Along the way, he remembered how he had been dazed by the innocent eyes of those two girls yesterday. He hadn't even conducted the most basic interview before hastily establishing a teacher-student relationship and prepaying a hefty rent.
"Katy Perry... can a fifteen-year-old Fruit Sister really be a good vocal teacher?" Landon felt a bit uncertain.
But remembering Katie's big, confident eyes and Zoe's solemn guarantee, he felt that perhaps he should give her a chance.
After all, what he needed first was basic guidance and the sparking of a musical atmosphere.
"Forget it, I'm already here." Landon stopped in front of the apartment door and rang the doorbell.
The door opened, and Zoe appeared behind it, beaming with joy. "Boss! You're so punctual! Come in!" She stepped aside to let Landon into the house.
The living room looked a bit more lived-in than it had yesterday.
Catherine was standing by the sofa, seemingly waiting for him specifically. Her outfit today still had a lot of personal style—a slightly oversized black band T-shirt paired with sequined denim shorts. The smoky eye makeup on her face seemed a bit lighter than yesterday, but her eyeliner was still striking.
Interestingly, she was trying hard to straighten her back, with her hands slightly balled into fists at her sides. She kept her face intentionally stiff, putting on an "I am serious, I am the teacher" expression, but her occasionally wandering eyes still betrayed a hint of nervousness.
Landon's gaze swept across the living room. On the glass coffee table in front of the sofa, several open books were neatly arranged—textbooks like "Basic Music Theory" and "Introduction to Solfège."
Underneath the coffee table sat a Philips home CD player, with a dozen or so CDs neatly stacked beside it.
Noticing Landon looking at the CD player, Zoe immediately puffed out her chest and blinked her big eyes at him, her face practically screaming, "Look how well-prepared I am! Praise me! Praise me!"
Landon ignored Zoe's expression.
There was also a silver Sony Walkman on the coffee table.
Leaning against the sofa was a natural-colored folk guitar, with its gig bag on the floor.
The appearance of these items instantly gave this temporarily rented apartment the embryonic form of a professional music classroom, somewhat dispelling Landon's doubts that this was just "kids playing house."
It seemed that although Katie was young, her attitude toward this matter was unexpectedly serious, even possessing a sense of orderliness that didn't match her flighty appearance.
"Ahem," Katie cleared her throat, trying to make her voice sound steady.
"Landon, please sit here." She pointed to the spot on the sofa next to her.
Landon sat down beside her. Zoe immediately ran to the kitchen and soon returned with a cup of steaming coffee, placing it gently on the coffee table in front of Landon. Then she pulled up a small stool and sat down herself, actually holding a notebook and pen, looking ready to listen and take notes seriously, her expression both excited and curious.
Landon glanced at her, thinking that these two must have known each other for a long time and were very close; Zoe's posture looked more like she was there to "stand up" for her best friend.
But since he didn't have any public schedules recently and Zoe, as his assistant, was indeed idle for the time being, he let her be as long as it didn't affect the business.
"Let's begin," Katie spoke again, the tension in her voice fading slightly.
"First, I need to understand your basic situation. Zoe told me a bit about it, but I want to hear it from you personally.
Have you ever studied vocals systematically? Have you been exposed to any instruments? How is your ability to read sheet music?
And... what are your specific goals for learning vocals? Is it to sing in musicals, pop songs, or something else?"
She asked while opening the "Basic Music Theory" book, pen in hand, ready to take notes.
Seeing her serious, little-adult-like manner of preparing for the lesson and asking questions, Landon did initially feel a bit like laughing.
But he soon realized that the questions Katie was asking were very critical and went straight to the core. Clearly, they weren't on a whim; she had actually prepared.
This made him set aside his last bit of disdain.
Landon sat up straight and began to answer seriously: "Systematic study... strictly speaking, no. But I've been interested in music since I was a child. I've taken some hobby classes, had training in basic pitch and rhythm, and learned vocal techniques.
I can play a little bit of piano, very basic. Staff notation... I recognize it, but my reading and writing speed is very slow, especially when it comes to translating the melodies in my head into accurate scores; that's quite difficult for me."
He paused and decided to reveal a bit of his true intention.
"As for goals, in the short term, I hope to solidify my foundation, correct any possible vocal issues, and improve my knowledge of music theory.
In the long term... I hope to be able to compose and sing pop songs myself, so I need to be able to independently record melodies and conceptualize basic arrangements."
Katie listened while quickly taking notes in her notebook, nodding occasionally.
When Landon finished, she put down her pen, thought for a few seconds, then looked up at Landon with those big eyes:
"I understand. You have a certain foundation, but it's not solid enough, especially the connection between theory and notation, which is a weak point.
Your goal is to be a singer-songwriter in pop music, right?"
"You could put it that way." Landon nodded.
"Okay." Katie seemed to find her rhythm all at once. Her nervousness dissipated further, and her speech became more fluid. Her voice still had the crispness of a teenage girl, but she was organized and clear.
"Since you're joining a film crew next week and time is tight, I've developed a high-intensity three-day basic training plan for you.
Today will mainly focus on pitch, basic rhythm, and strengthening the Movable-do Solfège system. Tomorrow will emphasize Basic Music Theory and simple sight-singing and ear training.
The day after tomorrow, we will combine fragments of songs you like to try simple melodic dictation and imitation, and correct your vocal habits. There will be six classes a day, fifty minutes each, with breaks in between."
As she spoke, she took out a handwritten, slightly childish but clearly content-rich syllabus and handed it to Landon.
"Take a look and see if there are any problems."
Landon took the syllabus. It had different course contents and schedules marked with colored pens, including breaks and lunch times. Although the handwriting was a bit childish, the content was quite professional.
Looking at Katie's side profile as she tried to appear professional, the last of the apprehension in Landon's heart vanished.
Perhaps letting a future pop queen lay the foundation for him really was a good decision.
The first lesson officially began.
She first tested Landon's vocal range and basic pitch using the CD player and several classic children's song CDs. "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star," "On the Grass," "You Are My Sunshine"... these songs with simple melodies and clear interval relationships were used by her as training materials for pitch positioning and stability.
She had Landon follow the standard pitches on the CD, singing along using the movable-do "Do-Re-Mi" solfège system while coordinating with Curwen Hand Signs, emphasizing vocal placement and breath support.
"No, Landon, you sang that'Sol' flat. Your breath feels a bit floaty. Use your diaphragm!
Imagine the sound coming from there and pushing to the position between your eyebrows... Yes, just like that, try again!"
Once she entered teaching mode, Katie seemed like a different person. Her ears were exceptionally sensitive; she could capture even the slightest deviations in Landon's pitch or breath and point them out clearly.