MAP Date is March 9!

We have our Music Artistry Program date announced! Tuesday, March 9, from 9:30-5pm. A schedule will be posted soon.

The M.A.P. program (formerly Adjudications) is an opportunity for students to meet with a Visiting Artist, play for them, and receive valuable feedback. Students will prepare 2 memorized pieces to play. Our VA this year is: Dr. Nicole Kim. It is exciting to have such a distinguished artist work with each student! Please see her bio below.

Dr. Nicole Kim, Biography

Dr. Kim began her musical study at age four in her native country, South Korea.  With the encouragement of her maternal grandfather, who played multiple instruments including violin, mandolin, and Korean Flute, she learned to sing German Lied from him at age five. She had her orchestral debut at age eleven performing Mozart Concerto K488, which was broadcasted on radio and highly acclaimed. She received her bachelor’s degree from Seoul National University.  After moving to the States, she studied with Robert Turner, Daniel Pollack, Eduardo Delgado, and Mac McCray. Especially with Mr. Turner, as well as Mr. Pollack who was a student of Mr. and Madam Levine, she learned keen observation with fluent technique. In addition Mr. Delgado taught her lyricism, and Mr. McCray taught her the joy of piano. Later she studied impressionism with renowned Fulbright Scholar of French music, Ms. Bricard. Her harpsichord teacher was none other than the great, Canadian born, late Mr. Malcolm Hamilton.

Dr. Kim’s Master’s degree is from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music with Mr. Mac McCray, the winner of Liszt International Piano Competition, and her doctorate is from the University of Southern California with Mr. Daniel Pollack, the winner of the International Tchaikovsky Competition. As a winner of multiple competitions, such as the Joanna Hodges International Piano competition, she has been concertizing in the states as well as abroad. While being a faculty member of Cerritos College in Norwalk, California, she was actively involved in numerous performances and quoted as one of the best musicians in southern California by an Orange County newspaper. Her performance with the Cypress City orchestra on the City Hall Green was featured on media. In 1998 she was invited to perform at the City Hall Auditorium as an artist of the year for the city of Bellflower. In 1999 she accepted a faculty position at Soowon University in S. Korea to teach music for undergraduate students. She has been an affiliated faculty at Bellevue College and served as a board member for The Federal Way Symphony and National Music Teachers Association (MTNA), Eastside chapter. In addition, she served as a president for MTNA Lake Washington chapter.

Dr. Kim has a deep understanding of different styles of compositions and has been a faithful interpreter of those styles. Her interest in various kinds of music led her to appreciate and perform extensive repertoires. She has been an educator and adjudicator both in the U.S. and abroad. Her performances in the Pacific Northwest were televised in Seattle and New York and broadcast on King FM Radio In 2012 she embarked the lecture of the Beethoven Piano sonatas, as part of completion of performing entire 32 piano sonatas of Beethoven. She has been featured in Who’s Who in American Women since year 2002. She is also a performing member of the Ladies Musical Club. She is a “Steinway Artist”.

2021 Piano Explorer Magazine Composition Contest Announced

2021 Composition Contest

  The theme for the 2021 contest is Life on a Farm. Write a composition that has something to do with life on a farm. It could describe a farm animal or animals, planting, growing, or harvesting, storms, or anything else that inspires you that is related to a farm. Your music could describe a specific event or thing, tell a story, or just create a mood. 
  You must write a few sentences to describe your music. Entries will be divided into two divisions: ages 10 and under and 11 and up. Results will be announced in the May/June issue. You must subscribe to Piano Explorer to enter the contest. Check the rules below carefully. Good luck!

Contest Rules

Deadline: March 5, 2021

1. You or your teacher must subscribe to Piano Explorer. (If your teacher subscribes, he or she must have as many subscriptions as students who have entered.) Students must be 18 years or younger.

2. Only solo piano music will be considered for prizes.

3. Write your name, age, address, phone number, and teacher’s name on the back of the music.

4. All compositions must be written by students. Parents and teachers may help write down the notes.

5. Do not quote other pieces of music in your composition. You must also include the signed statement on p. 8 or download this pdf to participate.

