Free The Late Starters Orchestra by Ari L. Goldman Page B

tells you the language, the notes are words, the measures are sentences, the lines are phrases, and the cadences are periods. Now read!
    I took a closer look at the Bizet. I saw a C# and an F#. I knew that meant that our “language” was the key of D. Then, haltingly, I played the first note, and the second and the third and soon a musical story began to emerge. I thought I was doing well and eagerly looked to Doug for an assessment.
    â€œLet me be honest with you,” Doug began. “I’d love to have you in the orchestra. You seem dedicated and interested in learning. You’ve got the right attitude. But this might be frustrating for you. At the beginning you’ll be playing about 10 percent of the music I hand out. By the time the concert comes, you’ll probably be up to 50 percent. Next year, even more. But it’s going to be tough at first. If you don’t think it will be too frustrating for you, you’re in.”
    â€œI’m in?” I said almost disbelieving what I had just heard. I actually passed the audition? Is that possible? Whoopeee! I tried to remain cool. “Okay,” I said with a smile. “I’ll give it a shot.”
    A week later I showed up for my first rehearsal. I had none of the jitters that accompanied my first Late Starters rehearsal. I auditioned. I was accepted. I was ready. The Downtown Symphony met in a proper soundproofed music room at the community college, not at all like the makeshift rehearsal space of the LSO. And unlike LSO, which was all strings, this orchestra included oboes, clarinets, flutes, and horns. It even had a percussion section, complete with various drums, cymbals, and a gong. There were about fifty of us in all, including my friends Eve and Mary from LSO. I had to pinch myself. I felt like Pinocchio in Geppetto’s toy shop. I was a real boy in a real orchestra!
    The rehearsal began. We were playing passages from Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture,” a piece I’ve always loved. What a full, rich sound! It was thrilling to be sitting in the middle of all that thunder and excitement. I surprised myself by being able to keep up with more than 10 percent of the score. I was with them 20 or even 30 percent of the time, but then I already knew the music, just from hearing it so many times. Knowing the melodies always makes them easier to play.
    During the break I spoke to some of the other musicians and was gratified to learn that I was not the only one who was lost. “Do you figure it out by the time of the concert?” I asked a young man who played the double bass.
    â€œWell, most of it,” he answered.
    â€œIsn’t there a lot of pressure on you to get it right?”
    â€œNo,” another musician, a violinist, chimed in. “At the concert, Doug brings in some pros who lead the way.”
    â€œYou mean he brings in ringers?”
    â€œWell, we call them subs.”
    â€œWho are they substituting for?”
    â€œThe rest of us.”
    It sounded like a good thing. You bring in some real good players and that brings up everyone’s game. I asked if any of the “ringers” were at the rehearsal that night.
    â€œThey never come to rehearsals,” my new friend the double bassist told me. “They’re pros. They just show up the night of the concert. Now don’t worry. We have backup.”
    After the break, I went back to playing with greater confidence. Performing with a safety net sounded perfect.

MILT
    On the subway going home that night I ran into an older man bundled in a winter coat and carrying a violin case. “Excuse me,” I said, “weren’t you at the Downtown Symphony tonight?”
    He was indeed and we introduced ourselves and spoke as we rode uptown. His name was Milt, a retired physician in his eighties, and his story was not atypical of late starters. Milt took up the violin as a young boy in New Jersey and played through high