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The District IV State Winners/Alternates Recital was May 1 @ 3pm, Centralia Church of the Nazarene. This recital featured two of our own, Gabriel and Chloe! The students who were selected for this honor were Winners or Alternates at the Chapter WSMTA Honors Recital Competition.
Gabriel performed “Liebeslied” by Sergei Rachmaninoff. Chloe performed Beethoven’s “Moonlight” Sonata, 3rd movement. Everyone enjoyed their amazing performances!
Congratulations to these wonderful students!
With the end of April, comes the approaching end of the piano quarter (June 12).
Here's an update on the Group Lesson/Performance Class yesterday. So great to hear everyone! The students all came prepared and performed for each other. A (very) few of our young pianists were not nervous at all, while others were able to practice channeling their nerves into positive energy for their performance. It's wonderful to see them develop these important skills of accomplishing what they set out to do ... under pressure, with an audience of peers! We heard Bach (on the harpsichord - so beautiful!), Brahms, Clementi, Debussy, Schumann, Rachmaninoff, folk songs and modern composers. It's amazing to hear all the progress that has been made since the fall!
One class did a deep dive into writing rhythms. Everyone added a measure or two to the project, and we made up a brand new song. Even the youngest in our group were able to add some excellent rhythms, and the older ones were quite complex!
The other class had a brief overview of western music history, from 1600 to now, delving into how the cultural, scientific and political world influenced the musical and artistic world, and vice versa. It's interesting to imagine the life of the composer you're playing and what inspired their composition!
A few important upcoming dates:
May 1, 3pm: District IV Honors Recital @ Church of the Nazarene in Centralia (featuring winners of the WSMTA Competition - Chloe and Gabriel!). Free and open to the public.
June 7, all day: National Guild Auditions! Many students who are taking part will perform 10 pieces for a judge and receive feedback. Big project, but these students are working hard to get prepared for this big goal!
June 12, 3pm: Spring Recital! Westminster Presbyterian Church, featuring everyone!
Since our recital and Guild Auditions are about 6 weeks away, please KEEP PRACTICING and reviewing those pieces and technique! You can work to make this your best performance yet!
As we approach the end of the piano quarter, please let me know if there are any questions.
This year, 14 teachers registered 114 students for Piano MAP in Olympia!
Congratulations to all students for their hard work and wonderful performances at MAP! Our Visiting Artist, Dr. Beverly Serra-Brooks, was amazing, one of the best we've had! She has travelled and performed all over the world, and she was most inspiring and insightful.
A few comments from Dr. B that came up several times that I really appreciated:
Music shows our humanity! Great composers from the past, their music lives on (through us!) because it shows the timeless beauty and ideals of the human spirit.
Music is a comfort and solace - no matter what you do in your life, music will be there for you!
Appreciate all the good work and music you create, don't focus on the mistakes (as we can be hard on ourselves), but appreciate the good!
Kudos to all for their hard work! And big thanks to the parents and families who encourage them and give them practice reminders! Dr. B had to choose Honor Recital winners, alternates and honorable mentions, and she said it was a very difficult decision, she even laid awake at night trying to choose between all of the young pianists in our studio.
Honors Recital Winners (in order of MAP time):
Luke Miller - Root Beer Rag (Billy Joel)
Gabriel Ong - Liebeslied (Rachmaninoff)
Sky Lin - Rendez-vous manque (Michal Block)
Chloe Song - Prelude in G Minor, Op. 23/5 (Rachmaninoff)
Alternates:
Max - Beaumont Tarantella
Calvin Aldrich - Pietzonka Tarantella
Honorable Mention:
Gavin - Avalanche
Linnea - Liebestraume
Alexander - Toccata Vivo
Josie - Busy Fingers
I also want to acknowledge two of our student-teachers who entered MAP this year: Sky and Luke. Good preparation and performance to you and your students, Sam, Derek, Katherine and Samuel!
The 3 Musketeers? MAP Co-Chairs, plus Dr. B!
The end of February is already approaching, and with it comes the anticipation of Spring Quarter and spring piano events! All students have been practicing many hours this year and developing good musical skills! Students will have the opportunity to perform 2 memorized pieces for our Visiting Artists and receive helpful feedback from them.
IMPORTANT DATES:
Week of Feb. 28: Regular private lessons, AND March Group Lessons! We are changing the usual date, in order to give all students a chance for one more performance opportunity before MAP/Adjudications. Please note that we still have regular lessons that week.
