bookbashuk Page 80
Page 80
"It hurts so much..."
Eri Kanzaki's facial muscles twitched, and she subconsciously mumbled something.
"Senior, please stop arguing!"
Kami Takahashi carefully raised her hand and placed it on Hama Watanabe's arm.
Kana Eto also softly tried to dissuade him from the side:
"Yaman Butterfly, yo~~ Yaman Butterfly, yo~~"
They all knew that although Watanabe Hama usually spoke bluntly, she never actually laid a hand on anyone, which showed just how angry she was this time.
"Bin, you're still under evaluation. We can talk about it later!"
Saito Harutori, who had come out to call for help, immediately stepped forward and pulled her away.
"You're going to hurt Eri by pulling like that!"
Hama Watanabe stared at Eri Kanzaki with a solemn expression. She covered her arm, which had just been restrained, with one hand, and a thin layer of sweat appeared on her forehead.
"What kind of stupid things are you thinking all day long! You never tell anyone the truth! Do you think you're so cool?!"
Kanzaki Eri remained silent, her hands gripping the hem of her school uniform tightly, her face turned to the side.
"call--"
Watanabe clicked his tongue in disdain, turned around and left angrily, his appearance frightening the club members in the corridor who quickly made way for him.
"Takahashi, Eto, it's your turn." Saito Harutori gently hugged Kanzaki Eri and said, "Don't let it affect you."
"good....
Next up were Takahashi and Eto. Although an unpleasant farce occurred in the middle, fortunately, the two did not make the same mistake as Kanzaki Eri.
"Next, Kirishima-senpai, remember to state your name, grade, and the instrument you're playing," Saito Harutori said.
Kirishima Mai nodded and opened the door.
Just as she was about to close the door, Saito Harutori said with a smile:
"Excuse me, I want to go in too."
"Feel sorry."
"fine."
In the very center of the first music classroom, there was a chair and a music stand, with Kitahara Hakuba sitting in front of him.
Saito Harutori, like a door god, leaned against the classroom door, waiting to call the next person.
Kirishima Mai's gaze fell on Kitahara Hakuba's face. Just as the club members outside had said, Kitahara-sensei was now completely different from his usual gentle self.
The solemn expression on his face when he picked up the sheet music was enough to make your heart race and give you goosebumps.
It wasn't that I felt shy, but rather that I felt afraid.
He was afraid that when he played, his face would show a confused expression, as if he were thinking, "How could this be?" or "How could it be so bad?"
Also, he should have heard the noise outside, right? But he didn't seem to make a single move... :.:
"First year, Kirishima Mai, oboe." She remembered Saito Harukori's instructions.
“Please begin,” Kitahara Hakuba said, raising his head.
"Yes."
Kirishima Mai put her legs together, raised her oboe, and played the designated part of the lesson.
The oboe part of the theme piece is not difficult; as long as you play it the way you practice, there will be no problem at all.
"Next, please play the freestyle and the soli part on the trumpet."
After a beautiful melody, Kitahara Hakuba's voice echoed in the music classroom, seemingly louder than usual.
Kirishima Mai shifted her position slightly, glancing briefly at Kitahara Hakuba, noticing his remarkably long fingers.
"Is there a problem?" Kitahara Hakuba asked, raising his eyebrows.
"It's nothing." She quickly looked away.
After speaking, Kirishima Mai slowly exhaled, reminding herself to pay attention to the details.
Long tones should be alternated with vibrato, and the volume should be reduced to ppp. The airflow should be controlled through nasal resonance to achieve a gradually weakening and silent conclusion.
A melodious, clear, and numbing sound echoed in the classroom.
Even Saito Haruka, standing behind, couldn't help but swallow hard. The corridor was silent.
"Great playing! You were better and calmer than I expected. I hope you can perform well on the stage of the All-Do Championship."
After listening to her playing, Kitahara Hakuba quickly expressed his opinion.
Saito Haruka's gaze fell on Kirishima Mai. It was the first time she had heard Kitahara-sensei state so bluntly—"You've been selected."
Previously, the members only said "thank you for your hard work" without mentioning the results, which makes the difference quite significant.
Kirishima Mai's heart skipped a beat, and her tense little face finally relaxed, feeling all the blood rushing to her head.
I should be feeling indifferent... but why am I so excited right now...?
It seems that being recognized... isn't something that doesn't matter...
"Thank you, Kitahara-sensei."
She stood up, bowed, and left the music classroom.
Stepping outside, the sky was overcast, and all colors seemed to be shrouded in a thin layer of gray; even the green of the branches and leaves in the courtyard was indistinct.
It's going to rain soon.
