Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Accident

There are some rehearsals that take a few tries to perfect, but the opening notes of Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 would normally take 38-42 minutes to play. Despite the orchestra being in order as though they were marching in ranks, the sound isn't perfect. Some say the orchestra just needs more practice to be great in a real performance, but it is a rehearsal. The strings are in order, but the woodwinds and brass instruments feel like they're fighting each other like a bar fight. Piano... A good one to say the least. In addition to saying goodbye to his friend Kalkbrenner, whom Chopin admired, he also wrote this concerto as a farewell to his native Poland. And the piano conveys it effectively, though it is slow and soft in comparison to other performances, and the orchestra exhibits some similar deficiencies in its sound and voicing. There were errors and other things throughout the first movement of the rehearsal, but it didn't really matter because Patryk Pawlikowski, or called Patrik by his friends, the pianist, needed more practice to improve the piano's sound and his interpretation of the piece. Sybil Kramer listened to half of the first movement and commented,
"Slow and soft but great to my ears, but it lacks the sound of it."

Jan Ryall exclaimed with excitement, "Well, they are practicing more than what I can recall."

In a moment of uncertainty, Sybil said, "I know, it should be good like Chopin intended it to be." Her ears appeared to be drawn to the piano as she spoke.

"And Patrik... Oh, Patrik, he needs to practice more so that he won't ruin the sound of the piano, especially his control and voicing of the piece," Sybil continued, but she picked up on something odd about Patrik.

Goddammit, if I mess this up, not only will I miss the opportunity to shine, but I'll also discredit my family and Chopin himself. Because of something from his memory that caused him to become disoriented while playing the piano, Patrik was in a panic. Sybil sighed and looked at the concerto's music sheet. She paid close attention to the playing and only just realized that Patrik kept playing the same note incorrectly after another.

Sybil expressed uncertainty and said, "Oh boy, not again."

"Is it about his playing again?" Jan questioned with interest.

Sybil expressed concern for Patrik and said, "Yeah, but I can hear him playing pleading for help."
"I know, but his just playing throughout the half of the movement which he-" Jan was cut off when she said,
"For Christ's sake, he's not going to pass out again remember that recital from our elementary days that will happen again."

"Well, I remember that day, but why do you think he'll faint again?"

"Good reasons, but should we stop the rehearsal after the first movement to check on him and see if he's okay?"

"Good idea, we'll just have to wait, but we only have 10 minutes until this is finished."

Both Sybil and Jan expressed disapproval of the notes and how they sounded when the notes ended, saying it wasn't his fault for messing up as much as before. It looks like the piano has acquired tone and controllability in the final minutes of rehearsal. They were glad that Patrik had regained consciousness after losing focus on what to do because he was a little panicked not knowing what to do. To make sure Patrik felt good, rehearsals were postponed a few hours after the first move. In a typical rehearsal scenario, Patrik would be on stage to perform, but his condition doesn't appear to be right. For Patrik's sake and to give the orchestra time to practice again, two of Patrik's friends asked the conductor to postpone the performance for a few hours or so. After noticing the door to Patrik's room was open, the two friends entered and found him already collapsed. They said it was true that he was fainting but didn't know what to do. Sybil instinctively called someone to help Patrik, but Jan stayed behind and checked Patrik's vital signs; he noticed that they were beating and was glad they were still alive. Besides Patrik, several people helped him get to the hospital after he failed to regain consciousness. They got in the car and went straight there. Following standard medical code operating procedures, Jan was transported directly to the emergency room and given first aid. He told the hospital staff everything he knew about his condition. He is shocked to discover that Patrik has passed out, but he remembers that he was thought of by a notorious piano teacher Joana Claudie Darche who went to the hospital to check on him. The rehearsal will be postponed if Patrik is okay. When Patrik arrived at his room, two of his friends were chatting with Patrik, who was unconscious and suffered a concussion.

"Oh! "Sir, I didn't expect you to be here, and Patrik, I did kinda tell him that we were supposed to check on you and stop the rehearsal for a few minutes or so, but we found you lying on the floor passing out," Sybil exclaimed in surprise.

"Thank you, Sybil, and how are you, Patrik?"

"I feel really bad in my head, like it's still spinning, and it's her fault; after all, I'm still sad that you didn't take me under your mentorship and guardian role after my parents died."

" I'm sorry about your parents, but I'm sorry I didn't take you under my wing years ago. Plus, how is she treating you after that insignificant incident? "

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"Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad, but it's generally bad; noticeably in the last year or so, her attitude has shifted and she has forced me to play the piano from morning to night."

"Joana... That woman was a friend of mine and your mother's. I didn't expect this to be even harsher than what she did to you in elementary school," Kilian Armin Steitz recalled.

"I recall that when your mother was in college, there were five of us in the music area, and we were close friends, but Joana was her childhood friend, and I'm sure your mother mentioned her before."

"Yeah, I recall she does talk about her occasionally."

