Currently watching Do You Like Brahms, and oh my God I love its melo-ness. It also helps that the MLs really know how to play the instruments. It gives me a piece of your mind/one spring night vibes.

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    as someone who grew up learning classical music, and is a frustrated musician, the drama so far touches issues the community experiences.

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      Yes and I like that the characters aren’t perfect. Male lead is gifted but knows his shortcoming. Competitions stress him out. Female lead does not seem to be talented in the area of music she wants to venture out, but that’s maybe because her low esteem is doing that to her. People constantly putting her and her dream down.

      Even the second female lead is flawed. She is not on top of her game ever eversince she lost that someone she loved, her source of inspiration.

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        So far, I’m not a fan of the second female lead at all and I’m hoping they don’t focus too much on Joon-young’s relationship with Jung-kyung. I also don’t like the luthier (what’s his name again?) very much. I’m hoping my opinion of these characters change.

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      Are competitions really so important in classical music? I’m curious. I know nothing about this.

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        yeah! I mean if you want to pursue it as a career, winning competitions are important for people to patronize you. Not everyone who studies classical music enters a competition. Most of my music conservatory friends end up teaching music, work in music/sound production/ or go into a completely unrelated career path. Only a few really become soloists, and most of them enter numerous competitions to build up their resume/experience and to gain more supporters. Patrons are important in the classical music world.

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          Interesting. I never knew this! I just realized, after looked them up, that the Chopin Competition and the Tchaikovsky Competition!

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        They are important for those who want to become soloists, but it’s a very unforgiving and critical environment. If you don’t get an award you could end up feeling like a failure after months of practicing. The fact that he was doing it for prize money would increase the pressure even more.

        If what we are seeing is true, I am so glad I didn’t study music in Korea. I hate the way people think musicians are disposable once they’ve reached a certain age or their abilities are “in decline”, kind of like their idols. In my country nobody would ever turn up their noses at someone who got 2nd place in the CHOPIN COMPETITION of all things. He’d have a lifetime award here, and be a very sought-out teacher while still giving recitals. Maybe Koreans start the competition business too young?

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          Might have something to do with the way Korean society works in general? I’m just speculating at this point, but it does seem like it’s a very competitive society and very zero-sum as well. Although, on reflection, this isn’t unique to SK; China, Japan, and India are very much like this as well.

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