Painted on Silence

A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence.

- Leopold Stokowski

If you have previously entertained notions that vestiges of my sanity remained, this should nicely disillusion you.

No, I don't play the French horn (except for the C major scale). Or at least, I didn't until Tuesday, when my conductor dropped a Holton double horn in my lap and said that maybe I could try and get somewhere with it since we don't have any hornists in the orchestra, and the guy who was supposed to be learning it had given up.

At times like these I almost wish I had straight teeth.

....

So what else does one do with a French horn, besides play it? Why, paint it, I suppose. And go nuts in the process.