicate with us beforehand?" Qu Jiaying asked, puzzled.
"After I said I wanted to revise the score, none of you interfered or asked any questions," Xiang Min said. "So what do we do now?"
"Change it," Yan Zheng said firmly.
Qu Jiaying frowned: "Yan Zheng, there's really no time left. We still need to practice and rehearse. Let's leave it at that for now. The score isn't a big problem."
Yan Zheng shook his head, his attitude serious: "You and Le Yi don't have a deep understanding of the score. You only care about your own parts. But I didn't ask him in advance how he planned to change it. That's my problem. I thought he would change it into a normal quartet and change the viola to the piano. There are too many changes."
Xiang Min laughed: "Why is the piano not good? Do you think older people are too traditional to accept innovation? Peking Opera has collaborated with symphony orchestras before, they've seen it all. On the contrary, you're frighteningly conservative. What, you get all smug just because someone praises you?"
Qu Jiaying looked at Xiang Min in surprise. He was usually so gentle; she had never seen this sharp side of him before.
Yan Zheng was embarrassed and his face flushed red.
Right in front of Qu Jiaying, his hidden inferiority complex seemed to be exposed, like a damp cave suddenly being exposed to the sun.
He was naturally very happy when a great recording engineer praised him but didn't praise anyone else.
But to say he was proud of himself would be an understatement.
Yan Zheng turned his head slightly and looked at the bewildered Qu Jiaying. All his extra emotions and his urge to find fault with Xiang Min were because of her, but he had no right to reprimand Xiang Min for being so close to her.
What surprised everyone even more was that before Yan Zheng could react, Xiang Min lowered his head, packed his things, and was about to leave the rehearsal room.
"Where are you going?" Qu Jiaying asked quickly.
"I don't like arguing, so I'm out of here." Xiang Min walked away quickly.
Qu Jiaying stared blankly at the light-colored wooden door of the rehearsal room.
Le Yi gently pushed her back: "Go find him."
Qu Jiaying turned to look at him.
Le Yi, who is usually somewhat impulsive and reckless, suddenly revealed a serious and responsible attitude: "Leave this to me, go quickly."
Qu Jiaying gritted her teeth, took the sheet music, and chased after him.
She didn't really know what to do, and she had never had a similar experience.
She had a good relationship with Gao Ying; they never argued. She focused on her own things all day and never got involved in other people's conflicts.
Even after breaking up with Yan Zheng, that was all she did; she didn't ask anything else.
Qu Jiaying hadn't gone far when she found Xiang Min by the lake. He was sitting on the grass, leaning against a willow tree behind him.
She couldn't ask Xiang Min why he wanted to quit either.
“I really like the score you revised. It’s very interesting and innovative, which is something I’ve been missing,” Qu Jiaying said from behind him. “A quartet is a rational exchange between four musicians. Sometimes it’s a competition, sometimes it’s a dialogue. I used to think that none of you were serious about learning instruments, but now I realize that composition and conducting are both very helpful for a quartet.”
Xiang Min smiled and sighed, "I thought you would say it would be very helpful to you."
"Well, we haven't found anything yet." Qu Jiaying took a few steps forward and sat down beside him.
Xiang Min took her hand, and Qu Jiaying's fingertips twitched slightly. She didn't struggle. Looking at the shimmering blue lake reflecting the sunlight, her mood brightened.
Xiang Min smiled slightly, paused, and said, "I have no experience working with other people, and I feel like I'm doomed whenever we start arguing."
"Really? You're quite the talker," Qu Jiaying said.
"I don't like this side of myself." Xiang Min lowered his eyes. "Would you hate it?"
"It's alright, I've said some harsh things too," Qu Jiaying said casually.
I'd rather you hate it. Xiang Min turned his head to look at her. He clearly disliked complicated interpersonal relationships the most, and he clearly knew that Yan Zheng had a problem with him, so why didn't he let go?
Was it because he wrote a page of music score after his first meeting with Qu Jiaying?
Xiang Min chuckled and teased, "I heard that when Le Yi first became your piano accompanist, you gave him a real dressing down."
"I didn't say anything that bad, did I? He did criticize me too!" Qu Jiaying said indignantly.
Xiang Min stood up, brushed off the dust and grass clippings, and extended his hand to Qu Jiaying: "Let's go, let's go back and discuss this."
