Sisters treat mum to impromptu concert

This column has appeared in the Redland Times, Cleveland, Redland Shire, Queensland, Australia. Image from www.en.wikpedia.org

ONE of those heartwarming experiences of parenthood occurred a few days ago in the Munro family household at Wellington Point.

Leigh Munro, mother of three daughters, heard a special performance, including Ode to Joy, on clarinet and violin.

Youngest daughter Carly, 11, put her new violin under her chin, and her elder sister, Sarah, 15, reached for her clarinet "for the first time in quite a while".

"It sounded a bit out of key but they played it together - it was great," Leigh says. "I was quite delighted, especially when I saw that Sarah can still play these songs."

Carly, now in Year 6 and part of the Birkdale State Primary School music program, played her new full-size violin for the first time.It replaces a half-size instrument that Mum advertised in our Classifieds last week for $100.

ALL the Munro girls, with the eldest, Emma, completing the trio, have been through the school program.

Emma, now in Year 12 at Wellington Point High School where Sarah is in Year 11, has since given up the flute.

This was a mild disappointment for Leigh. "I always wanted to play the piano and I have always hoped they (the girls) would find enjoyment in something that I never could," she said.

"I never push them though."

Another of the musical Munros was missing from the concert the other day.

"My husband, Gerry, is Maori and can bang out a tune on the guitar but the guitar has been broken for a few years," Leigh says.

LEIGH'S for-sale notice imparted a cute image, saying the instrument would "suit year 3-4". Seeing and hearing the "littlies" grapple with the disciplines of formal music education is always very special.

Carly was given her first violin when she was eight years old and in Year 3. "It was a bit hard on the ear at the start," Leigh says.

The new owner is another young starter on the Birkdale program, of which Leigh is a devoted fan. She says it has certainly given her girls a good start in music.

"When Carly got the new violin a few days ago she immediately played two songs off by heart and although Sarah hadn't played the clarinet for a while she remembered what she had learnt," Leigh says.

THANKS for joining me to meet the great people in the marvellous community of classified advertising.