"She was as good as your mother in terms of skill and interpretation. I remember the entire college campus debating who was better, but your father was better than both of them because he fell in love with your mother. I see her jealousy and hating on her after your parents started dating, but she did tell me that she had a crush on your father. I thought it was a joke, but no, she did not deny it, she told her feelings for him, but she was crushed to bits when she found out your father was dating your mother."

"I didn't know that, so is that why she always pushes me to my limits to be good at the piano, or does she just beat me out of pure hatred for my mother?"

"Improving, yes, because that's her job as a teacher, but I don't understand why she makes her students push their limits when it's not yet time. Furthermore, she despised your mother and severed ties with her, but the rest of the group remains in contact."

"I see, but why are you all here in the first place?"Patrik was questioning the three people in the room.

"Well... You passed out we took notice of it during the rehearsal" Sybil said in a calm voice but she was shocked to see him collapsing once more.

"Oh, I just panicked too much and became overly nervous." That's why I passed out, but I'm just going to wait for the doctor to get a-" Patrik was interrupted by Sybil, who suddenly remembered something from her childhood, specifically an elementary incident.

"Remember that incident in elementary school?" Did the doctor mention the condition? Or no because you're too afraid to say anything? " Sybil was furious with him, but Patrik remained calm.

"No, it's not a condition; I just feel like passing out from overexertion or nervousness. Even doctors acknowledged it years ago, and you, Jan t-"

Patrik was interrupted by a knock on the door, and the doctors entered. Doctors explained that the condition was not too serious; it was caused by another anxiety attack, which resulted in a head injury, specifically a concussion; the only side effects are headaches after waking up. However, the doctors advised him not to play the piano for a few days in order to rest and avoid passing out again. Patrik took note of the doctor's explanation of the situation while some medical personnel checked his vitals. Armin expected it because he had heard Patrik having an anxiety attack while practicing in his schools before; this was the first time in 7 years he passed out, and it was nothing serious. The conductor Armin decided to stay a little longer and called someone on the phone booth in the hospital, telling someone on the phone to postpone the rehearsal with him and ordering someone who was a conductor like him to take the conducting with some students for the upcoming school recitals. This would be a bad situation for Patrik, but for Armin, it was just another day because he had students in the past who had postponed practice and rehearsals because they weren't ready. Armin returned to the room and told Patrik everything, including postponing the recital to a few days rather than hours earlier, which Patrik disapproved of but had to accept due to his collapse in that room. Armin told Patrik to practice the piano for a day or so after he recovered from the concussion. Both of Patrik's friends leave, but Armin stays to talk about things other than the ones he was talking about earlier, like his future and what he should do next. They started talking about the school recital in a few weeks, and Armin explained why he was chosen for the recital, along with a few other students. The musician's teachers decided to give them the spotlight again for Patrik so he would be prepared if he became famous. However, because it was their first time performing publicly since elementary, the other students needed to get used to it. Aside from that, they talked about Patrik's piano teacher Joana, and Armin told him about his plans to take him under his wing. Joana would surely refuse, but Patrik would try to convince Joana again to transfer his guardianship to Armin. As the sun began to set, Armin informed Patrik that he would be leaving for a few days to teach students at the school, as was his job as a college professor. After a few days, it was October 16, 1962. The world was on its knees when Patrik was released from the hospital; he had heard this on television, which was broadcast by a media outlet with government funding, which claimed that the capitalist world was playing with fire within the bounds of espionage. According to a statement made two years prior, "They shot down a plane that was flying above the Soviet motherland, taking pictures location of confidential missile bases, this was a grave danger to the Soviet security and its allies in Europe." However, this incident was different because it was claimed that Cuba was home to Soviet missiles that were meant to threaten the mainland United States. The truth, however, is more nuanced than the media initially believed, as the 1950s Red Scare had a more lasting impact on the general public in the west than it did in Poland, Patrik's native country, which was part of the Eastern Bloc at the time. The secret police of the respective Eastern European nations would stifle any protests against the communist government or imprison them. They wanted to conceal their activities in the shadows, much like the GDR Stasi, but everyone was aware that one of them was a Stasi agent who was watching what they were doing. Patrik's parents wanted to emigrate to make sure their son would study and have a fulfilling life, but their plans were derailed by an accident. While Patrik's parents claim it was an accident, some of his friends believe it was a set-up by the secret police to prevent them from leaving because of something they had done. Particularly, Patrik's mother spoke out against the government because she had been told by her ancestors how awful it was to live under Stalin's rule. When her mother was young and old, she lived through both World Wars. But Patrik's mother, who lived through it during the Second World War, had a religious conviction at the time of the Second Polish Republic. She had to decide whether to abandon her conviction or remain, which would put her in the government's sights. Patrik will always love her mother, no matter what, but what about Joana? She would still despise her for thwarting her plans to wed the man she desired. Will the strategy work? Most likely, it now depends on Patrik.

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