Chapter 304 A Rare Opportunity
Tessa suppressed her excitement and greeted Hathaway. After learning that it was Hathaway who wanted to meet her, she nearly fainted from the shock. She never expected that she would get such a huge opportunity.
When Scott was done making the introductions, he sat aside with the music director and gave both ladies space to have a private conversation.
“After listening to your performance last night, I found that you have a rock-solid foundation. Your transposition was sophisticated. You must practice often, am I right?”
Hathaway sat with her hands gracefully folded on top of her knees like a noblewoman. She was looking kindly at Tessa.
Tessa noticed something, but although she was highly nervous, her every move was natural and graceful, neither humble nor arrogant. “I make sure I practice for two hours every day.”
Hathaway nodded and asked more music-related questions. Tessa could answer every one of them, sometimes even giving some of her unique insight.
“You have a great deal of knowledge. I wonder if you’d like to play ‘Canon’ live?”
‘Canon’ wasn’t a specific piece but a compositional technique, and everyone played it differently. Another point was that although all the parts of ‘Canon’ were imitations of another melody, different instrumental sections entered at certain intervals, creating a rise and fall that occurred continuously. All in all, this was a piece that would truly test her skills.
That request did not faze her as it wasn’t a problem for her. She knew this was the test Hathaway was giving her, and she was prepared to answer to the best of her abilities.
Immediately, she took out her violin, and after tuning it, she began to play.
The mellow and light sound of the violin rang out in the hall, sometimes cheerful, sometimes gentle. It was like water melting in winter, where spring had arrived to restore everything, and the place gradually filled with vitality.
Tessa took a deep breath and looked at Hathaway with anticipation as she finished the piece. “What do you think, Miss Hathaway?”
“That was an excellent performance.” Hathaway wasn’t stingy with her compliments, and her eyes were filled with admiration and respect for Tessa.
However, Hathaway couldn’t help but wonder. “Miss Reinhart, it stands to reason that you should have advanced a long time ago at your age, and with your talent, you should have achieved quite a lot by now. In other words, you should have had better progress. So, if possible, I’d like to know why you’ve been delayed until now.”
Tessa didn’t expect Hathaway to point out the problems with her development so straightforwardly. Left with no other choice, she could only briefly explain her family situation. “That’s pretty much it.”
Hathaway frowned and said with some disapproval, “So, up till now, you’ve been delayed by family issues.”
“Yes.” Tessa nodded in acquiescence.
At this, a thoughtful gleam flashed through Hathaway’s eyes.
“I see.” She nodded and asked some other questions, but she never made it clear whether she would accept Tessa.
When Tessa left the Berlin Philharmonic, she felt uneasy. Upon seeing how nervous Tessa was, Scott comforted her, “You don’t have to worry too much. Miss Hathaway didn’t explicitly reject you, so you should still have a good chance of getting it.”
Tessa knew that Scott was comforting her, so she nodded and smiled but said nothing. In fact, she didn’t have much hope of becoming Hathaway’s student.
Although she didn’t talk much with Hathaway, she could discern from Hathaway’s manner of speaking that she was someone who didn’t like trouble. Not to mention, there were many talented people in this world. Besides, she wasn’t the particularly outstanding one, so the chances of her being selected were low. She had always been unlucky, so how could she suddenly be favored?
Perhaps perceiving some of Tessa’s thoughts, Scott encouraged her again. “You should believe in yourself. You’re no worse than anyone else, including me.”
Tessa was a little surprised. She didn’t expect Scott to give her such high praise.
She was momentarily stunned by his praise but immediately smiled at him in appreciation. “Mr. Brooks, you’re right. I shouldn’t undermine my worth. Okay, this is where I’m headed. Mr. Brooks, hurry back and spend some quality time with Miss Hathaway. Today is a rare opportunity.”
