Full Name: Anderson Moore
Year: Sophomore
Major: Chemistry
Everyone at CNU knows him. He’s the guy that provides musical background while you’re doing homework on the great lawn, or brightens your day while you’re walking to class. Very few Captains receive such recognition and appreciation from fellow students as sophomore Anderson Moore, affectionately nicknamed “Violin Guy.” Anderson is known for playing his violin outside in secluded places around campus, like the bell tower. He doesn’t do it for the appreciation; he simply does it to share his love of music with the rest of CNU. Her Campus CNU wanted to give Anderson the opportunity to share a little bit more about himself with the CNU community!
When did you start playing violin?
“I started violin in fourth grade. I didn’t practice until the beginning of freshman year at CNU, though, because I also played piano.”
Why did you pick up a violin for the first time?
“My sister forced me to. I mean, I really liked listening to it. I listened to recordings online and on YouTube, and I just thought it was really cool. When my sister started playing it, she kind of convinced me. She was like, if we ever want to do anything together, it’s going to be music, so you need to learn violin. I already liked the way that she played it, so it made me want to learn to play it too.”
What are your musical aspirations?
“I want to stick with pharmacy and do chemistry, but, at the same time, I want to be involved. Like, I play for a church down Jefferson. I want to be involved with music and play on campus and stuff, but I still want to be a chemistry major. I’ll definitely keep it up and continue playing for churches and stuff after college, though.”
Why do you play outside?
“Well, it all started when I began to really practice freshman year. I got last chair in the orchestra, so my teacher told me that I really needed to start practicing or seek a tutor or something. So, I started practicing in my bedroom, but I was always worried about people studying or it getting annoying. I saw on CNU Confessions, though, that some people were saying that they really liked it, so I figured I’d start playing outside for them. It wasn’t really a big deal until the class of 2018 came in. I was a summer FDA, and I would sit at the front desk in York River Hall and play. People started commenting on how good it sounded, and then I got on Yik Yak one day and kept seeing “Violin Guy.” I thought, wow, if people really like to hear me play, then I’ll play outside more often. So it was the class of 2018 that really did it. They came in and made such a big deal of it. It was really nice of them.”
So that leads me into the next question… What are your true feelings on being known as Violin Guy? Would you rather people just know you as Anderson?
“For me, there’s no celebrity status attached to the name. Like, I don’t think of it as a big deal. I just see it as an opportunity to get to know people, because I’m a social introvert. Sometimes people introduce me as Violin Guy. Like, they’ll introduce me as Anderson and then say, ‘he’s better known as Violin Guy.’ That’s kind of weird, but I never took it as a bad thing, of course. If anything, it’s a compliment. But at the same time, I see how “celebrity” reputations on campus can get to people’s heads, so I try to be as humble and not-airheaded about it as possible. Because, after graduation, this will all pass. It’s all temporary.”
Do you bring other orchestra people out to play with you? Why don’t more people do this?
“Yes, yes, yes! That’s the biggest thing I’ve been trying to do. I don’t want to be the only violin person or “violin guy” in the orchestra. I’m trying to get my friends to play outside more often. A lot of people just don’t really like having the pressure, but once you play outside enough, there is no pressure. I have really, really bad stage fright. You wouldn’t believe it. When I play outside, if you brought a crowd of your friends and just stood in front of me, I would mess up so many times. I would be freaking out. It’s so bad. I can sit by myself and people just walk by, and that’s fine. But if they stop, I can’t do it. I get freaked out really easily. But I’ve noticed that other students can’t tell when I mess up, so I tell my friends in orchestra not to worry about messing up, because people won’t notice.”
Explain what happened with your current violin.
“This violin is just really sentimental to me because everyone at CNU helped me pay for it. It all started when my bridge broke on my old violin. To explain, the bridge is what holds the strings up. When it broke, I posted it on Facebook. I think some people thought it was like a public service announcement, but I just said, “hey guys, my bridge is broken, I won’t be playing outside anymore until I save up enough money to buy a new bridge.” Then, one of my friends came up with an idea. She said, ‘Hey, instead of just getting a new bridge, why don’t we get you a new violin?’ Then the concert master, the first chair in the orchestra, agreed and said that I would do better in auditions because I had been playing on a really bad instrument. So she started a GoFundMe, and in less than a week it had raised a lot of money. Then, my music director heard about it, and he told a music foundation, and they gave me additional money. I was able to buy a new violin and a bow, and I got a new case for free. It was really awesome of CNU.”
Do you have anything to say to your fellow CNU students?
“I know the saying is overused, but I honestly wouldn’t be doing this if it weren’t for the support from the campus and people telling me that I’m actually good. When you have people who will come together and help you get a violin, or tell you that you’re good, and encourage you not to stop and to keep going, that’s really motivating and inspirational. It impacts me, so I just really want to say thank you.”