The Piano Pod, Season 2, Episode 10: Ching-Wen Hsiao & Konstantinos Valianatos--Concert Pianists & Faculty Members at The Tianjin Juilliard School

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Hello everyone, welcome back to the PianoPod, I'm Clara Zhang.
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I'm Yukimi Sang.
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For anyone listening or watching our show for the first time, welcome!
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Yukimi and I are both classical pianists and piano teachers from New York City, and this
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podcast is for anyone who plays the piano for fun, loves listening to piano music, or
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for someone who is currently pursuing a career in piano or works in industry professionally,
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or anyone who is simply curious about the world of piano music.
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In each episode, we interview a guest speaker who has been breaking exciting new ground
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in the music industry.
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Before getting started, we want to thank our listeners for tuning in.
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Please rate our show and review on Apple Podcasts because every rating review will help people
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find our show.
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Today I want to start this episode with a fun game with our audience.
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Yukimi, what do you think?
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Okay, sure.
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Alright, so audience, and dear listeners and viewers, when you hear someone who is studying
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music intensively to become a professional musician, what is the name of the school that
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pops into your head first?
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I mean, I can think of a few, you know, but I know this answer.
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Okay, alright, let's say it, one, two, three, Julliard.
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Okay, well, yeah, ding ding ding, we are winning the urgent fire question already.
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We have had so many guests in our previous episodes that, you know, have talked about
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Julliard, either have studied there or have taught there, but well, we have today two
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very special guests, and they are faculty members at Julliard, also fabulous pianists.
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But most importantly, guess what?
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They are faculties of Julliard in my hometown in Tianjin, China.
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Wow.
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You know that?
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Wow, that's so cool.
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Yeah, I mean, I've heard there is a Julliard school open in Tianjin, but I have never met
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anyone who, you know, is affiliated to Tianjin Julliard school.
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So I can't wait.
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So tell me, because I've never been to China, actually.
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So where is Tianjin?
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So Tianjin is the city near the coast, it's on the ocean, it's about two hours driving
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from Beijing.
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And, but with the bullet train right now, it's like a 21 or 23 minutes, it's very fast.
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It's considered like the door to Beijing.
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So even back in the days, people, you know, during the war or whatever time they come
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on the boat and they will come to my city and it's considered the cultural center, you
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know, it's a lot of people even in China, it's a, it's really the second biggest city,
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you know, near Shanghai and Tianjin, Beijing, but only if you're really into comedies or
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food, you know, Tianjin.
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Yeah, and the music obviously also was, so I'm very proud that the Julliard came to my
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hometown, you know.
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So for the purpose of this episode, why don't you tell us a bit about Julliard, the Julliard
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school?
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Absolutely.
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Yes.
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So Julliard school is a private performing art conservatory established in 1905 in New
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York City.
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It is widely regarded as one of the world's leading drama, music and dance schools.
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In 2015, the Julliard school announced a major expansion into Tianjin during a visit by China's
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first lady Peng Liyuan.
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Since then the Tianjin Julliard school TJS is growing.
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It became the first performing art institute in China to confer a US accredited master
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of music degree in 2021.
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They also have different components such as a Saturday pre-college program for students
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age 8 to 18, continued education programs for professionals and adult learners, and
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public performances and more.
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Wow, that is incredible.
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You must be so proud of your hometown and the expansion.
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It's quite amazing.
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I mean, it seems like the world seems to be coming together or coming closer or connected
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through music, right?
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That is very true.
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Yes, and that's why we are so excited to welcome our today's guest, Dr. Qi Wenxiao and Dr.
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Konstantinos Valianados, both graduates of the Julliard school and now they are both
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faculty members at Julliard Tianjin.
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I cannot wait to hear about their stories and experiences.
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And for those young musicians, students watching or listening to this episode who dream of
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attending Julliard one day, we want to dedicate this episode to you.
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We hope this interview will inspire you to practice more and create beautiful music every
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single day.
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So, Yukimi, let's get the show started, shall we?
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Yes.
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You are listening to the PianoPod, where we talk to the brightest minds in the industry
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about how they are bringing the piano into the 21st century.
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So, we are very excited to introduce our guests of episode number nine, Dr. Qi Wenxiao and
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Dr. Konstantinos Valianados or Mrs. and Mr. Valentinos Xiao Piano Duo, a talented piano
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duo as well as wonderful solo pianist and teachers.
