The Endless Possibility of Music: Kai & Lia Gronberg at TEDxKids@BC

Kai and Lia discuss what music can do for you and how it can inspire kids both locally and globally. Music takes hard work and it is important to keep trying different instruments until you find the right one. The duo will talk about overcoming the fear on stage and how you should never give up on your dreams and passions.

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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!

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