Chapter 621 Composition

Meryl knew full well that she was just a filler, and she had no real hopes of winning. She only hoped not to embarrass Harvey too much, and getting into the top ten would be enough for her.

Rachel, on the other hand, had an air of determination when she met her at the competition entrance.

“This competition is live-streamed, and our orchestra only has the two of us competing. I’ll ask you one more time. Do you want to collaborate with me?”

Meryl firmly refused. “No collaboration.”

She knew a piece played with two instruments had a completely different effect from one played with just one.

The two instruments complemented each other, enriching the melody and enhancing the music’s appeal. In past competitions, nearly all the winning pieces were collaborations between two players.

By rejecting the collaboration, Meryl was essentially giving up her chance of winning.

Seeing herself rejected, Rachel was a bit annoyed. “I’m really curious to see what kind of tricks you can pull off!”

But what Meryl didn’t expect was that Christine would also be participating.

Normally, the participants were selected by orchestras from across the country, or they were top students recommended by universities.

Christine had been taken by the police during the orchestra’s internal selection and hadn’t participated in it, meaning she had no qualification to enter.

“Why is she here?” she wondered.

Christine looked at Meryl with a smile and said, “Surprised to see me here? My dad’s the vice conductor of the orchestra. He just got me into the competition under the orchestra’s name. It was a piece of cake.”

“If it weren’t for the police taking me that day, I would’ve won the cello section. Meryl, don’t tell me you think that just because Mr. Herty took you on as a student, you’re better than me? I’m still the queen of the cello!”

Meryl didn’t even bother to respond to Christine.

She turned and walked away.

The disregard almost pushed Christine over the edge.

She had begged her father just to get into this competition.

The fact that Christine had been to jail had been all over the orchestra. The music industry was small, and she had to win this competition to make a name for herself and clear her past shame.

She also had plans to enter the entertainment industry, and this would be her stepping stone.

Christine looked at Rachel and said, “First violin, why don’t we collaborate?”

Rachel hesitated.

She had just returned to the country and didn’t know many people in the music industry. Most of those who were interested in collaborating already had their partners lined up.

The deep, rich sound of the cello, when paired with her violin, would make her own instrument stand out even more.

After a moment’s thought, Rachel agreed.

Soon, all the contestants were seated in their rooms.

Meryl noticed a camera on her desk. Was this really live-streamed?

The host’s voice suddenly echoed, and after a brief introduction, the competition began.

The first step was for everyone to draw lots to determine the theme for their compositions.

A hostess handed out several identical round balls, and Meryl casually drew one.

She opened it and saw that the theme she had drawn was “Love.”

It was a broad topic, with countless songs about love throughout history, covering various styles. The possibilities were endless.

But it was precisely because it was so broad, with no clear boundaries, that it became difficult.

Plus, her instrument was the cello, and its deep, mournful tones weren’t exactly suited for expressing the intensity and passion of love.

Meryl followed the host’s instructions and held up the paper to the camera, showing the live audience. The creation process officially began.

The room was well soundproofed, with special acoustic foam added, so she couldn’t hear any of the compositions from next door, nor could she hear anyone speaking.

Over the next 48 hours, if she was selected for the top ten, she would have to perform her own piece live on stage.

The room was silent. Meryl first tuned her cello.

The piece she had posted on Twitter a couple of days ago was actually quite fitting for the theme of love.

But, of course, she wouldn’t use an existing piece in a competition. Since this was a 48-hour composition challenge, she had to follow the rules and create a brand-new piece.

She took a pen and casually scribbled on the paper.

The camera zoomed in on her paper, but the viewers were left confused.

Only Meryl knew what she was writing.

Meanwhile, Rachel and Christine had drawn the same theme of love.

Christine quickly had an idea. After over twenty years of musical training since she started learning the violin at the age of five, along with her graduation from a prestigious conservatory, she had a clear vision.

Rachel wasn’t about to back down either. Having studied abroad for so long, her classmates were experts at composition. Writing a piece about love was no challenge for her.

However, the drawbacks of their collaboration became clear.

They both wanted their own instruments to play the main melody, with the other simply providing accompaniment. Before they even started composing, the two argued for over an hour about it.

Rachel, with a cold face, didn’t want to make a scene in front of the camera. “The violin has a bright, soaring sound, perfect for the main melody! Who doesn’t know that in the industry?

Etting me do the harmony? That’s a pipe dream! Have you ever seen anyone buy flowers and just get the leaves?”

Christine, equally stubborn, shot back, “Who says the cello is just background noise? You don’t understand the charm of the cello!”

“Then let’s do this,” Rachel proposed. “We’ll each write a piece. Whoever’s is better will be the one we submit to the competition.”

Two pieces to choose from would improve their chances of winning.

Christine agreed. “Alright, we’ll each have 24 hours to compose. The remaining 24 hours, we’ll choose one and make some final adjustments?”

“Fine.”

The two finally reached an agreement.

Both of them were determined to use this competition to make a big splash in the music industry and build their names, so they were putting in all their effort.

Soon, the 24 hours passed…

Meryl’s piece was almost finished.

She first jotted down her thoughts on paper–what did she think love should be like?

It was about sincerity and mutual appreciation; arguments and jealousy are okay, but when facing challenges, they fight together against the world.

It’s companionship, concern, and, above all, security. Meryl closed her eyes gently, her mind filled with Chandler’s face.

After extracting the key ideas, she determined the general direction of her composition.

The deep tones of the cello were like an elderly person in their twilight years, needing to close their eyes and feel with their heart.

As a few notes flowed from the cello, more concrete ideas began to take shape in Meryl’s mind.

She slowly recorded them on paper.

On the other side, Christine and Rachel were arguing again.

Their styles were very different, and both were focused on using their own instrument as the main melody.

They both thought their piece was better, and neither would yield.

As time ticked away, they were locked in a deadlock for hours.

With the deadline approaching, Rachel suddenly had an idea.

“How about this?” she said. “We can have the cello and violin each take half of the piece, with the violin leading in the first half, and the cello leading in the second half. What do you think?”

Christine frowned. “But now there’s no time. How can we change the composition without it sounding jarring?”

The two pieces were incompatible. They simply didn’t go together.

Rachel waved her hand at Christine, signaling her to follow.

The live broadcast zoomed in, but the conversation remained unclear.

Rachel whispered, “It’s simple. I have a pre-written piece. I’ll just make a few tweaks, and it’ll be perfect.”