Chapter 14, Song 14...
After leaving the recording studio, Qu Jiaying and Le Yi said goodbye.
For Qu Jiaying, it makes no difference whether there is a holiday or not; she still has to practice the piano. However, she has an extra task this summer.
Chen Li has been busy at the hospital lately. She usually has piano performances at the bar on weekends, but lately she has been hiring people to perform. Xiang Min is one of them. To save money, she has been hiring mostly students, who all go home during holidays.
So Chen Li asked Qu Jiaying to help again. Yang Jingyi explained to her, "We tried jazz, classical, and various themes before. Fans came when they heard about it, but in the end, most people are just pretending to be cultured. Once we put on some pieces other than the classics, many people find it boring. Look at the concert hall performances. The best-selling tickets are for the New Year's concert, which is a performance by a violin or piano soloist, as well as popular songs."
“New Year’s concerts and pop music concerts feature pieces that are more popular, and soloists’ performances are judged by their reputation, but they should also play well-known classical music.” Yang Jingyi was worried that Qu Jiaying would be unwilling, so she tried her best to persuade her.
Qu Jiaying isn't so traditional; she doesn't insist on playing classical music or more specialized pieces. She only has one requirement: "I don't want to play the same piece every time."
Yang Jingyi readily agreed.
Qu Jiaying took a sip of soda water and asked hesitantly, "How is Grandma Chen?"
"It's not good. I went to visit her the other day. She was covered in tubes and never conscious," Yang Jingyi sighed.
"Then what's the point of my playing? She can't hear it anyway," Qu Jiaying said, annoyed.
"I was really shocked when I heard it; it gave me goosebumps," Yang Jingyi said curiously. "What's the difference between the recording and the live performance?"
"The difference is quite obvious. Whether it's a competition, an exam, or a performance, you only have one chance, and the flaws that appear cannot be changed. But recording is different. Even if the recording equipment is the best, it's still not the same as hearing it live." Qu Jiaying explained simply.
After receiving the recording, she listened to it several times herself. She also had someone record it last week, but the effect was not as good as the one with Xu Yuewen. Of course, part of the reason was that she improved the musical appeal, but if he hadn't adjusted the details of the recording version, even without any processing, the effect would not have been so good. He truly deserves to be a recording engineer who has worked with the National Symphony Orchestra.
Yan Zheng and Xiang Min, who were not involved, asked her about her recording experience. She was a little confused as to why the message wasn't sent directly to the "three missing one" group, but instead sent to her individually.
Actually, the group chat wasn't quiet at all. If you look closely, it's always Leyi who initiates the conversation.
Le Yi said enthusiastically, "The environment is excellent and the climate is very pleasant. If it weren't for these factors, my teacher wouldn't have moved here after retiring. Where would I have found such a talented pianist?"
Qu Jiaying then learned that Le Yi's teacher was actually the president of their university.
Yan Zheng sneered, "That's why you were able to get in without participating in many competitions."
Qu Jiaying frowned: "What's wrong with you?"
Xiang Min also retorted to Yan Zheng: "You act like you have no connection whatsoever. Everyone knows your father is a musician in the provincial symphony orchestra."
"Let's not talk about that. You've heard Le Yi play before. His not participating in the competition doesn't affect his ability to play well," Qu Jiaying said.
Yan Zheng remained silent, and Le Yi quickly smoothed things over, saying, "It's alright, it's alright, what he said is true."
The four of them were having a video call in the group, and they could see each other's facial expressions.
Qu Jiaying sighed slightly and changed the subject: "Actually, learning the piano is not easy. Yang Jingyi learned the piano when she was a child mainly because her parents followed suit, so she gave up quickly. Those who persisted to the end all have at least one person in their family who works in the music industry."
Ultimately, however, success depends on talent.
Le Yi had always been curious about one thing: "Gao Ying and Chen Li used to have classes with the same teacher, but they didn't live in the same city. Did their teacher move around too?"
Qu Jiaying also asked them: "Although they moved, before they learned piano, the teacher was a friend of Grandma Chen. She moved there to live with her children. However, the teaching level was very good. Chen Li would go there for every lesson. Gao Ying was her elementary school music teacher who discovered her talent and recommended her to take lessons there. Later, the piano teacher told her that if she wanted to pursue a professional career, she had to come to the affiliated high school."
The four chatted for a while longer before ending the call.
Qu Jiaying was just about to figure out how to revise the sheet music for a pop song when Yan Zheng sent her another message.
"Have you been performing at Chen Li's bar recently? Can I come?"
Qu Jiaying sent him the sheet music: "They're all pop songs, can you accept them?" She knew Yan Zheng; this guy was the most traditional.
Yan Zheng typed a message for a long time before finally sending two words: "Okay."
"Are you alright?" Qu Jiaying finally asked, showing some concern.
"It's nothing, I just don't want to stay at home," Yan Zheng replied.
Although Qu Jiaying doesn't like gossip, she has heard a bit about Yan Zheng's parents after knowing them for so long. They always focus on Yan Zheng's grades and competition rankings.
She agreed to Yan Zheng's request and didn't talk any further.
Le Yi noticed this: Qu Jiaying was only active in small group chats of four people. In one-on-one chats, he would only say a few words and then go offline. That's why he was always so active in the group. Of course, he also wanted everyone to get closer.
Le Yi enjoys the process of working together towards a goal, which is why he took the initiative to form a quartet. However, Qu Jiaying, Yan Zheng, and Xiang Min rarely chat together except during rehearsals. That time at the bar was one of the very few times they had a heart-to-heart talk.
So during the next four-person video call, Le Yi suggested playing games together.
"What game?" Xiang Min asked.
"How do we play?" Yan Zheng was in a much better mood than before and asked with great interest and curiosity.
"Computer games? I haven't played many, so I'm not very good at them," Qu Jiaying said.
"Don't worry, it's still the classical music that everyone is familiar with." Le Yi explained the rules, which are actually a musical version of Pictionary, but now it's you playing and I guessing.
"It would be best if it were an instrument that most people aren't good at. For example, I would use the violin, and Qu Jiaying could use the piano," Le Yi said. His violin skills weren't good enough that he could play any piece of music he heard.
"You want me to die," Qu Jiaying said with a laugh.
"Then I'll be a pianist too." Yan Zheng can only read sheet music and can play a few simple pieces.
Qu Jiaying was even worse than Yan Zheng and felt it wasn't interesting enough: "Yan Zheng has perfect pitch, so let's just turn it into a word game."
Xiang Min readily agreed: "Sure, I don't have a piano here, would a wind instrument work?"
“You can play all kinds of instruments, it doesn’t feel like it’s limiting you at all,” Qu Jiaying said.
Xiang Min smiled and pulled out a strange long tube with several holes poked in it; it didn't resemble a traditional Chinese flute or xiao.
"What is this?" Le Yi asked curiously.
"I want to learn about some ethnic music and hope to be more innovative in composing. This was given to me by the villagers, and I just received it," Xiang Min said.
"Didn't you go home?" Qu Jiaying asked, only then realizing that Xiang Min was the most mysterious one.
“I live in the village, and thankfully there’s internet, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to talk to you.” Xiang Min smiled gently and reassured me, “Don’t worry, a doctoral student who studies ethnic history came to keep me company yesterday.”
Yan Zheng interrupted him, urging impatiently, "Hurry up and play the game."
A note from the author:
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