6. Keep a copy for yourself. We cannot return music.

7. All submissions must be postmarked or faxed by the deadline, March 5, 2021. We are not responsible for pieces that are delayed in the mail.

8. Last year’s first-prize winners may not enter this year.

9. Drawings are encouraged, but not required.

10. Fax or mail entries only. Please no emails!

11. Make sure to compose music specifically to the topic. Don’t just add a title to a composition you already have.

12. You must include a description (at least a few sentences long) that explains how the music represents the contest theme. This is NOT optional.

Send your compositions to:

Piano Explorer 
Composition Contest
1838 Techny Court, Northbrook, IL 60062

Fax: 847-446-6263

Do not send via email

Be sure to draw a picture to go with your music.

Happy New Year 2021!

Dear Piano Families:

Happy New Year!

VIRTUAL LESSONS

This email is to confirm that we will continue with our virtual lesson format this month due to the governor's continuing restrictions. We will be continuing our preparations for MAP (Music Artistry Program/Adjudications), which will take place the week of March 8-10.

VIRTUAL GROUP LESSON JAN. 18

We will have Zoom Group Lessons on the week of January 18, a combined class featuring our Piano Pal composition project! Take a look at the studio website (www.lakesidepiano.com) for calendar dates, group classes, news and more information. I can't wait to see the creative ideas of these young pianists.

MAP and GUILD REGISTRATION

I will be registering all students for MAP and Guild by Jan. 14. If you have not already done so, please make sure to submit the registration fees by that date.

I am looking forward to continuing my work with these wonderful students in 2021! May this year be a year of great growth and discovery!

Chloe Receives Piano Guild Scholarship!

This past May, Chloe earned the Advanced Bach Medal from the American College of Musicians, performing 15 memorized selections by J.S. Bach. Her program included Bach’s Concerto for Harpsichord in D minor, Italian Concerto (3rd movt), a Prelude and Fugue from WTC 1, and selections from the French Suites and English Suites, Inventions and Sinfonias. The judge was blown-away by her playing. Chloe was awarded the highest score of all students participating in this program nationwide, and as a result, was awarded the Raissa Tselentis Scholarship for excellence. Congratulations for this huge honor, Chloe!

IMG_2833.jpg

Piano Pals are here!

Our annual composition project is here! Each student has been given a “secret piano pal” and will compose a piece just for them! At our Group Lesson, we discussed a number of composition ideas. Here are some ideas:

  1. Pick an idea from your Piano Pal’s sheet and let your imagination inspire you!

  2. Experiment with different ideas. When you find one you like, jot down a brief sketch, or record yourself, so you don’t forget it!

  3. Try different accompaniments, motivic development, keys, meters and styles, to find one that works best for you.

  4. Keep it simple. Form, melody, accompaniment, etc.

  5. Give it a fitting title! Put your name as the composer, and dedicate it to your Piano Pal.

  6. Notation: get familiar with a music notation program and write it out. I recommend Noteflight and Musescore as free options. You can use manuscript paper too.

  7. Feel free to get creative and express yourself!

  8. Be ready to present (and play) your composition for your Piano Pal at our January Group Lesson.

Have fun with this! I can’t wait to see what you all come up with and hear these brand-new compositions.

OMTA Concerto Competition - Results!

Dear Piano Families:

Congratulations to all of the students who participated in the Concerto Competition! You all worked so hard, and each of you sounded AMAZING! The results are in, and remember you are all winners, truly. This concerto is YOUR concerto to enjoy for years to come. The judge had some difficult decisions, even asked about splitting medals, and enjoyed listening to each of you. Here is his message:

*****

Message from the Judge:
Thank you to all the teachers who participated. I would like to extend my congratulations to you for the excellent work you did with your students preparing this repertoire and for all your hard work playing the orchestral parts on the second piano and supporting your students in such a great way. Also, I know getting all the videos ready to submit on such short notice must not have been easy and your work is appreciated.
To the students: Thank you all for your fantastic playing and great work preparing for this competition. I enjoyed hearing you and you all did a great job. Please, do not feel discouraged if you did not get a prize or honorable mention. It is certainly not a sign that you did not do a good enough job. The level was high, and I faced some hard choices to make. I wish splitting awards was possible under the rules. Regardless of the result, keep up the good work and I encourage you to enter again next year with another selection, surely a more challenging one as you will have grown more.

