Unexpected Audience

Today, I ventured over to the church to practice on the pipe organ. Usually I practice at home on my electronic organ. Much to my surprise there were a few people there working on the heating system.

I considered driving away when I saw the vehicles in the parking lot. Up until this time, I have not had an audience when practicing. Only a few family members, my husband, teacher, and cats have heard me play. I decided to go in and practice anyway. First, I saw the head pastor. He assured me it was okay for me to practice even though people were working. I am not confident (yet) in performing in front of others and a very small part of me would have been relieved had he asked me to leave until the worked was completed. So I pressed on to the organ bench!

I felt very self consciousness and nervous when I started out. I choose a softer piece to begin with. I could hear the workers talking with Joe (church member) who was there helping out. After about 10 minutes I realized that they were not paying any attention to me and was able to relax a bit.  I waited until after my unexpected audience left before cranking up the volume. All in all, it was a good practice session.