At the orchestra event, Nathan tried out a violin and viola. Of the two, he preferred the viola. I think it had to do with the size of the instrument and the deeper, richer sound

For the band event, Nathan got to try a trumpet, trombone, and alto saxophone.

The trumpet was the one I thought he'd go for, but he actually took to the trombone more between the two. Then, however, he surprised us all by asking to try a sax.

When asked afterwards which one he liked best, he replied sax. When asked which one he seemed to take to better, the person running our meetup said sax. When asked which one she saw him playing with greater success because she has a long history with school band, Katie replied sax.

Now he just needs to decide between sax and viola. Each have their perks in his mind. 

We're going to give him some time to think through them both and figure out which one he wants to try. Heck, he may decide against both. But we have to at least give him the opportunity.

It will be an interesting -- and noisy -- fifth grade for Nathan.