Ricardo de la Torre

*****

CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN! I am so proud of each of you, and I hope you are all proud of the beautiful music you have made and learned by heart! Trophies, medals and ribbons will be available this week, so please let me know when you can come pick it up!

******************************

Elementary Division
2nd prize - E3 Landon Allen
Honorable mentions: E1 Linnea Allen

Upper Intermediate Division
Honorable mentions: UI4 Calvin Aldrich, U12 Christine Zhang

Advanced A Division
1st prize - AA5 Gabriel Ong
Honorable mentions: AA2 Sky Lin

Advanced B Division
1st prize: AB2 Chloe Song
2nd prize: AB1 Michael Zhao
Honorable mention: AB3 Megan Lorich

Full results will be available on the OMTA website this week, olymusicteacher.org.






OMTA Concerto Competition, November 21 & 22 - Update!

Update 11/17/20: Due to the governor’s announcement over the weekend, our competition will be virtual. We will be submitting our video links to the judge by this Saturday. Results will be available by Tuesday, 11/24. Thank you for your patience and understanding!

The 21st Annual OMTA Concerto Competition will take place on Saturday, Nov. 21 & Sunday, Nov. 22, from 2-6pm. Over 40 young Olympia pianists will take part, performing Elementary, Intermediate and Advanced Concerti movements for prizes!

Saturday, Nov. 21: Elementary and Intermediate Divisions -

Landon: Olson Celebration! Concerto, 2nd movt

Linnea: Haydn, Concerto Piccolo

Max: Miller Concerto in A Minor, 3rd movt

Calvin: Rahbee “Peasant Dance” Concertino

Christine: Rocherolle Blues Concerto

Luke: Williams Concerto in A Minor, 1st movt

Sunday, Nov. 22: Advanced A and Advance B Divisions -

Sky: Haydn Concerto #11 in D Major, 1st movt

Gabriel: Beethoven Concerto #3 in C Minor, 3rd movt

Chloe: Grieg Concerto in A Minor, 1st movt

Michael: Schumann Concerto in A minor, 1st movt

Megan: Gershwin Concerto in F, 1st movt

Young Olympia Pianists featured in National Magazine

Check out the recent article and photos featuring our studio and students! Congratulations to all participants!

Biographies are listed for those who complete a Plaque successfully, as well as students who have accomplished National Level Auditions for 5 and 10 years.

(From the FALL 2020 Piano Guild Notes, Vol. 70, No. 2)

Congratulations to our 15 students! All passed their National Guild Auditions with a Superior and Superior Plus rating. Well done to our young pianists!

Congratulations to our 15 students! All passed their National Guild Auditions with a Superior and Superior Plus rating. Well done to our young pianists!

Chloe received the Advanced Bach Plaque for performing a 15 piece program of all Bach works. Congratulations!

Chloe received the Advanced Bach Plaque for performing a 15 piece program of all Bach works. Congratulations!

Fall Lessons Begin September 14!

Fall Lessons will begin the week of September 14! I am looking forward to another year of piano and music-making with my wonderful students!

Please remember our pandemic precautions: Do not come to lessons if you or a close contact has shown signs of illness - we can have a virtual lesson instead. Please wear a mask. Only students allowed, no family or friends. Wash hands before coming to lessons and wash hands immediately after entering. Keyboard and bench will be sanitized between each student. Thank you for helping to keep our piano community healthy!

Schedule:

Mondays:

2:15. Luke

3:00. Christine

4:00. Sky

5:00. Michael

Tuesdays:

Linnea

Landon

Lucas

Wednesdays:

2:00. Megan

3:15. Gavin

4:00. Max

5:00. Gabriel

Thursdays:

2:45. Judson

3:30. Calvin

4:15. Chloe

The End of a Strange Spring! National Guild Results Below

The week of June 1 was quite a week, phew! Congratulations to ALL students - for a fantastic Spring Recital, creative zoom Group Lesson, and National and International Guild Auditions! You did it! I hope all were able to relax and celebrate afterwards!

