My musical journey can be closely compared to a broken tap. Broken taps are usually characterised with the inconvenience and annoyance of their contents inside, trapped without a way to escape until fixed. Likewise, my journey has not been easy. Although, similarly with the broken tap eventually it got fixed. You see, I haven't always been massively interested in the prospect of a musical career. However, I have always loved music and the idea of learning musical instruments. But due to many hiccups along the way, such as some ludicrous music lessons, and losing interest as a child, it hasn’t been consistent. A few years ago, I had an epiphany. I wanted to try music again. I wanted to commit to it, and I had to be a great musician. As Bruce Springsteen said, that was the day the music was born. Now, how did I get into music some may ask? Well, music has always been a love of mine. In fact, I could say for certain that it has always been my biggest passion. Over the years of my still young life, I have had many passions and interests. All have been quite different, yet most of these have been no more than fleeting infatuations. Unlike music. I have always found great enjoyment and solace when listening to music. In moments of triumph, I have listened to the grandiose Piano Concertos by Rachmaninoff. However, through moments of despondency I have turned to Henryk Górecki's Symphony of Sorrowful Songs. Additionally, as well as enjoying the composers' music, I have always found it interesting learning about the lives of musicians, composers and performers. From the heartbreaking tragedies of Tchaikovsky's life, to the romance filled life of Clara Schumann, I have found It all fascinating. But when was I first inspired to write music of my own, and dabble through the process of learning others' compositions? That revelation was to occur on one great night in Dunedin. At the brilliant Elton John Concert. It was the 4th of February 2020, at the Forsythe Bar stadium in Dunedin. This was the night of the fabulous, Elton John Farewell Yellow Brick Road concert. A concert that I had always dreamed of going to. It was this night, when I witnessed the magic that came from that stage. From the iconic melodies, John's matured voice, to the harmony between the band on stage, I realized I wanted to take music into my life. In the long run, I wanted to give other people that same sense of happiness and magic I had experienced. I knew there would be no turning back. My first dip into playing a musical instrument started in a very unexceptional way. It began the same way that vast amounts of NZ youth will be able to relate to. It was the dreaded recorder. These short, and infrequent lessons never really amounted to much though. They haven't left behind any skills or takeaways. However, they did in fact leave behind some interesting memories. Such as, the infamous high pitch screeches of the untamed recorder matched with the groans of students being told to make their way to the mat. And worst of all, the savage renditions of previously lovely nursery rhymes. Even though I won't say these lessons really left a positive impact on me, it was still a valuable and interesting introduction to music. Several years later, I decided to try my hand at learning the clarinet. A decision I now find quite ironic, due to my uninspiring past with the recorder. This decision subsequently led to me being enrolled in lessons. Rather tragically, they were not to be, and only lasted roughly a year. The end of the lessons began basically from the day they started. Their demise was a slow and grueling one. Which in retrospect, was due to my lack of self-discipline and motivation to practice. Due to this, the lessons swiftly turned from an exciting, fun new experience, to a perpetually tedious one. Which, in the end, led to their foreordained demise. Consequently, due to the despondency caused by previous fails in my budding musical journey, I lost all interest for several years. However, this wasn't the end of my journey. All it took to reopen my passion in music was an unintentional sabbatical, giving me time to think about my interests, passions, and skills. This led me to decide that music would make a return in my life. For now I felt I was mature enough, and, conversely to my younger years, was now able to self-motivate and commit. This would be my final attempt at music. I decided to try piano, the mother of all instruments. This decision led me to enquire about piano lessons at school. Which, after a brief period of waiting for a verdict, led to me being enrolled in a few weeks of trial piano lessons. Now, two and a half years later, after my time attending these lessons, I have gained profuse amounts of knowledge and skill; from a theoretical side, learning about the many rules of music theory, from the grouping of semi quavers in different time signatures, to the seven modes of music, Phrygian, Locrian, Ionian and so forth. I also learned piano scales, techniques and pieces. And finally, knowledge about the historical side of music, learning about composers' lives and time periods. Additionally, to the great knowledge gained, I have also had many personal milestones. Such as successfully learning complete, complex pieces of music, to performing in front of an audience for the first time and, arguably the most difficult thing, overcoming my fears of public performance. This leads to where I am currently. Now, I am committed and eternally bound to music, and piano. So even though my journey has been synonymous with a broken tap, with the many inconsistent stops and starts, in the end I got the push I needed. Which led to the opening of the floodgates and the outpour of passion, love and enjoyment. It was all worth it. Now, even though my journey has only just begun, I still have so far to go. And as Walt Disney one said, “To succeed, work hard, never give up and above all, cherish a magnificent obsession." It will be a continual journey, one which will test and try me. But what is most important, is to never give up. Live your passion.