Sundays are beautifully ritualistic at Hillsdale College. After waking up early, dressing in their nicest clothes and partaking in worship, students meander over for brunch at the Knorr Dining Room. As you walk to your seat with a huge plate of food, you can hear snippets of conversation at each passing table, all remarkably similar. The mealtime discussion is focused on looming papers, massive required readings, or a busy extracurricular schedule that is just a sunset away. Yet everyone is calm. I’ve always been mystified by this. Then I realized it has something to do with that old piano in the corner.
I have never been a fervent lover of classical music. As a child I never played an instrument, and the music in my house was a mixture of Sinatra, country, and classic rock. Classical music was something I had never appreciated until I came to Hillsdale College.
I remember as a freshman sitting down in the dining hall dreading the massive amount of work that I had procrastinated on, and feeling overwhelmingly hopeless. Then in the background, I heard a cover of “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” from “Toy Story” playing on that old piano. I couldn’t hold back my smile. My mood changed immediately. I started bobbing along to the tune as I ate my breakfast, knowing that the work would get done and that it was all going to be okay.
The music at brunch became a weekly solace for me. The accompaniment of covers from movies and classical scores from famous composers really helped me set a happy tone for a long workday ahead. The music birthed more than just a lifting up the spirit and motivation for the mounds of Western Heritage reading, it piqued my curiosity.
As I was studying throughout the week, I found myself listening to various classical playlists on the internet to focus, and to relax. The playlists containing famous pieces from the greats such as Beethoven, Bach, and Haydn along with movie scores, and covers made the work manageable. What started off as a casual musing has since become a habit. I am by no means an expert in this genre of music, I don’t know about the amazing formulations of harmonies and notes that it took to make it, but I appreciate it regardless. I am amazed that a piece sculpted by man can uplift emotion and soothe the soul in an almost spiritual way.
The morning music has been a part of Hillsdale College brunch since the fall of 1988, when the CEO of Saga, Tim Morrison, brought it as a tradition from another college he had worked at. That same year they began hiring students as players, giving students of various playing styles the opportunity to practice and perform in a peaceful environment. The hired student performers play every Sunday brunch at the college except for Easter and Mother’s Day when they are not on campus. The realization that my fellow classmate is playing those peaceful tunes during brunch also adds to my solace.
The student playing that cover of “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” that lifted me up as a freshman was also my freshman neighbor in Simpson. As I sat there worrying about my assignments and how I would adapt to college, I realized that he is going through the same things as me. However, while I was eating brunch, he was banging away at the keys with a smile and was playing music to make us all feel better.I am brought to peace at the sight of a student, going through the same academic rigor as all of us, playing music for the comfort of everyone.
So this Sunday, as you go through that familiar routine and you find yourself sitting at brunch worried about all the hurdles that the week will throw at you, take a minute and pause. Listen to the music, nod along, and let it lift you up. Perhaps when you walk out of the dining hall with more comfort in taking on those huge assignments, you can walk over to your familiar classmate at that old piano and put a dollar in their tip jar, for making your day just a little brighter.
Tom Novelly is a sophomore from Nashville, Tennessee, majoring in politics and minoring in journalism.