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So welcome to our show.
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Welcome.
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Thank you so much for coming.
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Thank you for having us.
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Thank you, Clara, Yukimi.
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Thank you.
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Of course.
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How is Qianjin?
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Everything's good.
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It's getting warmer and sunny today.
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Right.
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I'm sure everybody's preparing for Chinese New Year.
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It's coming up soon, right?
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Everybody's preparing for Chinese New Year.
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Everybody's preparing for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games.
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That's right.
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That's very exciting.
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Yeah.
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We hope to attend, but we will see this.
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Oh, you might.
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So for our audience, let me start by introducing Dr. Qi Wenxiao, a Taiwanese American pianist,
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standby artist.
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She has performed extensively as soloist and chamber musician throughout the United States,
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Europe and Asia in venues such as Carnegie Hall, the Recital Hall, David Griffin Hall
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at Lincoln Center, Rubenstein Hall at the Munich and Taiwan Concert Hall.
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She has made her concerto debut at the age of 16 with Soybo Youth Symphony in the Philippines
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with performance of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1.
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Dr. Xiao served as assistant professor of piano at West Virginia University and Southwest
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Eastern University, and she currently teaches at the Juilliard School.
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Now let me introduce Dr. Konstantinos Valianatos.
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He is a native of Athens, Greece, founding member of the award-winning Olympus Piano
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Trio.
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As an advocate for new music, he works with living composers and has premiered their work
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such as Christos Hattis' piano work Face to Face.
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Dr. Valianatos recorded works by Mendelssohn, Ravel, Hattis and Dmitri Smirnov for LP classics
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and naxos.
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He has also collaborated with numerous orchestras and performed in venues such as the White
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House, Sal Corteau in Paris, Carnegie Halls, Benedict Music Tent and Harris Concert Hall
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in Aspen.
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He was honored by the President of Greece, Kostas Stephanopoulos, with the highest accolade
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from the Academy of Athens in Greece for his work and artistic integrity.
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Oh, so great.
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Thank you so much.
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It's such an honor to have you guys on.
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So again, we've been in contact since the summer and we've been waiting for forever.
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You know, actually for me, I wanted to introduce you guys around the Chinese New Year time.
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So it all worked out perfectly.
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And let me just tell our audience a little bit how I met Dr. Xiao.
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Several years ago, I think when I first opened the studio and I was putting on some piano
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recitals in the Stanley Hall in New York City, and I remember one of my friends was working
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with you and I went in one day and, you know, this lovely associate came to greet me and
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we kept in touch.
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A little before I knew, you know, a few years later, you've moved to my hometown Tianjin
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to teach for Juilliard.
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Oh my goodness.
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And I'm so glad we kept in touch.
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And I've been so inspired by both of your work and I've watched all of your videos and
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trying to tell my parents to come to your show.
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I mean, COVID has changed everything, but they said they are going to go and drive over
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there.
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Actually, you're in Tanggu District, right?
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Near Tanggu.
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Near Tanggu, in Binghai.
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Binghai, Xinxu.
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Binghai, right.
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That's where I spent a lot of my summers in the past.
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My grandma, grandparents had a house in Tanggu.
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So when I was a child, I would, you know, sometimes spend summers there.
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It's a really nice area for the Tianjin Juilliard School to be located at.
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I think it was a very smart and just the perfect place for the new school, for the new satellite
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school, the Juilliard School.
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If you want to leave, you just get on a boat, right?
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I went to Japan.
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We could swim back to our boat.
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All the way back.
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We are in front of a river that if you take it by its all the way through, you can arrive
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right in front of the Juilliard School.
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Oh my goodness.
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Well, I can't wait to come to visit you guys one day when I'm finally allowed to come back
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into China again.
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So yeah, so before, when we, you know, as we're starting, we just, we have some questions.
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We have a lot of questions, but in the beginning, I would like to know what was your childhood
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like as a musician?
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Like, you know, were you from musical families?
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Were you exposed to music or literature very early on?
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And most importantly, how did you guys meet?
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The juicy questions.
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That's right.
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So,
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Okay, sure.
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Yeah.
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Well, I grew up in Athens, Greece, and I started playing the piano probably around
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the age of seven.
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And my parents just loved music in general.
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Not only classical music, actually.
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I didn't grow up with classical music listening at home.
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Greek, you know, traditional music or art music, rock music.