March 4: GROUP LESSONS, FRIDAY, March 4. Please note change in day and time, which was done in order to give an opportunity to all of our students and student-teachers before MAP. Come prepared to perform both your MAP pieces!
Elementary-6th: 3:45-4:45pm
MS/HS: 6:45-7:45pm
March 6: WSMTA Honors Competition @ St. Martin's University (this is only for students entered in competition)
March 8: MAP/Adjudications at St. Martin's University (see website for your scheduled time!). MAP will take place in lieu of regular private lessons that week.
March 14: Back to regular schedule!
More of our students were published in the Winter Guild Notes magazine (Winter 2022, Vol. 71, No. 3). A photo of our entire studio recital back in June 2021 was included, along with an article featuring all of our Guild participants. In addition, you can read below features on Lucas, Sky, Chloe, and Megan. Good job to everyone!
Sky and Chloe are pictured in the Fall 2021 Piano Guild Notes! Students who have accomplished the International Early Bach Medal and the Founder’s Plaque can be found in one of the quarterly publications. Congratulations to you both!
Check out Alexander’s amazing Lego Piano! There are over 3660 pieces, and it moves and plays! The keys, hammers, pedals, bench, even the wheels, are all moving parts. You can control it with your phone. If you have a chance, ask him about it! The detail is astounding.
Congratulations to the Concerto Competition participants! All practiced so hard and performed beautifully! What a pleasure to hear all of you. I personally loved playing with each of you as well.
Results from our studio:
Elementary:
Alexander: HM
Landon: HM
Sam (student of Student-teacher Sky)
Upper Intermediate:
Calvin: 3rd PRIZE
Advanced A:
Sky
Michael: 2nd PRIZE
Advanced B:
Chloe: 1st PRIZE
Gabriel: 2nd PRIZE
Christine: 3rd PRIZE
As a 1st prize winner, Chloe will perform her Chopin Concerto with the local orchestra. Congratulations and we can’t wait to hear it! Well done to everyone!
Complete results available at olymusicteachers.org.
Elementary Division: representing our studio is Alexander and Landon! Sam is Student-teacher Sky’s student. Good job!
Calvin, 3rd prize winner of Upper Intermediate!
Sky and Michael performed Mozart exquisitely! Congrats to Michael for a 2nd place win!
Advanced B 1st, 2nd, and 3rd prize winners!
Congratulations to Sky who recently received a letter from the American College of Musicians with a surprise scholarship check!
Back in June, Sky presented her international level audition of 15 early keyboard works of J.S. Bach for the Guild judge. She did well, but she was still surprised to have the best score of all students nationwide. We will be submitting this information for publication in the quarterly Piano Guild Notes. Well done, Sky!
From Sky’s letter: “On behalf of the American College of Musicians, we wish to extend our congratulations you for being the recipient of the 2021 Raissa Tselentis Scholarship for excellence in the performance of the Clavier works of Johann Sebastian Bach. This award is given to the student who played an Early Bach Program in the most recent Guild Auditions and earned the highest score of those participating.”
November means the holidays are coming...and lots of music! Here are upcoming piano events for your calendar. You can also find these on this website under “Events”.
1. Studio "Concerto" Recital: This recital is an extra performance opportunity, featuring students from our studio who are participating in the 22nd Annual OMTA Concerto Competition. All are invited, free to the public! You will be amazed at the talent of these young pianists, so please come if able!
Date: Friday, Nov. 12, 7pm
Location: Gospel Outreach Church (South Bay Rd)
2. Concerto Competition:
Elementary division: Saturday, Nov. 20, @ 1pm (Alexander, Landon, Sam)
Upper Intermdiate: Saturday, Nov. 20 @ 4:15pm (Calvin)
Advanced A: Sunday, Nov. 21 @ 2pm (Sky, Michael)
Advanced B: Sunday, Nov. 22 @ 4pm (Christine, Chloe, Gabriel)
Free and open to the public.
3. Group Performance Classes: Monday, Nov. 22 (Thanksgiving Week)- Piano Pals will be announced!
Class A: 3:45-4:35pm (K-6th - Alexander, Josie, Callum, Linnea, Landon, Sam, Malia, Eleanor, Katherine, Samuel, Derek)
Class B: 4:45-5:45pm (7th-12th - Sky, Michael, Luke, Calvin, Chloe, Gabriel, Christine, Max, Judson, Gavin)
4. Christmas Performance at the Mall:
Come share your holiday, jazz, and classical favorites for our community!