Qu Jiaying breathed a huge sigh of relief; she really wasn't good at mediating disputes.
This is the first time, and it seems she did a good job.
Back in the rehearsal room, Le Yi gestured "OK" to Qu Jiaying. Yan Zheng looked impatient, but still agreed to change it to a piano version.
Xiang Min chuckled, took out the score, and discussed with Yan Zheng where the score needed to be changed and what techniques to use for playing certain parts.
As Qu Jiaying listened to the two's discussion and made notes on the score, she nudged Le Yi and asked in a low voice, "How did you convince them?"
Le Yi smiled smugly and said, "I won't tell you."
How could he possibly tell Qu Jiaying that the core of his persuasive tactics for Yan Zheng was her?
After Qu Jiaying was pushed by Le Yi to chase after him, Yan Zheng was also annoyed with Le Yi: "Why don't you go and let her go?"
Le Yi asked, "Are you arguing with Xiang Min because of your musical ideas, or because of Qu Jiaying's affectionate attitude towards him?"
Le Yi's straightforwardness can sometimes be delightful, and sometimes infuriating.
Yan Zheng took a deep breath and stubbornly replied, "Of course it's about musical philosophy!"
“You compromised when we were rehearsing Lark, so why can’t we do it now?” Le Yi exposed him.
"..." Yan Zheng was speechless.
“If you switch to piano, the piece will feel a bit discordant. Shouldn’t you try to blend it together using your conducting skills? That way, Qu Jiaying will appreciate you more,” Le Yi said.
"...That's not why I agreed to the piano version!" Yan Zheng said in a low voice.
Le Yi smiled and nodded, his golden hair swaying gently.
Yan Zheng then asked him, "And what about you? He didn't trust your violin skills, but you didn't complain either?"
“He trusts my piano, and that’s enough,” Le Yi said.
Although Yan Zheng agreed to the piano version, he gave a lot of instructions and kept changing them during rehearsals.
Yan Zheng was furious: "According to this version, the symphonic feel needs to come through!"
"Cello, here we need to use pizzicato to enhance the rhythm."
"Piano, pay attention to using legato to closely match the strings."
"Jiaying, remember to use vibrato to enhance the high notes."
Le Yi performed quite well this time. He didn't act recklessly and controlled himself to coordinate with the strings, trying his best not to let the piano's sound drown out his.
However, the piano's own volume is limited, and its metallic texture and percussion characteristics make it impossible to fully imitate the overtones of strings.
The violin's clear tone, combined with Qu Jiaying's superb technique, was not significantly affected, but the viola and cello were often drowned out.
Yan Zheng was very dissatisfied with his piano skills, as was Xiang Min, and the two practiced hard together.
These days, Le Yi and Qu Jiaying eat at the cafeteria and then pack food for them.
Seeing that it was getting late, Qu Jiaying put away her zither and called Le Yi to have dinner.
"So they're alright?" Qu Jiaying asked.
"Probably." Le Yi wasn't sure either. Although Yan Zheng and Xiang Min were both dissatisfied with their own performances, their shared dedication to practicing every minute and second stemmed partly from their desire not to lose to each other.
For some reason, he didn't want to tell Qu Jiaying his speculations.
Le Yi listened intently to the sound of a violin coming from the window of the teaching building, and then remembered something else: "Isn't the final exam coming up soon? Have you chosen your piece yet?"
“We’ve been practicing for a while now,” Qu Jiaying said.
"Hey? Have you found a steel partner yet?" Le Yi asked quickly.
Qu Jiaying was surprised: "Of course, it's always been Gao Ying."
"And what about me?" Le Yi pressed.
"Now that you're cooperating, go find other people. They'd love to be in your group, saying that with your accompaniment, their scores will be higher," Qu Jiaying said casually.
Le Yi wasn't slow to react; he retorted angrily, "Did someone say you got good grades on your midterms because of my piano playing?"
Qu Jiaying laughed: "I'm not angry at all. Why are you and Gao Ying like this? Don't even think about competing with her. Although she admits that you are very good, she is not willing to admit defeat. The final exam happens to be in the auditorium, and everyone can hear my performance live."
Le Yi's heart was pounding. It was dusk, so why did it feel like all the light was focused on her?
"I will let them know that my current level is not dependent on any particular piano accompaniment," Qu Jiaying said confidently with a smile.
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