Kelly Rose Bradford: Not necessarily in the right order...

Jan 27 2009 Surrey Herald

Boy has started piano lessons despite us not owning a piano. Instead, he is making thrice weekly trips to nanny's to practise.In the meantime,I am looking to buy one.

A piano, I have decided, will turn my house into a home.It will be topped with silver framed photographs, a small rose bowl, and perhaps a dish of pot pourri.

It will become the focal point of my back room and look fantastic.

Partner shattered my dreams by pointing out I would need a grand piano for such adornments, and as a very 'small-upright' is all we can offer house space to, I might want to reconsider my lavish ideas.

Boy's concerns are of a more practical than aesthetic nature 'Will it have pedals?' being his most pressing inquiry to date, which makes me think that perhaps he is approaching his piano lessons with a somewhat playful attitude akin to go-karting or cycling, rather than an early foray into serious musical study.

I am not in the slightest bit musical, and my appreciation comes through listening rather than participating.My neighbour asked me recently if I can actually hear the traffic when I cross the road, and isn't it dangerous to be plugged into my iPod all the time?

I laughed and said no, I still have some external hearing, then promptly fell into a passing woman and her buggy which I'd neglected to see or hear coming.

Ooops. I fear my hearing was irreparably damaged by my own foray into instrument learning at the age of seven; I can still see the fear in my father's eyes when I brought a recorder home from school.

He too is, what I believe is politely referred to as 'tone deaf'and, recorders as we all know, are evil instruments of musical torture even for those blessed with rhythm, tone and prowess; in my hands - or more specifically mouth - it was akin to several tom cats sorting out turf wars.

So it was no doubt with great parental relief when the recorder was packed away approximately a month later that it was not ever replaced with anything else.

My father's, and indeed the rest of the neighbourhood's eardrums were safe and I plugged myself into my headphones and got my musical needs seen to by third parties.

But Boy is showing musical ability - even if at the moment it is in the form of banging down the keys and running his hand along the entire length of the keyboard as fast as he can, which I guess at his age is the best way to learn and keep interest - through play.

And despite my own hatred of noise at home, and the need for a silent, peaceful and calm environment, I have been encouraging him hugely.

Mainly because a photograph-topped piano really would look so very nice in my back room...