God's Song

“You’re nervous, right?”

When they arrived at home, Jun Hyuk brought out coffee and tried to put the 2 people at ease. But their expressions were still firm. Their unrest, anxiety, and worries had not gone away.

“I’m so anxious. Maestro Jun’s performance yesterday, especially the 2 performers in the afternoon performance, were really impressive.”

“I don’t even know how to express the freedom the pianist performed with in today’s performance.....”

The 2 performers could not get rid of the image of the competitors who had surpassed them, and had already lost confidence.

“To be honest, I thought that there wouldn’t be anyone to follow violinist Daniel from yesterday’s afternoon performance. I’ve watched his performance since the finals, but he really is in the lead.”

The violinist who is to perform with Jun Hyuk tomorrow, Michele Placido, has an honest personality like the Italian he is. He is blinded by the jealousy he felt while watching Danny.

The roommate of the young genius sitting in front of him. The lucky guy who was in the same room for over 1 year, receiving inspiration and enlightenment.

“Yes. I also think that Danny’s performance was the best. He showed overwhelming ability among the 6 violin finalists. Looking at skill alone, I expect he will win.”

The Italian violinist laughed despondently.

“Ha ha. Well, well. Even so, for you to say it so blatantly.....”

“But the win can’t be guaranteed.”

“Excuse me? Now what does that mean?”

When Jun Hyuk became inconsistent, the 2 people could only stare at him.

“There were a lot of mistakes. If the judges use a deduction system rather than judging the overall performance when scoring, he won’t have a lot of points. That’s the scoring method of a competition.”

The 2 people had not even known that Danny had made mistakes. There were parts where he strayed from the score, but it was because he had been so natural that it seemed he had done it on purpose.

“Alright. If it’s okay, can I give you a piece of advice?”

“Of course. Anything you say will be helpful now.”

The 2 people swallowed. Jun Hyuk is now an indisputable genius maestro. They remembered what he showed them during rehearsals. He is able to tell them exactly how to express a single note.

“You are all lucky.”

“Huh? Lucky?”

Does it mean that the goddess of the competition is coming for them? They could not understand exactly what he meant yet.

“You know who’s in the royal seats of the theater, don’t you?”

“Yes. Aren’t they the top maestros in Europe?”

“That’s right. Everyone gathered because I had an accident with the press. And they aren’t judges who check for mistakes to deduct points.”

“Oh!”

That is when the 2 people let out low exclamations. They understood what Jun Hyuk was trying to say.

“You know, right? Your paths as professionals have nothing to do with the judges. The people who will call for you are the maestros.”

Competition goals are winning, but their real goals are to make themselves known to the world. Their ultimate goals are to show their music to the world and to stand on great stages.

There are over 10 maestros who are the tickets to these great stages.

“You’ll know if you saw the interview, but I’m going to be performing with the New York Philharmonic once the competition is over. I’m thinking of Danny as the violin soloist for that performance.”

A performer who stands out to a conductor heads straight for a great stage like this. They were both extremely jealous of Danny. The New York Philharmonic is not just a great stage, but the world’s best.

“Think about it. Showing your talent to a group of Europe’s maestros and showing your talent to 12 judges. Isn’t the conclusion too obvious?”

The 2 people could feel a flash pass through their heads. They could fully understand why Jun Hyuk had said that they are lucky.

“The real winners of this competition aren’t the people with high scores but the people who receive more calls from maestros.”

A performance with perfect technique, without error, cannot move the maestros’ hearts. They need to give performances that are full of soul in order to capture their hearts.

“So forget any thoughts about mistakes or being compared to others. You two just need to show your abilities to the fullest. Perform and take the challenge boldly.”

Their faces looked much more comfortable than they had in the beginning.

“Then, let’s practice. Forget mistakes and ensembles, and show me your real selves. There’s no orchestra here anyway.”

The 2 people listened to Jun Hyuk’s advice and focused on practicing until the sun set and darkness settled in. When they were going home, they left smiling after they thanked Jun Hyuk.

After seeing them off and returning home, Tara and President Isaac Stern were drinking tea in the living room.

“Isaac! When did you get here?”

“It’s been a while. I was in the kitchen with Tara because you were in the middle of practice. I have to see tomorrow’s performance since it’s the last one.”

President Stern spoke as though it was obvious. Is it not the hottest performance in the world of music right now?

“It’s broadcast on the internet and on cable...”

“I need to see it live. And there’s some business I need to take care of.”

“Business?”

“Yeah. The Belgian National Orchestra’s tour starts once the competition is over. Your choral concerto is inevitably going to be the main repertoire... They can’t have it for free. I need to negotiate the royalties. And it’s not just that. He he.”

Jun Hyuk became curious with President Stern’s sinister laughter.

