Musical Relationships

There are so many kinds of musical relationships that music students become educated about in the four years we spend in the music faculty. The easiest to define and understand are the relationships we learn about in theory class. Those of us who are able to stay awake. The relationships between keys are so important and they don't change. V is always the dominant of I. III and VI and the important Romantic relationships, while Classical relationships stick closer to the traditional V - I. When the 20th Century comes, the relationships become a little more convuluted and complicated, but still easy to trace when you know the rules. Somedays it's all about the rules.

The relationships in theory are the only ones where the rules apply though. And even when they are supposed to apply, sometimes they don't. There can always be exceptions. But at least there are some rules.

The other relationships that exist in the music faculty seem to exist completely independent of the realm of rules. Those are the relationships between the musicians. One would think that these would be less complicated than they seem, but they really aren't. Mostly instrumentalists stick with instrumentalists, and singers stick with singers, but there are the crossing points in our lives such as opera. This is when singers still look down on us during the show, but all of us seem to be all right with mingling after the shows over a few beers.

The romantic entanglements that we seem to get ourselves into defy logic and rules even more than our friendships. It's always those who have conflicting personalities who seem to end up together. There's the bassoonist who is "on crack" and the serious sax player. That would be the one that defies the most logic. One of the conductors commented on it and was amazed that they actually work so incredibly well together.

Somedays we attempt to date outside of the music faculty and that either works really well, or ends up in a train wreck. Music students need a special brand of partner who is all right with not being the priority during recital, opera or musical season. They have to be able to accept that most days, music comes before everything else for us. We can seem like normal people some days, but when we are in the music faculty, that's where our hearts really lie. And most people can't understand that.

The last kind is musical relationships that all university students receive an education in is the kind that resembles musical chairs. When the music is on, we're all alone, without the support of a chair, but that's ok because those who do have the support of a chair are seen as cheating. When the music stops, we're all supposed to have a chair, or a partner, even if it's just for a little while. Those who are alone are seen as having lost. They don't get to be alone and OK with that. They are supposed to have a chair to sit on for a little while and not have to look for another, even when the chair is uncomfortable and they don't really enjoy being there. Those who don't have a partner look enviously on at those who have found a place to rest, even when they can see that it won't last. It takes the stronger person to be all right with losing, to wait for the great chair that they won't get just until the music starts again, but the one they can curl up in for the rest of their lives. It takes a stronger person to not hear the music that everyone else hears, and not be so afraid when it stops.