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Classical music was something I was playing a lot of, but I was listening to a different
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kind of music when I was growing up.
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And my sister had started, this is a year older.
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She had started playing the piano before I did, about one year before I did.
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And so that's kind of how it all started.
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So you were jealous.
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You were like, let me practice.
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I think I really, really liked the sound of the piano.
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So then my parents gave it a shot.
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We had the instrument at home.
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And one thing led to another, and here we are.
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Oh my goodness.
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That's amazing.
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What about you, Dr. Xiao?
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Well, so my mom was a dance and art teacher and she loved music.
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So she bought a piano before I was born.
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And she was teaching at home.
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She had a dance studio.
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So I grew up dancing.
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And then later on at age four, started piano.
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Then just really loved it.
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You know, still danced throughout high school.
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And then probably at age 12, decided that music is what I want to do for life.
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And I focus on music.
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And I also went to specialized music school since age six and all the way until I left
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for the States.
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So it's sort of being immersed in art from a young age.
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And the most important questions.
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Oh, how do you mean?
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Who's going to tell the story?
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You tell it better than I do.
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I mean, it is so rare really.
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But we were going to actually interview another couple that also they both teach at Julliard
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and we haven't worked out the time yet, but it's amazing.
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But sometimes I also think about this as a musician, we spend so much time in the practice
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rooms, right?
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Sometimes we have to meet our colleague.
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So tell us what was it like?
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So we met in a practice room?
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No, we didn't.
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No, you didn't?
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We were just fighting for practice rooms.
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No, we actually met at the Aspen Music Festival.
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We were both at Julliard at the time, but we didn't meet there.
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We met at the festival and I was my teacher, Vada Kemplinski's teaching assistant.
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And he was there as a student.
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And he somehow we met at the airport.
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Just all really nice coincident.
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One thing led to the other.
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And here we are.
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Wow, two years later.
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Why it's been that long?
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Oh my goodness.
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2010.
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I saw some lovely photos of your wedding.
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I know you guys.
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That was a fun evening.
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Yes.
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Well, Greek wedding, right?
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It's like the movie, my Greek wedding.
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Lots of people, lots of good food and friendship.
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Lots of dancing.
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Dancing until 5 a.m.
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Oh my goodness.
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That's the one.
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That's how you do it.
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Oh my goodness.
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I still have the blisters in my feet to prove the fact that we have the wedding.
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You have to today, right?
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Wonderful.
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So then from there, I just have to turn the clock a little backward, but I am also curious
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to know about your Julliard experiences.
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Also you went through Julliard from undergraduate till doctorate degree.
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That's a big achievement.
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We actually interviewed quite a few Julliard graduate artists such as Jeffrey Beagle, Frederick
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Chu, Vera Anselmo.
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Last night we just released an episode with Lowell Lieberman.
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Yes, we saw.
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Oh, you did?
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Very well done.
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Thank you.
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Yeah.
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But he so in the conversations, like, you know, he was saying there's a Julliard that
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he was in back in those days and then now.
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So I'm just curious to know, you know, about your experiences as a student at Julliard.
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Well, yeah, so I was there for essentially 10 years, for years, for years of actually
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11 years, I think four years of my bachelor, two years of my master's and then five years
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of my doctoral studies.
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So it was a long time at the school and it has been a transformative experience for me.
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Of course, when I first came to Julliard, you know, I came straight from Greece.
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It was the first time out of the country officially.
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I studied in Paris, I studied in other places, but I never truly lived.
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I was more, you know, traveling back and forth.
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So going abroad to study is just such a it's an experience that you can't really put into
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words that, you know, everything about it is new and fresh and challenging and rewarding.
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And it's just an incredible experience.
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Of course, at Julliard, you know, we had absolutely top notch education, wonderful faculty members,
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you know, all of our piano teachers, Jerome Lowenthal, Julia Martin, Veda Kaplinsky.
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They all have contributed so much to our growth as musicians, as artists, as persons.
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They're more like mentors.
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I think I talk about both of ourselves.
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They're both more like mentors than just, you know, piano teachers.
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And of course, everything else about the Julliard experience, you know, living in New York
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and everything that comes with that, you know, you live there.
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The cosmopolitan aspects of, you know, meeting everyone from all places around the world,
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trying food and cuisines and arts and, you know, being at Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan
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Opera is there, the New York Ballet.
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It's cataclysmic in a way.
