Connect

Inspire

Act.

As you can see, these instruments are...

these are the same instruments

but they're just played differently.

With my violin, I play classical music.

With my fiddle,
I play old-time fiddle music.

There is also two different ways 
you can play the violin.

There's classical music and

there's old-time fiddle music.

Classical music could be 
considered more strict.

You really have to follow 
the way the music is written

and to be a professional-class player,
you need good posture.

Personally, classical music
wasn't my thing.

I am a guy who doesn't really
like to follow the rules

and fiddle music gave me 
the freedom to play whatever I want.

My name is Lia

and my name is Kai.

We are here today to talk to you about

how playing an instrument

can open unexpected doors 
to new experiences.

Playing instruments hasn't only given us

an appreciation for music,

but also unique life-experiences

we would have never had otherwise.

When I was four, my mom 
had this crazy idea

to get us start to play

on some kind of musical instrument.

So, she brought us 
to a music teacher in Chiluac,

who showed us all 
the different varieties of instruments.

One instrument that really
intrigued me was the violin.

I told her I really wanted 
to get started on it,

and off we went.

After a couple of years, I decided

to follow my brother's footsteps

and take on the violin as well.

We started taking lessons from teachers

around the Fraser Valley every weekend.

Starting a musical instrument 
not only helped my musical sense,

but it can also give you

a better future by getting jobs

by touring or playing 
in bands or even teaching kids.

Every summer we go to fiddle camps

in contests all around Canada.

We get to meet new people, 
it's so much fun.

It may be only for two weeks,
but it's so worth it.

And if you ever decide 
to play a musical instrument,

I am sure there is 
a camp for it somewhere,

and hopefully you can make

as many friends as we did,

because you can have 
a really good time and jam.

Speaking of fiddle camps,

it's better than it sounds because

we get to see our friends from Alberta,

Saskatchewan, and even Manitoba.

It's the one thing our family 
looks forward to every year.

It gives us the chance 
to share our passion with others.

In these camps, we learn new tunes,

we get taught by 
the best fiddle players in Canada,

and like she said before, we meet new friends.

Um...playing music

not only gave us confidence 
in our playing ability,

but in everyday life experience
such as going to school.

When I was in grade one,

I was the shyest little boy 
you could ever meet;

I'd be to afraid to talk to anybody,

my teachers would 
always ask me questions,

I'd be just freeze up 
and not know what to say.

The only people I was 
really comfortable around

were my parents.

Playing a musical instrument can give you

something to be proud of

and something 
your parents can be proud of.

It can give you a head start 
by playing in school bands

or even music classes.

Not only do I love playing
violin on a daily basis,

but it also helps me with stress relief.

Say I come home one day
and I have lots of homework

and I'm just not having 
the greatest day.

I pick up my violin
and cool down a little bit.

Music also got me and 
my brother closer in a way.

Yeah, sure we have 
our ups and downs

just like any other pair of siblings.

And, yeah sure it may bug me sometimes 
when he doesn't count in a song

and I don't know when to start playing

but people usually say 
we are more like friends than siblings.

It also gives me and my sister

something to talk about, 
something we can relate to

and we can jam

and like she said before,
it gives you career advantages

such as playing in a band.

Now we want you 
to pick up an instrument

and just get inspired by the music.

You may not find 
the right instrument on the first try:

for example, I started 
playing guitar a couple of years back

and I didn't think 
I'd get anywhere with it,

but I have to admit, 
I am not that bad at it.

And I've been playing 
piano and cello

half as long as 
I've been playing violin

and I'm already playing 
advanced tunes on both instruments.

Music can also help you 
when you are bored,

like when you come home 
and there is nothing to do

you can just pick up your instrument 
and just start playing to pass time.

I hope all of you will learn 
some kind of music

whether is singing 
or playing an instrument.

It may be hard at first

but you will eventualy get used to it.

Me and my sister, 
when we first started performing,

we were always 
too scared to go on a stage.

Our legs would be shaking,
I wouldn't know what to say,

and would always repeat myself.

But now we have two CDs out,
we write our own tunes,

we compete in contests all around Canada,

we're starting a programme, 
a charity programme,

to start teaching kids the fiddle

and we both played in the Olympics.

I hope our story will inspire you,

cause... hey! if you have got
a passion for music

don't be afraid
to start chasing that dream.

Thank you and we wish you 
the best of luck and

we are going end off 
with a tune here.

(Violin music)

(Applause)

Thank you!

Connect.

Inspire.

Act