A Year in Seven Minutes

Caitlin Mueller

Ms. Tompkins

World Lit. Honors

25 March 2014

A Year in Seven Minutes

Towering columns on either side of the concert hall gave the room a grand feeling, but the rows of empty chars left an empty, lonely air.  Lily walked down the aisle toward the stage clutching her piano books trying not to shake.

“I’ve got to pass this test.  It will only take a few minutes.  I just have to play a few scales and my pieces, and then it will be over,” she repeated to herself as she attempted to take a deep breath.  “I have practiced so much.  I’m sure I’ll do fine,” she continued in an attempt to talk herself into feeling confident.    

Lily cautiously stepped onto the stage and scanned it.  There was a grand piano in the middle.  It faced the side of the stage where the examiner was.  He sat at a simple folding table with several neat piles of papers and a pen.  Lily handed him a note with her name, the grade of the piano exam she was taking, and the names of her three pieces.  She managed a small smile, but the examiner only glanced at her as he took the paper.  He skimmed it and copied a few things onto the page in front of him.  

“So, shall we begin?” the examiner asked, without looking up.

“Yeah,” Lily started and took a few steps over to the piano and put her book on it.  As she sat down, the memories of the many times she had practiced flooded back.  There had been cool mornings and warm afternoons where she had longed to be outside instead.  There had been days where her fingers just did not seem to work and days where everything worked just right.  Through all of that she had practiced, even though she often had to painfully force herself, but the thought of passing this test had motivated her.  

She shakily smoothed out her blue dress over her knees.  While she waited for the examiner to start, she tried to warm her cold fingers by rubbing them together.  She glanced to the side and wondered what it would be like if the sea of empty chair were filled with people.  Even though the chairs were empty, she felt as though they were still watching her.  The stage lights beat down on her like the sun on a hot summer day making her hot except for her still cold fingers.  Lily quickly looked back at the examiner who was still busy.  He seemed to take forever.  She just wanted to get the test over.   

The examiner put his pen down and began to ask Lily to play different scales.  The first one went smoothly despite her slight shaking, so it gave her some confidence.  She played a few more scales, which all went okay.  The next scale the examiner asked made Lily’s throat go dry.  The named sounded foreign, and she was sure she had never heard of it.  Lily racked her brain trying to remember it as she slowly brought her hands up to the piano.  

“I must know this one; I must.  I know I must have practiced it.”  She desperately muttered.  She vaguely remembered the first few notes and as she shakily began to play them, her fingers seemed to take over and complete the scale from muscle memory.  When she finished she could hear the examiner’s pen scratching on his paper.  

“He must be taking points off for pauses and slow playing,” she thought despite her goal to think positive thoughts.  The scales were done now, at least, so it was just her three pieces left.  

The examiner continued writing a little longer before looking up and saying, “You may play your first piece now.”  

Lily opened her book to the first song and sighed a little as she remembered the many times she had practiced the piece throughout the last year.  

As she began to play, thoughts rapidly raced through her mind.  

“This piano is different than the one I am used to.  Am I playing loud enough?  It seems so loud and it echoes a little in this large hall.”  Lily forced her thoughts back to what she was playing.  Her fingers stumbled a little and she felt so awkward and stiff.  She still managed to make it through the piece, and breathed a sigh of relief when it was over.

As she waited for the examiner to finish taking notes, she turned to the second piece.  It was a longer but slower piece.  The examiner finished, looked up, and nodded for her to start.  The music was smoother and she managed to concentrate better.  Making it through the piece she smiled when it was done.  She did not ever have to play the piece again.  The examiner again took notes.  Lily eyed him a little suspiciously, but tried to prepare herself for the last piece.

“Two down, just one to go.  I’ve done this so many times I know I can make it,” she reassured herself.   

She lifted her hands to the piano and began to play her last song for the last time.  All her work and time she had spent practicing was finally almost over.  The last piece went smoothly, and when she was done, she felt a weight lifted from her.  She smiled freely.  Relief washed over her.  Everything was over.  It felt like a lifetime could have passed since she started the exam, but according to her watch, it had only been seven minutes.  She stood, took her books, and began to leave.  The examiner was still writing, but that did not matter.  Lily would not hear her results for weeks, but she knew she had done her best.  As she walked out, the tall columns on either side of her towered above her.  They seemed to praise her for her hard work and success in playing the pieces.