Shit you not, this is a trio of cellos and a drummer. The things they can do with these instruments is amazing!

See, I'm all about reinventing the wheel. When Evanescence first came out years back, I was psyched because of Amy Lee's training in classical music. I could just tell in her voice. And then the piano mingled in there among all the heavy guitar riffs and the bass and drums? Awesome. It was my two worlds coming together. They've gone a bit softer for my tastes now that Ben's gone, but their music's still alright. I'm aware that their sound is evolving, and I'm sure they'll get to many great places.

Then there's Tantric. I heard them last year and was hooked. Because again, classical influence. There's strings in the background on some of their songs. Down and Out's a good example.

To state the obvious, I have a fondness for blending the two genres. I can't help it. I mean, as a teenager, when all the other kids were into N*SYNC and Brittney Spears or whatever the fuck else was all the hype those days, I was locked away in a practice room practicing scales on my viola. My sister wasn't much different. She took her violin home every day, not just weekends like the "normal" kids. It's what made her great. So even when I wasn't practicing at home, there was always the sound of a stringed instrument in the house. My best memories of us together involve us playing duets, or just practicing sheet music together. She was my most ardent fan, my most stringent teacher and most amazing mentor I've ever had. She didn't just want me to be great, she demanded it. And she only had one extra year of experience in her instrument than I did mine! It still saddens me to this day to remember the day her love of the violin was killed by those who are supposed to guide their students. I'd see her frusteration, saw that fire die in her eyes and fingers as they raced up and down the fingerboard. Once she left the orchestra, it was never the same for me. My greatest pride and joy has been to share the stage with her. She had made it to the top of the region, and would have made it into state. Everyone knew it. The professional regional orchestra had even told her she had a job waiting for her when she graduated, if she wanted it. Once she was gone, there was no way I was going to last there much longer. I still don't know how I made the year. But I did, and then quit to take up classical guitar. To the day I don't regret my choice. I fell in love with the guitar long before I ventured to try my hand at it. But I never achieved the level of skill with it that I had for my viola, and don't think I ever will.

Listening to Apocalyptica brings back all these memories for me, all these emotions. I remember how as an ten year old, when it came time to chose my instrument, I really, really wanted the cello. It was... beautiful to me. But my mother had promised she would buy me whatever instrument I wanted. She had bought my sister her violin, so it was only fair, she said. But the violin is tiny compared to the cello, thus less expensive. It was over a grand to get the cello at the time, and so I kept my mouth shut. I never told them, until many years later, of my original choice. I chose the viola because it has the same strings as a cello, only an octave higher. I remember how I struggled at first and my teacher told me my hands were too big for the instrument; that I had cello hands, and should try switching instruments. I went home and cried. Here was a professional music instructor, recommending for me the instrument I wanted in the first place, but how could I tell my mother this after she had already paid for my viola? I couldn't allow myself to let her down that way, so I killed myself practicing until I got blisters on top of my blisters, and my fingers became faster, my posture better. And then, I went from fumbling to great. On my first tryout into the older kid's orchestra, I became first chair. I went into regional, just like my sister. And I fell in love. I've never looked back, and no other genre fills me the way stringed music does. I now would not trade my viola for anything else in the world, not even for the cello, not even for politics or phsychology or art or literature.

Sadly, I grew up, and real life kicked in. I got a job, went to college, then another job. Now I'm at UPS, and I'm going back to school soon, and I don't have time to even update this shit as much as I'd like, let alone take up my viola again. I'm rusted up; my fingers fumble, and my collar bone hurts like a first-timer. Except now it's frusterating because I know I used to be great. Not being able to play even the simple scales with the speed and skill I used to have pisses me off.