“Is that strange laughter because there’s something else?”

“There’s a hail of phone calls from the record labels that saw your performance. They want to schedule recording right away. It’s not just the record labels. It’s a bit of an exaggeration, but there have been requests from symphony orchestras all over the world to perform your song.”

It is something joyful, not something sinister or strange. Jun Hyuk also felt pretty good, hearing that countless places wanted his song.

“Then it seems you’ll be pretty busy. Can you be spending time like this?”

“What? I don’t do that work myself. The employees work hard. I’m the company’s boss. Ha ha.”

“So you’re basically here for fun.”

“Watching you perform is also work for me. And there’s something I need to discuss with you.”

Isaac Stern stopped laughing, and his expression became serious.

“Once the competition is over, are you going to tour as well?”

“I don’t know. I don’t really want to.”

He has worked enough with the Belgian National Orchestra. It is also boring to conduct the same song for several months.

“Good. The composer’s participation in the tour isn’t included as a provision for the competition anyway. Then you’ll be able to start with the New York Philharmonic right away.”

“Okay. I’m anticipating that too.”

“But for the soloists... the piano and violin.”

“Yes.”

“Maestro Dimitri Carras wants Daniel, who performed with you yesterday. It seems he was quite impressed.”

“What do you think, Isaac?”

“I was surprised too. I thought he was just your roommate, but it was the birth of a great violinist.”

President Stern is so lost in Danny’s performance that he regrets that he has already signed on with a different management agency. If he performs with an outstanding conductor for a few years and is well conditioned, he is sure to take a top class position.

When President Stern was about to bring up the most important thing, Yoon Kwang Hun opened the door and came in. He must have been drinking because his face was red.

“Oh, Mr. Yoon. It’s been a while.”

“Mr. Stern. When did you get here? It’s really a pleasure to see you again.”

They embraced and showed their friendliness.

“Sir, you’re late considering the performance should have ended early.”

“Oh. I ran into the maestros again when I left the theater after the performance. They asked to eat together so... I had a glass of wine too. Ho ho.”

Jun Hyuk started laughing when he imagined Yoon Kwang Hun following the maestros around.

“I don’t think it was just one glass of wine. Looks like you drank a lot?”

“I don’t know. That’s not important. The important thing is that they wanted to be friends with me. They told me not to call them maestro and to just call them by their names. We exchanged numbers too. He he.”

Yoon Kwang Hun proudly wiping his phone screen was not very different from a man admiring his favorite young singer.

“How was the afternoon performance?”

“Of course it was great? The committee told me that the morning and afternoon performances were exactly 74 minutes long. There wasn’t a second in error.”

Once they started talking about the performance, Yoon Kwang Hun stopped joking and became serious.

“It’s a perfect interpretation and performance.”

“The critics said the same thing. The 19th century Beethoven conducted the song that the 21st century Beethoven wrote. I thought that was the most precise evaluation.”

President Stern spoke, laughing lightly.

“The greatest beneficiary in this year’s Queen Elisabeth Competition is Belgium.”

“Oh. Is that what it is?”

When Yoon Kwang Hun thought about the competition from the business end, President Stern could tell what he meant by the greatest beneficiary.

“They leapt past cable and internet live broadcasts will have reached the ceiling for advertising rates. It is by far the best in terms of topicality alone. The competition committee is about to give Jun a medal.”

Even in the world of classical music, a hot topic star is changing the field. Jun Hyuk has proved that he is a goose who lays golden eggs that bring in more revenue than the newly emerged stars in China.

“Mr. Stern. Go on about the New York Philharmonic.”

Tara had been listening quietly, but she spoke up so as not to lose out on something important.

“Oh right. I forgot for a moment. Jun, do you by chance want to play the piano?”

“The piano?”

“Well... Maestro Carras asked cautiously if you might become the choral concerto’s pianist.”

“That’s an okay thought.”

Yoon Kwang Hun became excited first. It has been a fairly long time since he has heard Jun Hyuk’s piano. On top of that, it would be him playing the piano on stage with the New York Philharmonic. His heart fluttered just imagining it.

“I guess you don’t really want to from the way you can’t answer quickly?”

“It’s not that... Is there really a need for me to do it when there are so many great pianists.....”

“Why? How many pianists are better than you when looking at skill alone?”

When Jun Hyuk did not immediately reject the idea, President Stern gained confidence.

“And we’re thinking of releasing the New York performance as an album. In my opinion, your music is better in concert than in studio.”

“An album...”

Yoon Kwang Hun was about to say something, but stopped. He did not want to unnecessarily give Jun Hyuk the impression that he was pressuring him.

“Isaac, we’ll think about that issue once the competition is over. That’s okay, right?”

“Of course. You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to. There will always be a pianist who is willing to perform if it’s your work.”