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You're just so much and you're bombarded from all sides at all times with information and
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with, you know.
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So it's hard to explain exactly what all of these years meant for me.
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But I think I wouldn't be the same if I hadn't gone there and if I hadn't met the people
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that I did.
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As much of their, you know, we can't deny their struggles to, you know, living in that
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tough big city is hard in New York, a place especially like New York.
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And it's not always the cleanest place.
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You know, sometimes it's like, oh my gosh.
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But then there are so many things that are amazing, as you say, there's the really community
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of artists and their surrounding.
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And also there are, let's see, stimulation, right?
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There's always this inspiration and stimulation everywhere.
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It's like endless.
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Yeah.
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That's wonderful.
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How about you?
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Oh yeah.
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I have very, in a way, very similar experience and I love every minute of it at Juilliard.
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I really did.
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I saw, I know a lot of people describe Juilliard as a very competitive place, negatively.
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But I had a complete opposite experience.
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I felt being able to be in that environment, being together with extremely talented group
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of people, you actually learn and you better yourself because you learn from your colleagues.
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You learn from hearing them play.
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And it's just interesting.
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I remember as freshmen, everybody's like so careful in the piano performance class.
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You want to be well prepared.
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The second and third year, everybody gets a little relaxed.
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People started, you know, stop practicing.
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And then the fourth year, your senior year, everyone just, the level of playing just jump
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a whole notch.
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And because of the auditions are coming up and it was really comforting for me to see
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that we all improved together.
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Everybody sounded, you know, at a different level.
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So I feel in addition to, you know, what my teachers have taught me, Vedaka, Kupinski,
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Jerome, Luentho, which were, I'm forever grateful and indebted to them that I learned so much
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from my colleagues and friends.
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And I was really lucky to have a group of very close friends, my childhood friends from
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Taiwan who all entered Juilliard, four of us at the same year.
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So I had a strong bond and community of that group of friends.
328
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And we all sort of experienced everything together.
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So New York to me is a really special place.
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And I really hope to go back one day to, I did live over visit.
331
00:20:03,920 --> 00:20:07,480
So right now you're in Juilliard, Tianjin, right?
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The Tianjin Juilliard School.
333
00:20:08,920 --> 00:20:09,920
Yes.
334
00:20:09,920 --> 00:20:10,920
Yeah.
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00:20:10,920 --> 00:20:11,920
Tianjin Juilliard School.
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And so are the students all from China that's from the region or from, well, maybe not from
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that region only, but from the continent of Asia, China?
338
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Asia.
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So we have two programs where the pre-college program as well as the grad program.
340
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For pre-college is mostly students from within China.
341
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Yeah.
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Okay.
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So from Tianjin or Shandong nearby province to as far as Guangdong or Tibet.
344
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Oh, wow.
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Yes.
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We have students from Tibet.
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And for the grad program, I say some of them are from China, but a lot of them are from
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abroad.
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International.
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International students.
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From America, from Europe, from Hungary, Canada.
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So it's a good mix of...
353
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Wow.
354
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That's very nice to know.
355
00:21:02,040 --> 00:21:06,760
So what's like overall culture on campus?
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Because we just talked about New York.
357
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So New York, it's an origin, right?
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It's the original Juilliard.
359
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Now it's the new campus in Tianjin and with the new people, new campus, and probably you're
360
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experiencing something different from what you've experienced.
361
00:21:26,920 --> 00:21:32,400
Basically the Tianjin Juilliard School as an institution, the way I think it has been
362
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conceived and the way it operates is not meant to be either competitive with the Juilliard
363
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School in New York or really other maybe universities around the world.
364
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It's sort of...
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It has created its own community and its own culture.
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And the kind of programs that we have, even for the graduate program, it's chamber music
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and orchestral studies and collaborative piano.
368
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It all focuses on collaboration.
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So even within China, it is not meant to be competitive with all of the other conservatories,
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like Central Conservatory or Shanghai Conservatory.
371
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It's meant to be something in addition or a different path, a different experience.
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00:22:20,960 --> 00:22:28,880
There's this whole system, the fuzhong system here in China, where students can go to one
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of the conservatories around China and also be involved in schooling at the same time.
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Oh, I see.
375
00:22:36,560 --> 00:22:40,160
This is a different system that we have here.
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A pre-college program conceived in the style of pre-college programs in the United States.
377
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So it is a Saturday program.
378
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It doesn't have anything else.
