MovieChat Forums > Everwood (2002) Discussion > Ephram didn't love music

Ephram didn't love music

posted 13 years ago by lockon_stratos
7 replies | jump to latest

I haven't watch the show since the last episode aired for the first and last time on the CW so I might not remember well. But I don't recall Ephram really loving music like a music lover should. He just plays because he's a genius at it. He wants to be the best in the world. Unlike the way his dad wanted to help people by being a doctor later on. I guess Ephram will come to love it later on as well. Everyone wanted him to be the best. I don't see him listening to some great and favorite song all alone or talking about how music is the best of anything. It's all about how complicated he can play this or that song. Or how well he can perform.

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[–] acpaint1 13 years ago

I think Ephram liked music just fine, but I think he slowly started to realize that the dream of his becoming a top concert pianist was more his fathers dream then his.

Which I think was the reason he walked away from his audition after the meeting with Madison. Ephram realized that walking away was the best way to hurt his father.

Two other incidents happened that made Ephram realize that he was never going to be a top notch concert pianist. When he was teaching Kyle; Ephram realized that Kyle was far more talented then he was and he enjoyed teaching

The other incident was when Ephram met a top notch pianist at a concert, It was an effort by Dr. Brown to get him interested again. After talking with the pianist, Ephram realized that he would essentially have to lead the life his father did. The life he so roundly condemned.

He liked music, but he did not think his future lied there. unless it was as a teacher.

[–] lockon_stratos 13 years ago

He liked music just fine but he wasn't a music lover. I guess that's what they were going for anyway. You don't have to be one to play great. Being a music lover has nothing to do with wanting to teach, which is what he ended up doing when the series ended.

I remember the guy he taught and the concert pianist. The concert guy just flew around the country playing his best for everyone. His family stopped coming to watch him after awhile because they had other things to do. Ephram didn't want to just be the best and nothing else that come with it. That's why teaching was more fulfilling.

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[–] audiopinions 13 years ago

I would say this was one of the most interesting aspects of the show. Music was the only constant in his life when his mom died and his whole existence was uprooted to Everwood. Then as he healed from his loss he started to be able to step back and really examine his relationship with piano. He felt trapped, damned if he kept at it, damned if he quit.

[–] rosek102 13 years ago

My take on it is that he loved music, but ultimately, he wasn't willing to put the kind of time and effort in that was required. He was dealt a bad hand in his young life, losing his mother at 15, followed by the Madison baby drama, and he wasn't the type of kid who could just block all that out and rise above it. Success in music requires a deep level of passion and "feeling", but in Ephram's case, I think he felt a little too much. He put up too many roadblocks--my dad's a jerk, Madison messed me up, Amy doesn't love me, etc...

For Andy's part, I think he saw an enormous amount of talent in his child, but he also noticed Ephram's anger and lack of self-discipline. As a father, I think he felt it was his job to push Ephram in that direction and help him recognize his potential--but in the end, it was Ephram's choice to make, and he needed to make it for himself.

[–] lockon_stratos 12 years ago

I still don't think Ephram is a music lover. I am one and I don't see it. The show didn't do a good job. Of course I don't have the troubles Ephram did with his mother dying at age 15 but they could have used that and show how much he loves music to carry on. It was always about him playing so well to impress others.

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[–] bergie15 10 years ago

I don't think that was true. I think Ephram did love music, after the whole Madison/his father situation, playing piano made him think only of that. Eventually he did play again, teaching others. I think he didn't want to end up like Andy, working so much he didn't get to see his family.

[–] AmethystUnycorn 9 years ago

Actually in the early episodes of Everwood Ephram spent a lot of time in his room listening to music.

His love of music was shown through his relationship with Madison. It helped bring them together because it was something they shared in common. They talked about music several times. He helped her band and even wrote her a song.

And when he met Will (played by the fantastic James Earl Jones) they spent a lot of time together. Will was teaching him to play, but he was also teaching him about different kinds of music. It was implied they spent many hours together listening to records in Will's collection and discussing the work of other great musicians.

When Will died, he left Ephram some records. If anything speaks to Ephram's love of music, this gesture does most eloquently, for Will was a very great and passionate lover of music and would never have left his beloved records in the hands of someone who didn't appreciate them as much as he did.

It all basically boils down to reading between the lines. This show had a lot of ground to cover and couldn't really dedicate an overabundant amount of time to showing us how much Ephram loved music, and how badly he wanted to be great at what he did. So, they implied it. We have to piece it together.