Location: West end of the mall, near shoe store
Date/Time: Sunday, Dec. 5 @ 2:30-3:30pm
The 18th International Chopin Competition is concluding this week in Warsaw, Poland! Beginning in 1927, it typically happens every 5 years. Frederic Chopin (1810-1849) is one of the best known and loved composers for the piano. Born in Poland, he is one of Poland’s most celebrated artists.
From over 500 applicants, to preliminaries during the summer, the competition has gone through 3 stages, beginning Oct. 2, and is now in the final round, featuring 12 of the world’s best young pianists. Watch live on YouTube, or go to www.chopin2020.pl for videos of all of these world-class pianists. The artistry and talent on display is breathtaking!
Happy October! A few studio highlights this month....
STUDIO CHALLENGE!
You may have noticed your student coming home with the EARLY BIRD STUDIO CHALLENGE! This optional activity is to encourage everyone to practice in the morning hours (when minds and bodies are fresh!) and get their practice done right away. Students who fill out 10 or more days on their chart will receive a prize at our Group Lesson on Oct. 27.
GROUP LESSONS
Speaking of Group Lessons, our first ones will be Wednesday, October 27! We will have small classes to give everyone enough time and distance. Come prepared to perform for your fellow young pianists! We will also delve into music theory games, composer stories, performance practice, and musically themed snacks.
1. K-6th grade: Oct. 27 @ 3:45-4:35pm
2. 7th-12th Repertoire Group: 4:45-5:35pm
3. 7th-12th Concerto Group: 5:45-6:45pm
MASTER LESSONS
Some of our students will be taking part in Master Lessons with Dr. Ricardo de la Torre on October 23. More information will be sent to participating students (you know who you are!).
CONCERTO COMPETITION
Also, a number of students will be taking part in the annual Concerto Competition, Nov. 20-21. Registration/fee deadline is October 12. I will be sending an email about this to participating students soon.
Let me know if you have any questions. It's looking like an exciting fall!
One thing I love about teaching students are the remarkable comments they make. Here are a couple from this summer. Can you guess who might have said them?
“Can you imagine being alive when Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata first dropped??!! It’d be the No. 1 break up song!”
“The melodic minor scale is just a mash up between a major and a minor scale.” That’s right! It’s a major scale with a lowered 3rd!
Dear Students and Families:
Welcome to the 2021-2022 Piano Year! Fall Lessons will begin the week fo September 13, 2021. Please see check out our studio calendar of events, studio updates, covid-19 protocols, and articles on our students.
I thank you for your patience in getting all of the information out to you. A few weeks ago, our beloved 82 year old grandmother/mother (in-law) passed away. We were her primary caregivers for the past couple years and spent many hours together, especially in the last 6 months We are grateful for her life and she will be missed by our family. We also dropped off my oldest at college a few days ago!
I am looking forward to another wonderful year of music-making and learning with these delightful and talented students! Please let me know if you have any questions, and I will see you all the week of Sept. 13.
Just a couple short months ago, I was optimistic that Covid-19 was in our rearview mirror! At this time, in our studio, we will continue our in-person lessons with our pandemic protocols:
masks for everyone
physical distnacing
hand-washing upon entry into studio
sanitizing keyboard between students
no visitors in studio
Please DO NOT come to lessons if you are feeling unwell. We will immediately switch your lesson to a Zoom or FaceTime lesson. In addition, if you have an exposure requiring quarantine, please switch to an online lesson.
We will continue to follow guidelines of our health officials in regards to in-person private and group lessons, recitals, competitions, etc.
Students who perform winning National level programs (10 memorized pieces and technique) for 10 years are eligible to earn the Paderewski Medal for their impressive accomplishment.
This year, we have two students who have achieved this goal. LUCAS, a 10th grader at OHS, earned his 10 year as a National Winner! CHLOE, an 8th grader at WMS, earned her 9th and 10th years as a National Winner!
Congratulations to both of you for this significant achievement!
Lucas and Chloe are proud recipients of the Paderewski Medal!
Our studio had two Guild Plaques awarded this year! Sky earned a plaque for her 15-piece “Early Bach” International Program. Chloe earned her 2nd Guild Plaque for learning an entire program from the “Founder’s List”. Last year, she earned the International Advanced Bach Plaque, as well as the Raissa Tsaletis scholarship for the highest marks earned nationwide for this plaque.
Congratulations to both of you!
Featuring students of Megan, Luke, Sky, and Chloe!
Each student-teacher introduced their students. For several, this was their very first recital. They all played beautifully!
© 2016 Ramona Allen