379
00:22:50,360 --> 00:22:52,720
It's not a school Monday through Friday.
380
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Students can still go to regular school, public schools, and have professional music studies
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on a Saturday.
382
00:23:00,920 --> 00:23:03,760
I remember reading this article.
383
00:23:03,760 --> 00:23:05,520
I think it was a Forbes.
384
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My friend Sophie, also you guys's colleague, I'm sure she shares some articles.
385
00:23:10,620 --> 00:23:14,920
And then these students were flying in every weekend to study at Tianjin Junior.
386
00:23:14,920 --> 00:23:17,920
Is that how they do it?
387
00:23:17,920 --> 00:23:21,360
It's similar actually in the pre-college in New York.
388
00:23:21,360 --> 00:23:25,560
People from all around the states are flying, even from Canada, if I remember correctly,
389
00:23:25,560 --> 00:23:30,720
were flying for a Saturday lesson, you know, full week of classes and then went back.
390
00:23:30,720 --> 00:23:37,740
The students are very committed to improving themselves and really learning through education.
391
00:23:37,740 --> 00:23:42,320
And I think Tianjin Junior School really tries to bring the essence of Western education
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00:23:42,320 --> 00:23:43,320
into China.
393
00:23:43,320 --> 00:23:45,280
We teach in English.
394
00:23:45,280 --> 00:23:46,280
Okay.
395
00:23:46,280 --> 00:23:49,160
So they have to learn English.
396
00:23:49,160 --> 00:23:53,240
They have English classes, English for musical purpose.
397
00:23:53,240 --> 00:23:54,920
We focus on collaboration.
398
00:23:54,920 --> 00:23:58,060
So all the students have to take chamber music.
399
00:23:58,060 --> 00:24:02,280
So it's a different concept of education.
400
00:24:02,280 --> 00:24:05,800
And I think it's a quite healthy one for our students.
401
00:24:05,800 --> 00:24:09,720
Yeah, quite progressive in so many ways.
402
00:24:09,720 --> 00:24:10,720
Yeah.
403
00:24:10,720 --> 00:24:14,480
Although, of course, classical music training itself is traditional.
404
00:24:14,480 --> 00:24:16,920
Yeah, that's very exciting.
405
00:24:16,920 --> 00:24:17,920
Yeah, absolutely.
406
00:24:17,920 --> 00:24:18,920
Yeah.
407
00:24:18,920 --> 00:24:25,840
There's a lot to be said about the Tianjin Junior School and the way it handles education
408
00:24:25,840 --> 00:24:26,840
in China.
409
00:24:26,840 --> 00:24:32,960
And so I think a lot of our students and our families are starting to see the merit of
410
00:24:32,960 --> 00:24:37,040
being enrolled in a program like this, as opposed to, let's say, the Fujian system or
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00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:39,600
the other conservatories around China.
412
00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:41,000
Again, it's not meant to be competitive.
413
00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:44,400
It's just a different experience, a different way.
414
00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:48,760
And this system, this pre-college system might not work for everybody because the kids have
415
00:24:48,760 --> 00:24:51,240
a very intense and packed day.
416
00:24:51,240 --> 00:24:56,000
Their day starts at 8.30 in the morning and often ends at 6.30 p.m.
417
00:24:56,000 --> 00:25:01,680
And in fact, during the travel time, they work very hard.
418
00:25:01,680 --> 00:25:06,280
And factoring on top of that, that Monday through Friday, the schooling in China is
419
00:25:06,280 --> 00:25:08,560
absolutely insane.
420
00:25:08,560 --> 00:25:13,640
They start from very early and sometimes they finish at 6, 7, 8 p.m.
421
00:25:13,640 --> 00:25:15,320
They come back from school.
422
00:25:15,320 --> 00:25:16,640
That's when they practice.
423
00:25:16,640 --> 00:25:19,740
That's when they start practicing a lot of our students.
424
00:25:19,740 --> 00:25:24,060
And then after they're done with all of this on a Friday, they start traveling either Friday
425
00:25:24,060 --> 00:25:30,080
night or in the dawn of Saturday just to get to school, have a full day of classes, travel
426
00:25:30,080 --> 00:25:32,320
back to where they come from.
427
00:25:32,320 --> 00:25:39,640
These students, I just can't praise them enough for their commitment and for their perseverance.
428
00:25:39,640 --> 00:25:44,880
I saw some videos of some of these students from your school.
