We started off at the National Portrait Gallery. Some really pretty stuff. I felt so uneducated wandering through the myriad of beautiful paintings. The most striking thing was how normal all the naked women looked. They had love handles, cellulite, pooches, and overall pudginess. Totally not the image of hard, thin bodies society makes us think we are supposed to have today. I guess women back then had a tougher time finding food, so the pooch was a mark of wealth and fertility. So strange how it changes. I guess I am glad we don't have to wear corsets and big heavy dresses or be on the underbelly of society, so really, there are still plusses to not living in the seventeenth century.
Next was lunch. Delicious bacon chicken sandwich outside on the street. MMMMMM.
Next, British Museum. Wandering around with the BICker guys laughing at them complaining and trying to find stuff for their paper. We did see the Rosetta Stone. Super neat and much larger than I expected. I had only seen pictures, and nothing had put it in proportion. I had just assumed it was the size of my laptop or something, but it was more the size of a bear.
Next, Beare violin shop. I found it down the street of fancy looking buildings. I had to ring to be let in, and was directed towards an office with two secretaries. One looked very confused and asked me why I was there. Apparently, she was expecting something else. I told her that I was beginning the process of looking for a new violin, and my price range was under 20,000. I thought this was a lot. And I just now realized that was in pounds, not dollars. She gives me a look, like, "Why are you here?" And says that she will ask if they have anything in that price range. Eek. I thought 20000 was a heck of a lot. Like, that would only be if I were absolutely sure that I would be a professional violinist auditioning for symphony gigs starting right out of undergrad. But apparently, they only had 3 violins that were older that were under 20000, and 4 that were newer violins under 20000. Or i guess 30000. there were about 50 or more violins in the room they put me in.
Anyways, I'm waiting for the person to come down. One salesperson comes in and barks at the secretary that one of the patrons needed tea. She immediately gets up and puts brews two cups of tea in rose mugs with milk and sugar and takes it upstairs.
Eventually, Julia comes to get me and sets me up in my own room and puts three violins on a table that she thought might work. I told her I had been traveling and didn't have a shoulder rest or a bow, so she gets me a Hill bow and a Kun shoulder rest. She says she'll come back in a bit.
I had so much fun the room was beautiful. The floor was wooden, but most of it was covered with this thick, rich, decorated rug. There was a huge mirror in the middle of the room. On the right of it was an old wooden music stand, and I don't know what was on the left. The entire right wall had violins hanging from every hook. The back wall had old violin cases and a tiny cello. The left wall had a huge bay window that looked out over the street, but a delicate, sheer white curtain blocked any embarrassment or distraction. An old, embellished round wooden table stood in front of the window with three old instruments from the 1800s; two english, one french. I played those three for a while, and then started picking at random from the huge wall of instruments I have no idea how much they cost. It was a blast. I played scales and some Lalo. At that point, I didn't really care what the sales people thought of my playing ability. Okay, I did. I felt like they were sitting right outside my door and snickering how I was a student. But it was still wonderful. I had put all my stuff in the huge arm chair in the corner, and all I had to carry was a violin, and every one of them sang more beautifully than the next. I sank into the sound and an hour passed before the salesperson came back in and asked for my thoughts. I told her what my favorite was of the cheaper variety. (Cheap is relative entirely), and she came back with some information on it. She gave me a brief history about the schools of violin teachers and how the c-bouts and f-holes differ from maker to maker. I learned so much. So cool. Best part of the day. We exchanged contact information, and I said I might come by during Thanksgiving if somehow that works out during Belgium (although it probably won't). But it was the best first step I could have taken in my violin searching process. Star treatment, a great lecture, and my own beautiful room to test out like 50 violins.
They can't really ship out violins to the States for just a curious shopper, so I will probably need to buy from an American seller, but now I definitely have more of an idea of what to look for and how I go about looking.
Eek, so great.
Then, we had class. I felt a little bit dumb because I couldn't answer the first question she asked me. I had just walked all across London and changed a bit on the tube on the way back, and still in awe of the violins, so I was a bit dazed.
I then went to Whole Foods with Ke'leigh, Maddee, and Dalton, and then we met some girls at a pub for a short bit. I had a crepe, mac and cheese, meatballs, and tea at Whole Foods. Delicious! London's wonderful.
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