All students of our studio participated in National and International Level Auditions. This means 10 or 15 memorized pieces in each of their programs. Students all passed with a Superior or Superior Plus rating. Way to go! Students who participated in the National Guild Auditions: Landon, Linnea, Gavin, Chloe, Lucas, Calvin, Max, Judson, Sky, Luke, Megan, Alex, Madison, and Lilia.

Extra kudos to:

Megan: She received her High School Diploma from the the American College of Musicians for her 15-piece, Guild Approved program! She performed many well-known masterworks from memory such as Rachmaninoff’s “Bells of Moscow Prelude, Joplin’s Maple Leaf Rag, Beethoven’s complete “Moonlight Sonata”, Copland’s “Cat and Mouse Scherzo Fantastique” Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in D Minor (WTC1), and others, and she will receive a beautiful diploma. In addition, she has entered 10 National Level Auditions successfully, so she has earned the Paderewski Medal. Congratulations, Megan!

Alex: He received his High School Diploma in Social Music from the ACM for his 10-piece Guild Program! His program included pieces such as the great Bach Fugue in C# minor, Chopin Nocturne Op. 48, No.1, Rachmaninoff Etude-Tableaux, Gershwin Prelude, Joplin, Haydn Sonata in E Minor, and Chopin Grande Waltz Brilliante in F. Congratulations, Alex!

Chloe: Performing a 15-piece program of all Bach works, Chloe received the Advanced Bach Medal from the ACM. Her repertoire included the Bach D minor Harpsichord Concerto, Italian Concerto, Prelude and Fugue in Em (WTC1), numerous Inventions, a Sinfonia, and works from the French and English Suites. In addition, she also performed a regular National Level Audition, for a total of 23 pieces! Amazing!

Max and Judson: For the 5th straight year, Max and Judson have presented National Level Auditions and passed with flying colors! As 5-year award winners, they will be featured in the national magazine “Piano Guild Notes”.

Landon and Linnea: This was their first ever National Guild! They were a bit nervous but did great.

If you didn’t get a chance to share this, our first online recital was a success! Thank you for your recordings and congratulations to all performers! Here is the link to the recital: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjfnYP3MruZcDIL5jjOgHHJEGZ3EtSOme.

Our Seniors - Class of 2020!

Alex, Lilia and Madison: Congratulations! We are so proud of you!

IMG_1349.jpg

A little about our seniors….

Alex is a senior at OHS and SPSCC, graduating from Olympia High School this spring. He is planning on going to SUNY Purchase in the Fall of 2021, majoring in theatre design and technology. Since the beginning of his elementary school years, he has enjoyed playing piano and violin, and hopes to continue that in the future. He has been part of our studio for the past 10 years, and we will miss his presence! He would like to thank everyone that has helped him get to where he is, including his family, friends, and teachers. Congratulations! We know Alex will go far!

 
Alexander%2BWerner%2B-%2BHeadshot%2B2.jpg
IMG_0028.JPG

Lilia graduated from Olympia HS with a 4.0.  She earned the High School Diploma from the American College of Musicians last year, and finished her 11th year of National Guild this June.  This year, she received a Gold Medal at the Bach Festival and 2nd prize at the OMTA Concerto Competition for her performance of Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G, and has performed 2 other concerti with orchestra as a prize-winner.   Lilia has performed 2 charity recitals, raising funds for The Water Project and UNICEF’s Education Fund.  She enjoys school, competitive gymnastics, calligraphy, foreign languages, and hanging out with her family and friends. She will be headed to beautiful Westmont College in Santa Barbara as an Augustinian Scholar.  We can’t wait to see what the future will bring for her!

image0+2.jpg

Madison is a graduate of Timberline High School.  She has played piano for a decade, joining our studio 2 years ago. She is also a violinist and a dancer, voted co-captain of her competitive dance team.  During this past year, Madison performed a charity recital for UNICEF’s Education Fund, as well as taking part in a mission trip to India.  An Honors student taking almost all AP classes, she has been accepted UW where she plans on majoring in the College of Arts and Science.  She also enjoys baking, reading, snuggling with her two adorable dogs, and Italian food.  We wish Madison all the best in her future!