"Mai, how did the selection go?" Kuno Tachibana asked, carrying his schoolbag in both hands, looking like he was heading home.
"Teacher Kitahara told me to do my best at the All-Dojo Tournament," said Kirishima Mai.
Kuno Tachibana chuckled and poked her cheek with his finger, saying:
"Wow, you made it! I knew you could do it, after all, we've been solitaire together before."
"How's Lihua doing?"
"I'm definitely in, A-level is a sure thing." Kuno Tachibana confidently struck a pose as if playing the trumpet. "Besides me, no one can match Kanzaki-senpai's oboe soli on the trumpet."
She was very confident, but seemed unaware that Eri Kanzaki was singing off-key.
Chapter 91, Question 90: Can you really take responsibility?
With the selection of the last percussionist concluded, Kitahara Hakuba sat in the first music classroom and let out a sigh of relief.
More than eighty people, for over two hours...
However, it was worth the effort. The overall quality of this selection process was better than he had imagined, with very few basic mistakes such as singing off-key.
Aside from Kanzaki Eri, Kitahara Hakuba didn't care about any of that. Her talent had always been there, and the reason she sang off-key was simply because she didn't want to go on stage.
There's still plenty of time before the general meeting at the end of August, so there's plenty of time to correct her.
As for the upcoming regional conference in Hakodate, I don't know if I'll be able to make it.
"Saito-kun, thank you for your hard work." Kitahara Hakuba finished tidying up the list and planned to announce the list for Group A tomorrow afternoon.
Saito Haruka clasped her hands in front of her and said with a smile:
"Teacher Kitahara, you've worked so hard. I'm just doing some odd jobs like relaying messages. It's not tiring at all."
The watch on his wrist showed it was nearly 5:30 PM. Kitahara Hakuba looked out the window and said:
"Looks like it's going to rain, everyone should head home early."
At that moment, Sakurako Yukawa opened the door to the music classroom, took off her shoes, and walked in.
"Teacher Kitahara, could Eri's selection be postponed for a while? For example, could she perform tomorrow?" She stood straight in front of Kitahara Hakuma, her face tense as she asked.
Kitahara Hakuba did not show any surprise or doubt, but instead crossed his arms and said:
"why?"
"Because this is not Eri's true level. We joined the brass band together in our first year, and we know exactly how good she is."
Sakurako clutched the coin in her pocket tightly with her small hands, and after speaking, she quickly turned her gaze to Harutori Saito beside her.
I hope she can say one more word.
The latter could only manage a dry laugh:
"Yes, Eri's abilities are definitely more than that. It would be best if Kitahara-sensei could give her a chance."
Kitahara Hakuba nodded noncommittally and said calmly:
"I acknowledge Kanzaki's oboe skills, but this selection process wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision. In fact, I had already mentioned the idea of holding another selection before the Hokkaido Music Festival. Now that a mistake has occurred, no one can be blamed. To put it another way, if a mistake had occurred at the festival, do you think the judging panel would have given you a second chance to play? I'm only selecting members based on their auditions this time."
The bright lights of the music classroom shone on the white list in front of him, causing Sakura Kawakami's brows to furrow slightly.
She bit her lower lip and said:
"But if Eri isn't on the audition list this time, how much of a blow will it be to her? Everyone in the brass band knows that Eri is sure to get into the A class."
Kitahara Hakuba looked grave, remained silent for a long time, then sighed and said:
"I'm sorry, I'm only using the audition standards as a measure of your actual performance level."
His words had barely left his lips when the classroom was filled with tension. Sakura clenched her fists so tightly her nails dug into her skin as she spoke:
"Teacher Kitahara, I am the president of the brass band club, and I personally believe that Kanzaki Eri should be re-evaluated! If anything goes wrong, I am willing to take responsibility!"
Saito Haruka, standing to the side, frowned slightly, looking at her with some surprise that she dared to challenge Kitahara-sensei like that.
The girl with the three-pronged whip spoke with utmost seriousness, forcing Kitahara Hakuba to adopt an even more solemn expression.
"I'm sorry, but I disagree. Although you are the minister, you cannot take responsibility."
Hearing this so bluntly, Yukawa Sakurako suddenly felt a tightness in her chest, and almost gritted her teeth as she said, "I can take it!"
"If we set a precedent for Kanzaki this time, the audition selection will not be as important to the club members as before. They will think that as long as the club president makes a promise to the teacher, they will have a second chance. If there is a second chance, what about a third time? What about a fourth time?"
What will the other members think of you then? What will they think of me? As the head of the brass band, President Yukawa...
I hope you will take this selection process seriously; it's not a game.