…but I simply can’t imagine playing it with my ballerinas shoes on…
I went to the music school when I was 12 years old. A cousin played the violin and my mom always loved the arts. When I had to decide between ballet and the violin, I ended up choosing the violin. I certainly think it was the right choice because I also loved to play football – but I simply can’t imagine playing it with my ballerinas shoes on…
…and I almost gave up on music.
I always liked music, but in my early years I wasn’t sure if I want to play music all my life – who can be sure about such decisions in the age of 15, right? I also wanted to become a psychologist, a biologist… and I almost gave up on music. But somehow, I stuck with it. I later did my bachelor in Lisbon. There I played in the Orchestra Metropolitana and in the Moscow Quartett , I gained first experiences with playing solo violin parts, taking on the challenge of being a concert master and much more. I got my bachelor diploma and after a short stay in Belgium, I came back to Portugal and taught in a music school. Only a wee bit later, I moved to Switzerland.
My first job was as babysitter…
I had ro leave many important people and things behind in Portugal: my family, my friends, my work as a violin teacher, and much more. I came to Switzerland without knowing the language and the culture at all. I had roughly 200 Euros in my bank account. My first job was as a babysitter; later I worked in a brewery and in a restaurant. At the same time, I took German language courses and learned to write and speak German. I auditioned three times, but beside of those auditions my violin spent most of the time inside its case. 5 Years passed… I remember having thought ”I don’t need music”. How lost must I have been back then? I needed music more than ever. I often felt to wander around outside of my ”world”. My co-workers didn’t really understand my passion for music and for the violin. I remember going to a concert at the KKL Lucerne and always leave it with some mixed feelings. I kept asking myself, when would I be back on stage.
… at the KKL – my first time on that stage!
One day, after talking with a friend, I decided to apply for the university in Lucerne. Back then I was working full-time as a servant in a restaurant. Now I needed to practice the violin playing again – in the evenings after work. I only had 3 months’ time to prepare myself for the audition; I was exhausted… but the audition day arrived and ended with me being admitted to university! I started to play in the Sinfonietta Lucerne, and I played with the ZSJO at the KKL Lucerne during the renowned Lucerne Festival – my first time on that stage! A few months later I started my master’s degree in music pedagogy and I quickly got the chance to join the City Light Symphony Orchestra for the first time. My life was changing in a way I wasn’t expecting, and it was actually hard to find time and energy to take all of those chances and – still – working as a servant in a restaurant – to pay all my bills.
Now my first master’s degree is done, and I started a second one – this time in music performance. Besides my job at a restaurant and playing several concerts, I teach violin in the Music School in Rain, and I am currently looking for more work as a teacher. So: Do you want to learn how to play the violin? I’d love to meet you.