Music and Moms

I know, it's so generic that I chose to interview my mother for this blog post, but I know she would have some cool things to talk about. So it starts with her. My mom, Lori, was born in 1971 in Columbia, SC. She became an older sister a few years later, but that's not what we talked about I promise. I thought I would just give some background info. My mom can be pretty cool sometimes, and our motto is "it's always an adventure." We travel, go kayaking, and lay around on the couch telling bad jokes and showing each other memes. 

I knew my mom would agree to do this project with me because I'm the baby of the family and her only daughter, so how could she say no? I introduced the project to her a few days ago so she could have time to think of some things she wanted to talk about. Once we were able to call, I started by asking her about her earliest memories of music, any kind, in any form. She talked about how when she was young, she took tap lessons and did gymnastics and the routines were set to music. Once she got old enough to go to school, she started listening to the radio, usually the Top 40, so whatever was popular at the time, well that's what she listened to. Typically it was American Pop or Rock. Since there was no Spotify or Apple Music, kids (and probably people of all ages) would listen for their favorite songs on the radio, and when they finally came on, they'd record them so the music was able to be played later. I really liked hearing about some of the technology she used during her childhood too. She talked about boomboxes, walkmans, and record players. She told me she didn't have a ton of records, but she had this stereo set with a record player built in. I have a really cool record player that I'll attach a picture of. It plays CDs, records, cassettes, has a radio tuner, and an aux port, so it does it all!

As with lots of people in middle school, it becomes a time for finding out likes, dislikes, and forming an identity. My mom started her journey on the path of rock and metal music while she was in middle school, starting with Duran Duran. Throughout high school, she continued in her love for heavy metal and went to a few concerts. But there was also another side of music in her life. Starting in 6th or 7th grade, my mom started playing the clarinet in her school. Encouraged by her mom, she continued playing through high school, participating in both the jazz band (spoiler alert: it wasn't her favorite) and marching band. She also became Assistant Drum Major, though she only got to conduct the band once, which she says was an embarrassing moment because she had set the tempo too slow. She also said that she really didn't like her band teacher cause he was a bit weird, which is understandable. While her mother encouraged her to play, her love for band grew from her bandmates. This picture is of my mom and uncle in their band uniforms, which I think is pretty cool. The second picture is her senior picture. 

                   

 

Okay, so all of us are music majors. I know that my mom really likes a lot of instruments, especially the cello, but I wanted to know if she ever wanted to learn an instrument herself. So I asked her. I found out that while she took piano lessons for a time, and played clarinet, she really wanted to learn flute and/or oboe (isn't that cool, Dr. Vaneman?). She also wanted to learn drums, so her bandmates taught her some things. She did mention that she regrets stopping piano lessons and playing the clarinet. Mostly the piano, because we have a piano at home and she would like to be able to sit and play to relieve stress and just have some fun. I'll include a story or two about me at the end, but this post is focusing on her right now :). In the meantime, enjoy these pictures of my mom and her children!

     

My mom is superhuman. When I was in high school, she went back to school and pursued a degree in radiology. Five years later, through all of the prerequisites, clinicals, and late nights studying physics and anatomy, she graduated and earned her degree. She then went on to earn her certificate in mammography (yay!) and now she works at Lexington Medical Center. She also runs. Like a lot. And very long distances. She has run multiple half-marathons and is training for a full. In runner terms, she is currently half-crazy, but soon she'll be full-crazy!! Enjoy some of these pictures of her at some races!

Anyways, it's really annoying to have to run without music unless you're in a group, so I obviously was going to ask about her running music. Her running playlist, aptly named Run, has many artists like Glasslands, Five Finger Death Punch, and Skillet. Her favorite song, she told me, is called Lazarus, by a band called Bellarive. It's honestly a bop. Have a listen!

While my mom still likes a lot of the music she used to listen to, she's grown to like more artists and genres than when she was younger. One instance is Christian music. She was never involved with music in church before she had me and my brother, but now she listens to it regularly. Since I grew up in the church, I was constantly around my church orchestra and praise band and started participating when I got to high school. My mom has been such a huge supporter because of her love for church music (and me, but that's not the point here). She loves going to orchestra concerts and listening to string orchestras play. She doesn't really like piano and that's because it can be a bit harder to get as deep of emotions from an instrument with keys rather than, say, a cello with strings and a bow. 

Another genre she really likes still is rock. Over the past years, once she picked up running as a hobby, she started exploring Christian Rock. This is a really cool genre because she gets to experience music that has a message in line with her beliefs and values. I know she likes when my brother and I give her music recommendations. Here's another song from her playlist, which is also a bop. 

My mom doesn't quite listen to such a variety of genres like I do. I listen to pretty much everything, and my mom has the few genres she likes, which is totes fine! I asked her what she thought about my music and how music has changed from her childhood to today. She told me that she liked some of the "older" music I play (the rock music), but she wasn't the biggest fan of my country music and screaming metal. I laughed, because this was the exact answer I was expecting. In response to how music has changed, she believes it has become more phony and mechanical with the use of electric things. She doesn't like that there is more chanting/rapping and lip-syncing in performances. She likes her music because the artist sings more than they talk or rap, and she likes the use of instruments. She also has a soft spot for a capella, like I do. Here's a song that we both love. 

Okay, well that's all I really have because I don't want to have a whole book for y'all to read...

I do have a cool story though! It pertains to my mom, and music, and me, but it's not really about my mom. It's about me. So imagine, 5th grade, elementary school auditorium. The band, orchestra, choir, and drama teachers from the middle school two doors down the road are on stage. The entire 5th grade is there. Sitting next to my friends, we heard little recruitment speeches and saw small demonstrations from each teacher. Immediately I knew that I wanted to play violin. Part of the reason was because my best friend at the time wanted to play violin, part of it was because the teacher seemed really nice. we signed up and a few weeks before the next school year started, we got to go in and try out the instruments to see which one we would play. I had put in my interest letter that I wanted to play violin. The orchestra teacher, Ms. Martin (a saint of a person) let me hold one and told me that it wouldn't be a good fit. Music teachers have a second sense ya know? So my mom mentions from the back that the cello is a really cool instrument. I was apprehensive because that was a huge instrument for little ol' me. Plus, my friend was gonna be playing the violin. I wanted to stick with her! But I sat down and tried it, pulling the bow across the strings just as Ms. Martin told me. It did NOT sound good. Think of a pterodactyl and a yodeler having a scream off. I couldn't even keep the bow on one string at a time. Long story short, I wasn't really sure if I wanted to take on the commitment of playing such a large instrument, but my mom encouraged me, so I said I would. A few days after we started playing, I fell in love and I haven't looked back. This is a big part of who I am now, and it's all because of my mom.