I could feel the heat of my passion pressing down upon my cello.
As I played, I would let go of myself and let raw emotion be taken over by the melody of the music. I would sway, bob my head, and move my hooves as if I was puppet to the song, letting it pull upon the strings that were attached to my own muscles. It made me dance in my seat since the song was so contagious that I don’t think anypony could resist moving to it.
It was a new piece with a sort of high energy pop sound to it. While most of backing track was created by my fellow musician Vinyl Scratch, I provided the main instrumental for the live version. The song was called Red Roses and it was the first collaboration I had ever done with Vinyl, to which we thought it was a smash hit… or so we hoped.
This was the first time I had ever played it in front of a sold out theatre audience. You can bet my nerves were at an all-time high. Not only have I never played this song before, but I have never even done this style of music in front of a large crowd. It was a new frontier for me, but it was something I was willing to do. Heck, I wanted to perform it.
After prompting the audience on the conditions of the new song, informing them that it was drastically different from my usual style of music (classical), I managed to figuratively throw away my nerves and hit autopilot on my playing. From there, I let the music take over, making me the slave to the rhythm. Nothing else mattered except me and my cello at that moment.
With my bow rubbing against the strings as the background blasted its harmony, I managed to sync my playing to the beat and match it with such ferocity that it made myself seem mad. It was such an intense rhythm, making me shift between the strings faster than I have ever done before. Note after note, I kept hitting, plucking, and strumming them with such animosity that the bun within my mane came undone.
As my long hair flowed freely to the sound of my music, I used my head to shake it along to the movement of the song. At that point, I was no longer a well-composed musician, but a rock star pouring their heart and soul into the performance. I wanted to let my audience know that was truly alive, enjoying the very thing that I felt like I was born to do;
And that was to play some bucking music.
However, I knew that all good songs had to eventually end. It sort of scared me. I mean, how were they going to react? Were they going ridicule me for going outside of my own comfort zone? Or were they just going to sit there and just stare at me, wondering what in the name of Celestia I had become? Had I truly gone mad from my own loud creativity?
I shook my head. I don’t know, yet I was about to find out. As I began to play the final notes to the song, I prepared myself to just walk off the stage if the crowd booed at me. At least I wouldn’t have to take the heat of their anger for more than a second. Besides, I didn’t feel like getting hit by a thrown object such as a random drink or rotten tomato. Those did hurt after all.
And then the song ended, the final notes hanging in the air like a thin veil.
Utter silence fell upon the audience. Meanwhile, I stood up and bowed. They hated it… I KNEW IT! For literally a moment, the crowd was quiet, not saying a word. Not even hushed chatter. I guess they were just too stunned by how different the sound was. Maybe they were shocked to hear the betrayal of my usual, classical style. I assumed that they didn’t want me to try out another form of music.
I gasped, the crowd had suddenly rose to their hooves in a roaring applause. They stomped their hooves into the floorboards while letting out a few whistles and whoops as well. Tears began to roll down my face as I sincerely said, “Thank you” to the members of the audience. I didn’t expect the standing ovation from them at all. To me, it felt completely uncalled for, yet I cherished that moment.
I guess Vinyl was right after all, they liked and wanted more of it in my next performances. I laughed, saying “Maybe.” However, since I was extremely tired, all I wanted to do was go home and reflect upon what exactly I just did.
What I had just done was crazy, and it paid off far beyond what I had expected. I shouldn’t have doubted myself, to which I believed drove my nerves in the first place. Instead, I should have just been confident with myself and my talent. It would have worked out a lot better for me mentally. However, what helped me feel better was that moment when the audience praised me. I felt elated.
I also learned two things that day.
The first thing I learned was the fact that music is music. No matter what form it comes in, there will always be a certain aspect to it that ponies will always enjoy. It doesn’t matter if it's classical, electronic, new age, etc. If it has a rhythm to it then it's something that can be special and appreciated.
The second thing I learned is simple; I live for the applause along with everypony else in Equestria. I live for the recognition of my own work, to bring to the masses something they will enjoy in their lives. Also, I will admit this; As long as it makes them happy, then it's a good enough reason to keep me going and create new content.
A smile created from my work is always worth the effort. - Octavia Melody
Author's Note
Dear Readers,
Thanks for reading my story. If you see any grammar errors within it, please just PM me the corrections and I will be swift to fix them. Thank you once again!
