Hogwarts Academy of Classical Music Arts was a prestigious academy for all students who aspired to play at Carnegie Hall someday in their careers. It was a vital stepping stone for all the performing artists, singers, composers, violinists, orchestras and conductors to be able to have the golden opportunity to have the honor of laying in such a prestigious hall amongst the greatest artists in the history of classical performing arts. It had been Hermione Granger's dream for as long as she could remember to play the violin there. She had been three years old when her parents took her to watch Phillip Glass conduct his greatest symphony on her parents anniversary. And how madly had she fallen in love with the music. Hermione couldn't remember any other moment in her life from that day when she had felt something so strangely strong in her heart as that felt. It was etched deeply in her memory as the day her life had changed forever.
For her birthday the next week, her parents bought her a violin which she began taking classes for the very next day. As a young girl, she had the determination and resolve of someone who was out to avenge the death of their loved one. Hermione had worked hard as a child to overcome her flaws in her playing and learn to excel in playing the violin. She loved it. She loved her violin like she had never loved anything more in her life. The instrument had a way of bringing out an aspect of her that remained hidden from the world. In the confines of her room and her practice studio in school, she was able to lose herself to the sounds that her violin made. Which she made. Her teachers loved her resilience in learning sheet music. She learned music by listening to it and then memorizing the sheet music. Rote learning sheet music wasn't something she did. For her, the secret lay in listening to the music. Listen to the recording before playing the piece. Years passed by, her friends changed, but never did her passion for the violin waver. Her parents moved from their comfortable and sweet home in Atlanta to the gorgeous and stunning city of New York. For her, this was a good thing. She was closer to her dream of going to Juilliard, of playing at Carnegie, of being the greatest violinist and composer of the 21st century, or working with all of her idols and learning from famous teachers whom she could only dream of before. She was now in the same city as them! This was nothing short of a wish come true for Hermione. Leaving behind her school didn't faze her at all. She was ready.
When the time arrived for college applications, Hermione had begun before anybody else. She went to The Baccalaureate School for Global Education in Long Island City. Regular with academics and the top of her class, Hermione excelled in everything. There was nothing that she couldn't do. She balanced her grades and the violin perfectly. But she secretly hated the distraction of homework with her playing. It inhibited her from practicing which drove her up the walls. It vexed her and made her restless when she was kept away from her precious violin for too long. She was glad to finally graduate; she no longer had to waste her precious time with math homework anymore. Hermione was free to practice her violin now. It didn't come as a surprise to her teachers and parents that she was accepted into Juilliard, but it did surprise her. Ecstatic with sheer, overwhelming joy and shock, Hermione didn't play her violin for a week when her acceptance letter arrived. She instead spent her time wandering the city, taking long strolls through Central Park, honing her senses to the sounds of the city. Music was all around her. She could feel the vibrations of the city all around her, every whistle of the wind that brushed past her ears softly went noticed by Hermione. She was the most peaceful then. The next four years were a beautiful dream that she lived. She earned her Bachelor of Music in Violin and knew where she had to go next. She had to go to Hogwarts for her Masters. And she did.
Exclusively for Masters in music, this school of music unique in its methods of teaching, private and incomparable to any other music academy in the entire world. The most well formed faculty the music industry has ever seen, Hogwarts was a musicians dream. And for Hermione, it was a dream that came true. Her summons for an audition came through in the fall the year she graduated and two weeks later, she flew out to London to give her audition. She didn't have any interactions with the other candidates for the program but she was shocked out of her wits when she walked out on the stage and saw that Albus Dumbledore alongside Minerva McGonagall, Amelia Bones and Filius Flitwick were seated in the audience for her performance. She chose a piece that she first heard when she was three years old.
Paganini Caprice No. 1.
She merely closed her eyes, corrected her posture and began to play. A flawless rendition. She didn't miss a single note. Each stroke of her bow against the strings of her violin was perfect to a degree of absolute shock. Her judges listened in silence, stunned at the perfection at which Hermione played. The tempo, the range everything was unparalleled by any other candidate they had seen. Once she was finished, Hermione slowly opened her eyes, trying to control the shaking of her legs, bowed respectfully to the admirable panel and swiftly walked off the stage. Once she confirmed she was out of view, Hermione let out a breathe she had been holding in for what felt like an hour.
On her way back to the hotel, Hermione thought about the expression on Albus Dumbledore's face when she bowed after her audition. It looked like he was conflicted over something. Something she hoped wasn't over her talent or the piece she chose to play. As far as she was concerned, she knew she didn't make any mistakes. But regardless, flaws didn't determine her acceptance into the academy. It was whether her music was heartfelt or not that would in the end decide her fate.
Two weeks later, she received her acceptance letter.
A/N: Read and Review please! Let me know any thoughts you have on the story or the plot, I'll be delighted to help you out!