If anyone is curious about the musical references in Social Skills, here they are! Arranged by chapter below (with some snippets) and in a playlist here.
The Social Skills Playlist
From Chapter One:
Rimsky-Korsakav’s Scheherazade (also referenced in Chapter Three– first violin solo starts at around 48 seconds)
[spoiler title=”Excerpt from Chapter Three”]”Seriously, dude. No roommate? That’s fucking awesome.” Jared breathed with a sigh, settling himself on the empty bed across from Connor’s. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, Ben’s a cool guy and all, but…wow. No roommate. I wouldn’t mind that.”
Connor shrugged. He’d only grown less and less sure of how to behave as their strange day together wore on, and now Jared was in his space—his sanctuary—and there’d be nowhere to run to if things got awkward.
Or with his track record, when things got awkward.
“All right then, no more excuses. Play for me, maestro.”
Ordinarily, Connor hated playing for private audiences. But at this point, it seemed like the safest thing he could possibly do with Jared in the room. At least it would offer him a much-needed break from his anxiety.
He took out his violin and set some sheet music on his miserably bent wire stand, just so he wouldn’t be caught in his lie from earlier. Then, with only a deep breath to bolster him, he launched into the first thing he could think of—the solo from Scheherazade.
It was a haunting melody, wistful and yearning, yet with a touch of hopefulness to it at the same time. The room and the tension slipped away as he drew the bow across the strings, his fingers vibrating with emotion—a simple task given what kinship he felt with the piece. It was so easy in this space to express himself, to make perfectly clear who he was and what he wanted from life. If only it were possible to speak with these notes in the real world.
He pulled the last sweet note to completion and kept his bow poised on the string, soaking in the final drops of security.
“Jesus, that was incredible.” Jared’s awestruck whisper dropped into the charged silence. “You’re fucking amazing.”
Connor shook his head. “N-not really…I’m not playing the solo for the concert or anything.”
“Well you should be,” Jared said, standing and walking toward him.
Connor blinked a few times as Jared was suddenly taking hold of his violin. He rarely if ever let non-musicians handle it, but he couldn’t seem to find the willpower to either stop Jared or put the violin away himself.
With great care, Jared took his instrument and bow and laid them on the bed, then walked back to him. He grasped Connor’s left hand and turned it over in his open palm. “What did I tell you—you have great hand coordination.” His thick fingers flitted over Connor’s more slender ones. They paused to feel each fingertip, lingering in the faint grooves from the violin strings.
Connor closed his eyes, his mind reeling. Jared stood far too close, and the touching was beyond any contingency he’d ever planned for. If he didn’t keep a grip on himself, his body might decide to do something without his consent. Something he’d never live down. Something that would force him to drop out of school and move to a cabin in the middle of the woods, where he wouldn’t have to face this ultimate humiliation ever again.
“Your fingers are so nice,” Jared murmured. “Mine are like bear paws…”
Still hiding behind closed lids, Connor didn’t realize a tear had slipped out until a rough thumb brushed his cheek. And he certainly didn’t realize how impossibly close Jared had gotten until he felt pressure against his lips—soft, pliable skin, sliding over his, with the hint of a tongue begging for entry into his mouth.[/spoiler]
From Chapter Three:
Dvorak’s Humoresque
From Chapter Eight:
Borodin’s Polovtsian Dances
From Chapter Ten:
Tchaikovsky Concerto D Major- Andante
[spoiler title=”Excerpt”]Connor closed his eyes, pulling out a trill in the Andante from Tchaikovsky’s violin concerto and dropping it into a quick succession of thirty-second notes. Though he was beginning to tire, his fingers continued sliding gracefully over the strings. He had to take full advantage of these occasions whenever they came—with everyone out of the house, the only sounds that infiltrated the silence were the ones he created. Through his instrument he could command the most furious of tirades or the most romantic of appeals, and the longer he went without anyone interrupting him, the more powerful he felt.[/spoiler]
and Allegro Moderato
From Chapter Fourteen:
So in Love from Kiss me Kate
From Chapter Fifteen:
Sammartini’s Symphony in C major
From Chapter Seventeen:
Summer Nights
Dancing Queen
From Chapter Eighteen:
Ravel’s Bolero
From Chapter Nineteen:
So In Love Reprise
From Chapter Twenty-two:
Brahms’ Hungarian Dance No.1 in G minor
Barber’s Adagio
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