Bass Case

Chapter 13: Tension

    Sarah softly shakes my shoulder, "Are you okay, honey?"

    "Y-yeah, I'm fine. I just, wasn't expecting to see Mr. Forte here, that's all."  I reply, laying back against my chair. I never told her about my suspicions regarding Mr. Forte. I don't want to bring it up now either, but what if he is?!

"Yeah, don't worry Daniel. Now he gets to criticize their symphony orchestra instead." Sarah laughs. I chuckle for a bit as I grab her hand, holding it tightly. She smiles at me and plants a quick kiss upon my lips. Angelica leans forward in her seat in anticipation, watching as the next conductor appears on stage. He's an older man with long grey hair. He looks kind and professional, raising his grey button high for the orchestra to see. They all prepare, raising their instruments, awaiting their cue. Then it begins.

The conductors arms come crashing down. Bang! The sound of cymbals erupt throughout the room followed by the long call of the trumpets. The drums pound in the background, growing steadily into a crescendo, increasing speed with every roar. Then it all halts, and the violins take charge. They all come down in one smooth bow stroke then rocket into the race. The bows fly across the string, and their fingers reach higher and higher upon the finger board. It must be a great skill to go that fast and manage to make those screeching notes sound beautiful. The violas and cellos join them, followed shortly by the basses. I can see it all in my mind, a great race taking place. The violins lead in followed by the rest, but it can't let up if they don't want to be outdone by the rest! A long stroke of the bow and silence surrounds except for the fast paced bouncing of the viola string. Down bow, roars the rest. Then the violas carry their solo once more. Just as they conclude the violins jump back in, coming in even faster than before! But the violas won't quit! They come in even faster! Then to my surprise even the cellos and basses begin the catch up as the violins start to falter. They blend into a mesh of sound, and then the climax! The four sets of strings burst into an uproar and then quickly die into silence. A trumpet roars followed by the woodwinds. Then comes in the violins with their song as the brass and woodwinds cheer the victors on. Figures. I think to myself, never can let the violas win.

When the room falls silent, and the instruments go down everyone applauds vigorously, including myself. I can see Angelica chuckling at my over the top enthusiasm. A tint of red flushes my face in embarrassment as I see Sarah chuckling as well. "You're adorable." She whispers.

The orchestra raises their instruments and the next song commences. One. Two. Three. Four. One and two and three and four. I recognize the familiar tune immediately. I turn to Angelica who looks ecstatic; a large smile stretches across her face. Concerto in E minor. I can feel my gut clench slightly from the memories of my school's terrible performance, but I cannot deny that it is a catchy tune. Even now the catchy rhythm is still stuck in my head and engraved in my fingers. I watch the orchestra's bows fly so clean and a swift. Far better than anything I can currently pull off. Then comes the slurs mixed with specato. Yep. I remember that being a pain, but hey it sounds really nice. Then it all repeats, speeding up even faster and hitting the conclusion without error. Now Angelica is the one clapping in enthusiasm.
***
    I stand up and stretch as people exit for the intermission. I ask the two ladies if they wanted anything, and they simply ask for water. I exit along with everyone else and purchase a water from the snack booth. On my way back to the seats I run into someone I didn't expect. "Hey!" Shouts Mr. Vibrato, "How are you doing? Daniel, was it?" The tall man looks down at me with a genuine smile on his face, something I doubt I would ever get out of Mr. Forte. I suddenly become skeptical that he may still be around and sway my head quickly back and forth. I'm being paranoid.

    "Yes, and I'm doing pretty good. How are you?" I reply modestly.

    "Good. Good. You must be pretty dedicated to score tickets for here." Mr. Vibrato claims.