Megan earns High School Diploma and Paderewski Medal!

Congratulations to Megan for receiving her High School Diploma from the American College of Musicians!

Megan earned her diploma by passing a 90 minute audition of 15 memorized pieces. These pieces included J.S. Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in D Minor, WTC1, the complete Beethoven Sonata “Moonlight”, Rachmaninoff’s “Bells of Moscow” Prelude in C# minor, Copland’s “Scherzo Fantatique”, Joplin’s “Maple Leaf Rag'“, Chopin Op. 28, No. 8, scales, cadences, arpeggios, ear training, sight reading, and more. She earned high marks at each National Audition, performing 10 National Level programs for the past 10 years, . She also received the Paderewski Medal and will receive a Guild scholarship for her accomplishments. Way to go, Megan!

The mask - a sign of our times!

The mask - a sign of our times!

Congratulations for this major accomplishment!

Congratulations for this major accomplishment!

Senior Recital: Lilia Allen

Lilia will present her Senior Recital on June 14, 2020, 2pm.

Please click here to watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vb3S-rEtR2U

The program will include:

J.S. Bach: Italian Concerto, 1st movt

S. Rachmaninoff: Prelude in D Major

F. Chopin: “Aeolian Harp” Etude, Op. 25, No. 1

S. Joplin: Weeping Willow Rag

P. Mascagni: “Intermezzo” from Cavalleria Rustico, with Elli Ehinger (violin)

N. Kapustin: Sonatina, Op. 100

C. Saint-Saens: Danse Macabre for Two Pianos

The video will be available for viewing later as well. Lilia wishes to thank her family, friends and teachers for their support and love through the years!

Congratulations, Lilia!

Allen, Lilia (1 of 1).jpg

Lilia Allen

Class of 2020

Olympia High School

National Guild Auditions, June 3 and 4 - Schedule!

Our 2020 Guild Auditions will be VIRTUAL this year, for the first time ever! This is new to all of us, including the judges and Guild Headquarters. We are all working hard to make it as smooth as possible for all of our wonderful young pianists.

Everyone has been practicing and working, memorizing and perfecting 10 pieces and technical phases (National Level), and I am confident that all of you will pass with flying colors! In fact, 2 students will be presenting 15 piece “International” programs for the High School Diploma and the Advanced Bach Plaque. We also have one student who will be auditioning for the High School Social Diploma. All of you students are so impressive!

***A revised schedule is below***. The judge is in the Eastern Time Zone, and since she will not be traveling here, she has asked us to move to an earlier time (so she is not up until midnight!). She will be contacting all students “around” the time listed below. Please be patient if she does not call exactly on time, as sometimes delays happen. We are scheduling a 5 min. time between each student to ensure she has time to get connected with one of the three methods of contact.

PLEASE SEND SCANS of all of your music to our judge by JUNE 1. See email for her contact information.

June 3:

12-12:15 Landon (National)

12:20-12:35 Linnea (National)

12:40-1pm Judson (National)

1:05-1:30 Lucas (National)

1:35-3:05 Megan (HS DIP - 90 min)

3:05-4pm BREAK

4-4:30pm Madison (National)

4:35-5pm Sky (National)

5:05-6:05pm Alex (HS Social Dip - 60 min)

June 4:

2-2:30 Chloe (Adv Bach - 45 min)

2:30-3:15 Chloe (National)

3:20-3:50 Lilia (National)

3:50-4:05 BREAK

4:05-4:25 Gavin (National)

4:30-4:55pm Calvin (National)

5-5:25pm Max (National)

5:30-5:55pm Luke (National)

Zoom Group Lesson, 4/28/20!

Our first Zoom Group Class was a lot of fun!

