Tower and Town, August 2018 (view the full edition)Playing An InstrumentLuke is a sixth-former at Marlborough College I play cello, piano and bass guitar. I started playing the piano aged six. Four years later I began to play the cello and I have taken up bass guitar in the last four years. I was inspired to play the cello after hearing Julian Lloyd Webber perform in Marlborough in 2010. I started taking cello lessons soon after this, aged ten. I decided to teach myself bass guitar as I was keen to explore other musical genres, particularly Jazz. My greatest enjoyment comes from performing in ensembles. I have been lucky at school to have had the opportunity to play in many trios, quartets and other small ensembles, on both cello and bass guitar, and I have thoroughly enjoyed all these opportunities. Although I do enjoy solo performance, I believe there is more to be gained from ensemble playing. Many of my fondest musical memories - for example a recent performance of Bach's Third Brandenburg Concerto - have come from ensemble performance rather than solo. I would be lying if I didn't admit that practising can sometimes be a tiresome and onerous activity, and I have often struggled to find the right balance between practising, school work, sport and time for relaxation. Sadly I don't have the answer to overcoming a lack of motivation other than accepting that dedicated and regular practice is the only way to improve. I have been lucky to have grown up in a family where music has an important day to day significance. As a matter of habit I start and end each day by listening to music. I listen to everything from modern hip hop to classical and, given the luxury of music streaming services, discovering new music is both easy and fun. Music is so important to me for many reasons. Whether I'm practising, performing, listening or reading, a large part of my time is spent doing some music-related activity. Although practice is largely solitary, there is also a social aspect to a lot of the music in my life, and from being part of ensemble groups such as the Symphony Orchestra and Chapel Choir I have made many of my closest friends and formed some of my most precious memories.  Luke Smith |