Practice! Practice!

Practicing at a karaoke box is helpful because I can play as loudly as I want without worrying about sound leaking to the surroundings. It seems many players, both professional and amateur, think the same way, as the place I frequent is always full of such people.

I think the most common ones are people practicing vocal music. I once happened to be with one at the reception, and I was surprised to see them carrying a huge keyboard on their back. I suppose they probably use it to accompany their vocal exercises.
Unlike instruments, I thought it was nice that they could practice anywhere, but with that kind of vocal projection and volume, it would certainly be impossible at home unless they had a soundproof room. When I think about it, they have to deliver their voice from the stage to every corner of a hall using only their body as a weapon, so it is only natural.
I see both men and women.

I often run into a violinist, a man in his 50s.
He is definitely a professional. There are several reasons for this.
His pitch is unwavering. It is so wonderful that it makes me groan in admiration.
His tone has a core and is thick. It sounds as if the strings are being fully resonated. Each note has expression, and whether he is in a sad mood or a cheerful one, it reaches my ears through the wall.
The phrases are truly "singing." He is using the instrument to "express." It is a performance where you can clearly understand what he wants to say.
Above all, what comes across most strongly is his humble attitude toward his own performance. He often plays the same phrase over and over as if to confirm it. I, listening from the outside, think it is already a good enough performance, but he seems unsatisfied and plays it so many times that I end up memorizing it.
Amateurs tend to get carried away and play in a "look at me, I'm so good, listen to this" mode as soon as they can play a little. But he seems to have transcended that level long ago. I can tell he is focused solely on how to express himself.
He can focus like that because he already has solid technical confidence. That is why I think he is a professional.
I don't know if I should call it "intense" or "fearsome." I am always listening, thinking how amazing he is.
He has already started practicing by the time I arrive, and he is usually still playing when I leave. I think his concentration is incredible.
I secretly hold him in high regard, wondering who on earth he could be.

Most of the others who come are amateurs. The instruments are truly diverse: violin, flute, oboe, clarinet, saxophone, bassoon, horn, trumpet, trombone, and so on. I have even seen a tuba.
For more unusual ones, I have encountered the erhu and ocarina. The most surprising one was, believe it or not, a "sho." When that "hie-an" kind of chord was heard, I first thought, "Someone even brought an accordion." I realized it was a sho because the scale was unclear, but I wonder what kind of person it was. I wanted to peek into the room a little.
Well, it must be quite loud to practice at home. Still, hearing the sound of a sho, not at a shrine or similar place, but amidst the sound of someone singing "A Cruel Angel's Thesis," was full of incongruity.

Beginners, people who put professionals to shame—all sorts of people are practicing with all sorts of sounds. Young and old, men and women, everyone is doing their best in their own way.
It makes me feel like I can't lose, and that I will do my best too.
Practicing is fun after all.