Young Scholars News
Young Scholar Alumni Amir Siraj’s – quick interview about Piano
How many hours do you think our young scholar alumnus Amir Siraj practices piano every day? Learn about his practicing habits and relationship with piano in the interview below!
When did you start to learn piano?
I started learning piano at the age of four, following in the footsteps of my older sisters, who had started learning piano at the ages of five and six.
How long did you practice piano every day? Did that change over time?
When I first started playing piano, my teacher was very cautious because of my young age, and didn’t want to turn me away from the piano. Therefore at the beginning, my practicing was very limited, and it naturally grew over time.
Do you still practice every day? What’s your daily practice routine like?
Yes. I practice every day. My specific routine depends on the day, but it usually consists of scales and arpeggios, followed by working on a few pieces.
How do you balance your school work and piano practice? (Please provide some details)
I am enrolled in the Harvard-New England Conservatory of Music Dual Degree Program, which builds in a balance for me between academic and musical work.
How would you describe your relationship with piano presently?
Piano provides me with an escape — a way to express myself organically and fully.
What was the most interesting thing during the piano learning? (Please give an example)
It was very gratifying to play glissandos for the first time!
Do you remember any specific difficulty that you ran into during piano practice? And how did you overcome that? (Please give an example)
It was difficult to learn trills with the third, fourth, and fifth fingers, and it took me quite a bit of perseverance to get it. Practice makes perfect.
What’s your favorite piece to play, why?
My favorite piece tends to change depending on what I’m playing at the moment. Mozart K. 570 has remarkable elegance, simplicity, and humor.
Congratulations to our Alumnus, Maxim Lando performing for the 3rd Lang Lang ShenZhen FuiTian international piano festival
We would like to congratulate our Young Scholars Alumni Elliot Wuu and Kimie Han as they have been recently selected and recognized as Young Steinway Artist. Congratulation to you both again and we are very proud of your achievements!
Looking forward to 2019 and hearing more great news from our Young Scholars!!
Congratulations to our Alumnus, Amir Siraj, for being chosen as a Steinway Young Artist!
Congratulations to our Alumni Elliot Wuu for being a recipient of 2018 Gilmore Young Artist Award!
Congratulations to our Alumni Maxim Lando who was featured on TV Kultura show “Tsarskaya Lodge”! Maxim has performed Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with Mariinsky Theater Orchestra during the 22nd International Musical Olympus Festival in Saint Petersburg/Russia.
“BIG CONGRATS to our Young Scholars Amir Siraj and Clayton Stephenson for being selected as “The U.S. Presidential Scholars”! The U.S. Presidential Scholars program is described as “one of the Nation’s highest honors for high school students” in the United States of America. All scholars are invited to Washington, DC in June for the National Recognition Program, featuring various events and enrichment activities and culminating in the presentation of the Presidential Scholars Medallion during a White House-sponsored ceremony.
And ONLY four scholars in classical music world were selected from the entire country, we can’t be more proud!!!!”
We are so happy that our scholars Chelsea and Kimberly are both invited by Piano Texas and they can observe Van Cliburn competition together. Have fun! Chelsea Guo Kimie Han
http://www.pianotexas.org/youngartistsperformers.asp
Young Scholars, Maxim Lando and Clayton Stephenson, were invited to participate in the highly competitive, KlavierOlymp 2015. The KlavierOlymp, is part of the prestigious Kissinger Sommer Festival, which was founded in 1986 and has been held every summer in the city of Bad Kissingen, located in Southern Germany.
We are very proud to announce that Clayton will give a solo recital, and Maxim will perform in a chamber music concert during the Kissinger Sommer 2016 season.
