Linda Garnett (photo by David Grace)
Linda Garnett made a career as an educator teaching teachers to teach at Virginia Highlands Community College and served as an administrator in the Washington County Virginia School System. Her career left her little time for one of her favorite pastimes — playing music with friends.
“I have always loved and enjoyed music, but I grew up in a community where it wasn’t a priority. I had to find my own opportunities to enjoy music with others and improve my skills,” she says. “Growing up in the ‘60s and ‘70s, everybody played guitar, and I taught myself to play guitar. Shortly after that, somebody gave me a violin, and I tried that. I liked it and I’m still working on it, but I’m enjoying it.”
Since she retired, she is finding a variety of opportunities to enjoy music.
She plays the string bass in the Heart of Appalachia Orchestra and the fiddle with the Virginia Highlands Community College Old-Time String Band.
“Playing the fiddle has been a serious challenge but worth the effort; transporting the string bass is a serious challenge but help always arrives. Learning to play any instrument is a big challenge, but our community is blessed with many good musicians who are willing to mentor beginners.”
She says she started playing the bass in Mary Munsey’s string band class at VHCC. “The thing that appealed to me, I think, about the bass is that it’s a rich sound, and it’s a full sound. And so, it fills out the chord, and it just feels like — oh, it’s warm, and it’s in charge, and it’s driving everything. And I think that’s nice to be able to do,” Garrett says.
Her advice to someone who wants to learn to play an instrument is to look around and find a mentor. “Grab a couple of kids to learn with you. Set aside as much time as you can. Choose your instrument and go for it.
“I think it completes who we are, and it softens who we are. It unites us, which I think is very important in today’s world, because we all are agreeing: we’re playing the same note at the same time, and it’s beautiful, and we can feel good about it. We need that, I think. An example is if you had several people who maybe were your friends, but you knew you all differed philosophically on a lot of things. When they came to your back porch, we were all musicians, not politicians. And we created that beautiful, calming music together as a uniting force.
“Look around and look for a mentor who’s doing what you want to be able to do, because a lot of them might be retired and would have the time to help you. And people just want to help you. I found all through the years people wanted to help me learn what I wanted to learn. They wanted to share it; they liked it, and they wanted you to enjoy it. So, I would say, just be aggressive about asking people to help you and show you things and go for it,” she says.
