The Ruark Kids

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I like to think that some of Siena’s parents’ music appreciation skills are rubbing off on the little one. Mom and dad both performed in college and post-college groups of one form or another. And now we generally assault Siena’s ears for good portions of her at-home time, whether it be with classical, jazz, new-agey stuff, or yes even the occasional noise that actually counts as popular in this desolate twilight of the waning music business.

Poor Siena even sometimes gets subjected to a dinner-time performance of dad trying to conduct some raucous classical piece like Rossini’s William Tell Overture, Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet Overture, or Berlioz’s Roman Carnival Overture. Let’s just say it makes her laugh, and it scares our depth-perception-lacking cat. Dad should keep his day job.

The good news is that what with all this plus all the singing of the normal baby tunes that we do–and which Siena has started to do herself–she’s pretty exposed to music of many different lengths, moods, and forms. And it is amusingly rewarding for us, because she has learned that when the music stops, the piece is done: and if you enjoyed it then you cheer.

We’ll be driving home listening to the (light) classical radio station, and when a piece concludes, especially with a big symphonic sonic assault, Siena will often holler out, “yayyyyyy.” She’s even been known to clap some. There was even one time we were in the car driving back from a weekend away. Classical music was playing in the background, and mom and dad just talked right through the end of a movement. But Siena didn’t miss it: she cheered and got us both in stitches because we had missed the end of the music.

I also suspect Siena likes applause. I’ll never forget when mom had her white-coat ceremony in March of 2007, I was standing in the back of the auditorium with Siena in my arms, and whenever the applause rolled through the audience (at the end of each speech or when clapping for all the students), Siena just had a huge smile and was beaming and sometimes laughing.

So perhaps she has a career in live performance ahead of her?

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