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October 3, 2013 - Marine Mychael Perkins is an award-winning pianist who occasionally
volunteers his time by playing piano at the O-Club during lunch.
(U.S. Marine Corps photo by LCpl. Paul Martinez)
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TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. - Marine Mychael Perkins is an
award-winning pianist who occasionally volunteers his time by
playing piano at the O-Club during lunch.
I've always had an interest in music. I've been playing
piano since I was five.
I started taking lessons at
the age of seven. It was something that helped me stay out
of trouble.
As I progressed, I learned to read music
at age eight. I mainly stuck with classical, but by age 13,
I started listening to songs on the radio and was able to
play them just by listening to them.
I have my own keyboard that I play often.
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I've played in
concerts and competitions. In Jacksonville, there's the University
of North Florida, and they conduct federations (competitions) for
different sections such as piano, violin, brass and woodwind
instruments.
My music teacher, Hiroka Sanford, told me she
wanted to sign me up for the competition. I entered and got 3rd
place out of 300.
I met people from Louisiana, Japan, and
Switzerland. They all came, like me, to showcase their talent. It
was a great experience to meet people there, people that were from
all over the world.
I like classical pianists such as Ludwig
van Beethoven, Wolfgang Mozart and Johann Sebastian Bach. I'm also a
fan of John Phillip Sousa. He was a conductor for the Marine Corps
Band.
In my senior year of high school, I went to Washington,
D.C., with the marching band and there I met members of the Marine
Corps band. It was my first military interaction. I spoke with the
conductor, and he gave us a lot of insight.
When I first
arrived here, 1st Lt Mcquade, our supply officer, took me and two
other Marines to the O-club. It had been awhile since I played, but
I noticed the piano there.
Later, I was there for a function,
and I thought about the piano. I went inside to see if it was still
there, and asked a woman by the name of Candace if it was okay for
me to start playing. She told me to go ahead, that no one ever plays
it.
I played for a little while, and as I was about to leave
bystanders asked me to play a little longer. When I left she asked
me to come back and play sometime. With that, it opened up some big
opportunities for me.
A sergeant major approached me one day
while I was playing a Bob Marley song.
He asked me how I
learned to play the song, and I replied I learned it by listening.
Right after that he asked me if I had ever thought about the Marine
Corps Band.
Soon after that, I spoke with a master gunnery
sergeant and he gave me some pointers on how I can enhance my
musical abilities.
I still stay in touch with him; because I have
aspirations to try out for the band.
Whether it's with a band
or going out in town, I love to just make music.
There was a
bar in San Dimas that I stopped at a while back. The people there
were waiting for their band to show up so I asked if I could play
for them while they waited.
Playing or listening to music is
something that can help get through the day if I'm not in the best
mood. For me, it creates a vibe that I can just connect to.
Florida is a nice place to relax. There's a lot of nice views out
there.
I love the beach, but to me the setting for playing music
doesn't matter. It's more about the meaning.
Some of my
favorite songs to play are tracks from Super Mario Brothers. I like
to remind people of what they used to play as a kid.
I try to go to the O-club during chow. I play for about an hour,
grab chow, and come back to work.
Music makes the world go
round if you ask me. It's all based on your emotions.
By USMC Lance Cpl. Paul Martinez
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2013
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