Recording Day: Homographs, Synonyms, and Antonyms

Recording Day

1The Riverside Youth String Orchestra had practiced its new piece for six weeks, and today the players would finally record it in a real studio. Priya opened her cello case and tightened the hair on her bow. Her stomach felt jumpy, and her hands were cold. She was not calm at all. In fact, she had never felt so anxious before a performance.

2The studio was nothing like the noisy music room at school. Thick gray panels covered the walls, and the room was so silent that Priya could hear Diego breathing beside her. Diego played the bass, the biggest and lowest-sounding instrument in the orchestra. "Did you know that a bass is also a kind of fish?" he whispered. "The fish rhymes with pass, but my instrument rhymes with face." Priya giggled, and her shoulders began to relax.

3Mr. Haddad, the sound engineer, sat behind a long desk covered with buttons and sliders. "Please sit close to your microphones, but try not to bump them," he told the players. "When the red light is on, I am recording. If you need to step out, close the door gently so the latch does not click."

4Ms. Abara, the conductor, raised her baton. "Remember, this piece begins softly and ends loudly," she said. "Let the sound grow little by little." The red light glowed, and the first take began. Everything went smoothly until the last minute of the piece. Then one of Priya's strings slipped out of tune, and a single note came out sour. Mr. Haddad pointed to a minute bump in the sound wave on his screen. It was so tiny that Priya had to squint to see it.

5Priya's eyes stung, and she blinked back a tear. Diego leaned toward her and said that every recording session has more than one take. While Priya tuned her string, Diego noticed a tear along the edge of his music. He taped the paper carefully so it would not rip any further.

6On the second take, the orchestra played from beginning to end without a single slip. When the final, booming chord faded away, Mr. Haddad gave a thumbs-up. Ms. Abara asked the players to stand and bow to the parents watching through the glass. Priya bent forward at the waist, holding her bow in one hand. Next month, the orchestra will play the piece live at the spring concert, and families who live nearby will hear it in person.