Learn an Instrument

Music can have an incredible effect on the mind, in a brief essay posted about two hours ago on this blog Spencer Muir talks about some of the specific positive effects that listening to music has on the human mind. (Authority) Similarly, when one learns the art of performing music his or her mind is enriched. (Similarity) Performing music is incredibly complex; one must learn to read music which involves training the brain to associate symbols with tones, pitches, dynamics, timing, and style, one must develop muscle memory that aligns with all of the tones, pitches, dynamics etc., (whole/parts) after all of this, a musician must develop musicality, or the ability to feel music and translate that feeling through all of the technicalities that he/she has worked to develop. (Definition)

My favorite piece to perform,
you've probably heard it, here is a link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwHpDOWhkGk

Just think of it! Imagine you are a parent, (possible/impossible) what would you do to help your child develop? Imagine watching them learning and honing all of those skills required by a musician to perform. Imagine how greater their capacity would expand by exercising their mind (cause and effect) rather than mindlessly watching T.V for hours on end. (Contradiction) Learning to perform an instrument provides life long benefits in the health and capacity of the brain. (Antecedent/Consequence) In her article from National Geographic magazine Diane Cole sites several scientific studies and tests that have been performed that show higher levels of grey and white matter in the brains of adults who have played musical instruments since childhood. (Documents)

Post-Concert with one of my stand partners, I
recommend Mark Olson's post, we were
definitely dressed for success.

I personally have seen the benefits of learning to perform a musical instrument. I play the cello, I love it. It is one of my favorite hobbies, it has increased my ability to memorize and the motor skills of my body and brain. (Testimony) Whenever I pick up my cello and play its as though some imaginary wind blows through my mind and clears everything away. (Supernatural) 

M-thegreek-E (The Greek in Me)

A can castle my ward built for a HOPE food drive

Me as Maleficent in a Roadshow Performance hosted by my stake in CA

Out of all the many different influences the Ancient Greek culture has on our modern lives, the two I see most in my life (aka the two I had pictures of so I wouldn't have to worry about copyright infringements) are architecture and storytelling. I am amazed by how many buildings are built with Greek influences. I mean, any time you see a pillar the design was probably copied off of a Greek building. I found a website (pillars) that shows three different types of pillars that the Greeks used based on how ornate they wanted a building to be. Anyway, for storytelling I like to read and tell stories but I also like to participate in plays and drama productions. So apparently there is more Greek in me than I thought!

Kairos and Kazoos

I LOVE PERFORMING.

That's a kazoo in my hand, by the way.

I'm not exactly what you would call an "actress" (I'm not in the music-dance-theatre program, I'm not that good), but I love being on stage. Singing, dancing, speech-ing, I love it all.

Let's just say, however, I'm glad I'm not a performer in ancient Greece. They used only three actors in each play, regardless of how many characters there actually were*! Talk about memorizing lines, not to mention trying to project through an entire amphitheater (as Prof. Burton demonstrated in class today).

*Full link: http://academic.reed.edu/humanities/110tech/theater.html#staging