First of all, it was great to see all of the cute pets who wandered in and out and seemed interested in your music, and also for us to see your piano area! Second, all the students included some sort of “decoration” for the piano to describe their piece. It was lovely to hear the pieces, and also to see what creative ideas students used to represent their pieces. I’m including some photos. There were so many more, so please send me your photos if able. Students also demonstrated impressive artistic ability with even hand drawn and handcrafted the decor!

Madison: “Phantom of the Opera” (handmade origami flowers, Phantom picture)

Luke: “Longing” (2 Lego figures on either side of the piano, fresh flowers and greenery)

Judson: “El Zapateado” (Latin dancer costume/hat, fresh flowers)

Sky: “Valse Mélancolique” (hand-drawn Italian film icons)

Lilia: “Sonatina op. 100” (spiky headband, butterflies, music box dancer)

Lucas: “Bright Orange” (orange and orange basketball)

Megan: Bach’s “Fugue in D minor” (stuffed chicken saying “bak”)

Alex: Chopin “Waltz in F Major” (3/4 of piano covered)

Gavin: “Amazing Grace” (amazing lego angel and lego piano)

Max: “Innocent” (glass of water)

Calvin: Alla Tarantella (spider decor)

Chloe: Bach “Prelude and Fugue in Em” (Dog and Clock)

Gavin’s piano, created for “Amazing Grace”!

Gavin’s piano, created for “Amazing Grace”!

Gavin’s brother Zachary designed and created this lego angel!

Gavin’s brother Zachary designed and created this lego angel!

Luke’s piece was called “Longing”. See the lego figures reaching for each other? What instrument is that on top of the piano?

Luke’s piece was called “Longing”. See the lego figures reaching for each other? What instrument is that on top of the piano?

Judson dressed as the “El Zapateado!” The definition is a Mexican dancer who taps his feet while dancing.

Judson dressed as the “El Zapateado!” The definition is a Mexican dancer who taps his feet while dancing.

National Guild Update 5/4/20

I have finally received some information on our National Guild Auditions. We will have the Auditions via an online platform. We need to provide 2 different methods of contact, in case there are any problems. I will need to submit those methods to them on one list for the studio.

With your permission, I would like to submit the FaceTime number that we have been using successfully for our lessons. Please reply to this to confirm your approval, as well sending an alternate way of contact and another phone number. Other back-up platforms could include Skype, Zoom, Google Duo or Google Hangouts.

For example, I will need to submit something like this:

Student John Smith, Intermediate C Date/Time: June 3, 12-12:30pm Preferred Platform: FaceTime: (360)123-4567 Backup Platform: Skype: GuildPianist12345@hotmail.com Emergency Contact # in case of problems: (360)987-6543 We are still scheduled for June 3 and 4.

Please let me know if there are any time restrictions for the online Audition. I will be putting out a schedule soon. Thank you so much for your patience as we work out all of these details! I’m thankful that we are able to continue despite the limitations we are currently experiencing. Guild has informed me that they are determined to be as flexible and helpful to us, to help all students achieve their Guild goals!

Spring Piano Update (April 2020)

Dear Piano Families:

Happy Spring Break! As you have heard, schools will be closed for the rest of the school year, and students will all move to distance learning of various forms after spring break. We have been having virtual piano lessons for the past two weeks, with very good success. I have missed seeing all of my wonderful students face-to-face, but I am impressed with the technological savvy and musical progress they have made!

After spring break, we plan to continue with virtual lessons. Our National Guild Auditions are still scheduled for June 3 and 4 - for now. As soon as the Guild headquarters contact me with updated information, I will let you know. Updates will be on the website as well. It seems that virtual auditions (or pre-recorded auditions) could be a possibility, though the date may change.

We have two scheduled Group Lessons in our Spring Quarter, April 28 and June 2. I am looking into virtual options for this. I am also exploring ideas for our Spring Recital. If you have an idea or suggestion, please feel free to share. These students are amazing and I would love for them to be able to showcase their talents and growth!

In the meantime, I hope you and your families are doing well, staying healthy and enjoying the beautiful spring weather! Please let me know if you have questions.