12-year-old Madeline Neathery sat down and played her new-found hobby the cello.

The rich, dark, and four string instrument is the remedy to boredom.

“I genuinely saw a video on YouTube of an orchestra playing. I watched it, and it seemed really cool/fun so I decided to try it out myself,” freshman Madeline Neathery said. 

Since playing in a school orchestra is not an option, Neathery plays simply for the love of music. 

“In sixth grade when I played for my school I played at concerts, but since I can not play for the school and just play for myself, I do not play at competitions or concerts anymore. I have been playing off and on since sixth grade so about four years now if you do not count the times I have not played. I really enjoy it, and I have learned a lot, but it is time consuming to keep practicing, ” Neathery said.

Practice is the number one step to being successful.

“A tip I have for younger people wanting to play is that you should practice a lot.  It is not an easy instrument to learn and play so practice will help you get to where you want to be,” Neathery said. 

Cellos can be challenging to master.

“I get pain on the tips of my fingers from holding down the strings and cramps in my right hand from holding the bow for too long.  Also learning new and hard notes can be very difficult, especially if there are so many of them in one song,” Neathery said. 

People do not always turn their hobbies into careers.

“I am not sure if I want to keep playing as I get older because it is more of something I do for fun at this point so I am not playing for anyone or any reason, but also I just have bigger and different plans for my future, such as being an actress or even a film director,” Neathery said.