The Great Conductor

“It’s time for you to know when we will be performing your piece,” the Great Conductor had said quietly in his beautiful, melodic voice, almost like singing.

Sebastian had turned around and seen the man himself—dressed in a black dinner jacket, a white dress shirt, and a black bow tie, as if he were on his way to a dinner party. He wore his usual surgical face mask—he’d explained to Sebastian at their first meeting that he didn’t want to catch any viruses. Post-pandemic frenzy, it had made total sense. The fact that he had appeared like that wasn’t a shock—Sebastian had offered the Great Conductor the key to the house with trepidation, allowing him to show up at his convenience, which the maestro had graciously accepted. It was a nice, unexpected surprise.

“You’ll need to make some adjustments to the concerto to make sure each instrument has its glorious moment. Be punctilious. Our musicians, along with the soloist, will need to shine and share the energy that the audience can bask in. That will be the highlight of the whole evening and a true celebration of Rostropovich’s genius. He’ll be looking down at us”—he raised both his hands, pointing to the sky, and looked up—“from heaven, smiling with pleasure and serenity.”

Sebastian was speechless.

The birthday of one of the greatest cellists was in March, which would give them six months to find all the musicians the Great Conductor needed, rehearse the piece to perfection, and be ready for the performance. Sebastian was honored and nervous, but most of all, he was happy. So the news of Li Mei, a talented young musician with great technique and an interesting take on well-established approaches, was highly welcome.

Sebastian closed his computer—it was time for his late-morning class. Then, after lunch, he would go and try to meet Li Mei, who, according to Paul, would be visiting the orchestra’s rehearsal in the afternoon. Sebastian would be waiting for her outside the building, right across from the staff entrance. He hoped that he would get to her before Paul came around with his smooth-talking nonsense.

Sebastian stood up and went to get changed.

Chapter 16

Christine opened her eyes and shifted slightly to avoid the direct sunlight streaming into the spacious bedroom through a large sash window. The window was bigger than the ones in her own home. She stretched her arms and looked at the ceiling—it took her only a second to remember where she was and why she was there.