Skill & Passion

by DJ Bleach

"I am taking this class because my skill with music is unmatched."

Unless her words hold merit, I will have to deduct points for "sporting an overly boastful attitude". It has become routine that, at the beginning of every year, I have the colts and fillies brave enough to take on my class step up onstage, and proclaim to everypony within earshot why they are willing to do so. I am strict with my grades, as I am with my students, for I believe that the only way for them to gain skill is to break through failure and achieve true status as legitimate musicians. The presure makes sure they overcome inhibition and make their pieces are as brilliant as they can possibly be. And yet, at times I feel my policies on grades and attitude are merely words I use to polish my resume for when I attempt to move up in this school, as every year I recieve the same, cliched batch of students. Like any high school music course, it's been labled as "easy", ergo I get the gutter-students who waste their time and mine for the sake of a fine arts credit. Sure, every few years I'll get a hoof-full of students who genuinely enjoy my class and take it for it's intended purpose, but I feel that unless the AP Music Theory teacher is fired, I'll be stuck with the school's bottom ten percent all over again.

The filly onstage now is unlike the rest however. She grabs my attention almost immediately with her body language. She walks with a calm, dignified grace that is most definitely rare for a mare her age, as if she were raised to obide by the highest of social standards and expectations. Her long, dark mane is exceedingly well-groomed, and what little clothing she has (consisting of only a decrotive collar with a bowtie and a pair of cufflinks) is clean and wrinkle free. She has obviously been preparing for this day for many weeks to come, making sure she gets the right first impression. Instinctively, I write, "this will be interesting" on her evaluation.

She continues her speech, "I am attending this class to further extend my knowledge of the musical arts. I feel I will be a fantastic addition to your class, as I have ten years of experience backing me. I have amassed a large amount of knowledge regarding music that I feel will not only be beneficial to you, but to everypony in this class.". Her tone is slow, but I easily detect the hint of anxiety behind her clam demeanor. While I have complete faith in the truth of her history of music, it seems she doesn't, like she's afraid she's not skilled enough to even be apart of my class. Lighten up honey, pretty much everypony is accepted into this class o' mine, "I am prepared to prove my musical skill. I have been playing bass for ten years. I practice for three hours everyday, and play a show every Sunday night at the Rec Center. I have high hopes for playing at the Grand Galloping Gala upon graduation, though I fear my skills are still not quite up to snuff." she inhales deeply, "That is why I am determined to give one hundred percent in this class, no matter what strife or hardship I come across. I will make sure my skills are tempered no matter the cost."

The "impressive" marks were being stamped long before the filly even explained why she is taking the class. I can tell by her tone that her words of long nights of practice and skill through years of working her baton are true, and I would be lying if I said I am not eager to hear her first performance. I hide my anticipation and remove my glasses, "Well well well, very intriguing. Please, what is your name?"

The grey-furred filly stands and bows politely, "Octavia."

I don't fight the smile that crosses my lips. For the first time in years, I feel the excitement a teacher should feel from a fresh batch of students, "Well Octavia, thank you for your lovely monologue. You may sit down now. You recieve your evaluation later."

Again, she bows respectfully, "Thank you.", and exits the stage.

The swell of anticipation and excitement eventually dwindles, as the realization that perhaps my only good student's session is over dawns on me, and just like that, I'm right back where I started. With a quiet "click!", I prepare my pen for the next evaluation, "Next!".

The next filly to step up to the stage is just as attention-grabbing as Octavia was, but in a different way. She is a bit more...colorful than Octavia, her fur being a starking white color, and her oddly-cut hair being several shades of blue, being parted only by her horn. And whereas Octavia was calm and collected, this filly seems admitably wild, and a little frightened. Despite being the same age as Octavia, she has a strange, child-like air about her, making her seem younger than she actually is. She hesitantly creeps onto the stage like a scared kindergartener performing her first school play. For a moment, I believe that she was assigned this class just this morning, thus leaving her completely unprepared. I sigh, "Let's get this over with..." I think as I hold up my evaluation sheet, "Okay, let's begi...uh, young lady, sunglasses are not allowed to be worn inside.". Every year, I contribute to the whines and moans the students produce in reaction to being read the sunglasses rule, as I also deem it to be a ridiculous rule. But, school rules are school rules, and as much as I like the filly's purple-lens glasses, I give her the "glasses off" motion with my hoof. With a sad sigh, she slowly removes them, revealing a pair of quivering, bright-scarlet eyes that easily convey the sense of nervousness I detected the moment she stepped up, "Alright, you may begin."

She gulps audibly, "H...Hi...my name is Vinyl Scratch a...and...". She's hesitant to continue.

"Come on, come on, why are you taking my class?" I ask, mostly to cover up a few rude snickers I hear from the students behind me.

Unfortunately, she hears the laughing. But, insted of breaking down in tears like I expect her to do, the laughs seem to fortify her. She stands upright, inhales deeply, and begins anew, "My name is Vinyl Scratch, and I am here for one reason and one reason only. Passion."

Only now do I realize that the shakiness in Vinyl's tone does not stem from fear. Rather, she seems...anxious. She seems excited to be taking my class, as if she's struggling to keep the lid on an unbridled joy she wants to share with everypony in the room. Now brimming with confidence, she continues, "I have a passion for music. I know you've probably heard that a million times over from a million different fillies just like me, but I can assure you that I am nothing less than serious." she says, stamping her hoof on tha last word, "Music is my life...it's my entire existance. Ever since I was old enough to put a pair of headphones on my head, I've spent more of my life listening to music than sleeping.". Her tone is conveying the utmost seriousness, despite her...strange choice of words, "Every night I flip on my stereo and evaluate the songs I listen to. I pick apart every beat, every rhythm, every note over and over until I can flawlessly play the song from memory alone. At night, when I can't sleep, my hooves will instinctively tap out the melodies I listened to that night. When I do fall alseep, my dreams are filled with some of the most amazing music I've ever heard, as if every song I've ever listened to was thrown into a blender and turned into a delicious, fruity smoothie for the mind.". I can't help but grin at that.

Her body begins to betray her mask, and by now it's all too obvious how much she wishes to be apart of my class. "I've only been making music for a few months now and people keep telling me that I'm not really a musician since all the stuff I make is electronic.". Shocking new deveolpments, "B-But I don't listen to them! I've never cared about how the music I love is made, as long as it has that familiar, infectious rhythm of a 4/4 bass drum. That's why I'm taking this class, to learn more about something I'm so deeply passionate about.". She practically bounds across the stage in excitement, as if this class is her ticket to being Equestria's greatest musician, "And when I graduate, I plan to go on making hours upon hours of fun, upbeat music other ponies can listen to and feel inspired by. I've got the passion and I've got the energy, all I need now is a little more know-how..."

Everypony is silent, and so is my heart. Never have I seen such a vigorous display proclaiming one's love for music, nor have I seen someone with such a legitimate reason to take my class. Vinyl understands what my class is about, passion for the musical arts regardless of whether you're a Mozart or a regular garage band. I gladly flash a smile towards the filly as I finish her evaluation, "Thank you Vinyl, you may sit down."

She nods and takes a seat by Octavia, who has been watching her with a sly grin the entire time. Whether the two will form an unbreakable friendship or a heated rivalry, I do not know.

All I know is that I am in for a rather interesting year...

fin.