Saturday, November 04, 2006

A Father's Lament


In my rambling post of yesterday, I mentioned that I came from a musical family. Naturally, I had hoped that my son would also be musical, and that we could jam together and have fun doing something that I love so much. The photo of my son shown above (taken in 2004) hangs on my office wall, right beside my desk where I can look at it every day.

It is one of my favourite photographs of my son. He is goofing around with one of my guitars and is doing his best rock star impression. Problem is, he doesn't play guitar. He loves to listen to music, but has a near zero interest in playing any instrument. We paid for keyboard lessons for a couple of years, but even though he seemed to me to have a natural talent, he had no real interest. It was a waste of money to keep up the process. I'm lobbying now to have him try guitar lessons next, so far without success.

Wishful thinking -- I think that's why this photograph is hanging on my wall. Maybe someday he will develop an interest in playing guitar, or even go back to piano or electronic keyboard. He has offered to take music lessons again, but only if we let him play bagpipes. He is doubtless yanking his parents' chain, so to speak, but I am so desperate to get him interested in playing an instrument, any instrument, that I am almost ready to call his bluff.

How desperate will I have to get, do you think, to let him study bagpipes? I'm almost at that point, right now.


4 comments:

  1. WTF's so bad about bagpipes?
    You've obviously never heard any of James Horner's compositions.
    They're not easy to learn either, and certainly not a choice for one with no genuine motivation or commitment to learn an instrument...But listen to me rant: I can't even play my hand!

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  2. I LOVE bagpipes! And, there are a few bands that use them.

    The McCuaig band and Korn, for starters.

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  3. Actually, I love bagpipes too. I'm just being a selfish curmudgeon, wanting someone with whom I can jam on occasion. Bagpipes somewhat limit that scenario. Also, I strongly suspect that bagpipes were suggested by my son because he figured that would be the one instrument that would make me drop my pleas for him to take lessons.

    The latest salvo from him was that he would take guitar lessons if I buy him an iPod for Christmas. Fat chance.

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  4. IPods are awesome! They hold so much music and so many photographs.. But, they are expensive.

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