429
00:25:44,880 --> 00:25:45,880
They play so beautifully.
430
00:25:45,880 --> 00:25:50,920
They play so professionally, especially the age group that we teach here in New York.
431
00:25:50,920 --> 00:25:52,560
I mean, it's different.
432
00:25:52,560 --> 00:25:55,880
We don't teach students that are going to professional schools right now.
433
00:25:55,880 --> 00:26:01,560
But sometimes I guilt my students, be like, see, you can be playing like that.
434
00:26:01,560 --> 00:26:07,880
But I'm quite proud for, because actually the Central Music Conservatory in Beijing
435
00:26:07,880 --> 00:26:09,680
also started off in Tianjin.
436
00:26:09,680 --> 00:26:13,280
So I went to the pre-college division in Tianjin.
437
00:26:13,280 --> 00:26:16,480
I'm from there, but I did not fully grew up there.
438
00:26:16,480 --> 00:26:19,400
I actually lived in a different city for a while as well.
439
00:26:19,400 --> 00:26:23,160
And the music training is always, I started as three.
440
00:26:23,160 --> 00:26:25,400
You have to go where your teacher is.
441
00:26:25,400 --> 00:26:32,880
But I remember my friend, she was attending in Tianjin Conservatory and her dad is a policeman
442
00:26:32,880 --> 00:26:40,200
who drives her, this police car, the siren, to Beijing to take a lesson on Sundays.
443
00:26:40,200 --> 00:26:42,880
You guys really remind me of those years.
444
00:26:42,880 --> 00:26:47,320
Now we want to segue to in your performing life.
445
00:26:47,320 --> 00:26:51,360
We know you are such wonderful musicians and performers.
446
00:26:51,360 --> 00:26:54,680
I've watched a lot of your videos.
447
00:26:54,680 --> 00:27:02,720
Well first of all, were you guys, how long have you guys been playing together as a duo?
448
00:27:02,720 --> 00:27:09,560
Did you become husband and wife first or did you start playing first, I assume?
449
00:27:09,560 --> 00:27:14,000
Well maybe five, six years that we've been together, playing together.
450
00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:15,000
Playing together, got it.
451
00:27:15,000 --> 00:27:20,880
We were always, you know, reading stuff together by playing for five, six years.
452
00:27:20,880 --> 00:27:27,840
We get to play more here because we have this Tianjin Julia Ensemble and we all play two
453
00:27:27,840 --> 00:27:30,920
piano or beforehand works.
454
00:27:30,920 --> 00:27:33,760
I saw even Shanghai Quartet was there recently.
455
00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:34,760
Was it recently?
456
00:27:34,760 --> 00:27:36,640
Yes, they are resident quartet here.
457
00:27:36,640 --> 00:27:40,840
They are actually permanently living and working at the Tianjin Julia School at the moment.
458
00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:44,280
Everybody is moving to Tianjin, oh my gosh!
459
00:27:44,280 --> 00:27:46,560
Come visit us!
460
00:27:46,560 --> 00:27:50,560
Now how can it be that the Shanghai string quartet is in Tianjin?
461
00:27:50,560 --> 00:27:51,560
Nobody knows.
462
00:27:51,560 --> 00:27:56,680
Well, you know, they won't say anything.
463
00:27:56,680 --> 00:27:58,400
So how is your experience?
464
00:27:58,400 --> 00:28:05,400
You know, I know you taught in West Virginia and also in Texas, right?
465
00:28:05,400 --> 00:28:13,040
And you know, compared that to Taiwan and obviously to New York, what do you feel from
466
00:28:13,040 --> 00:28:15,440
the audience perspective and from colleagues?
467
00:28:15,440 --> 00:28:21,440
I mean, obviously you have colleagues of top notch from all around the world.
468
00:28:21,440 --> 00:28:26,680
Or even teaching these students that they are Chinese, right?
469
00:28:26,680 --> 00:28:29,800
Most of them are the pre-college students.
470
00:28:29,800 --> 00:28:32,560
I assume they have not been abroad before.
471
00:28:32,560 --> 00:28:38,560
Do they expect you to speak any Chinese sometimes or are they all pretty good with English?
472
00:28:38,560 --> 00:28:40,520
I think very.
473
00:28:40,520 --> 00:28:46,520
Some of them are excellent in English, some of them need to speak in Chinese.
474
00:28:46,520 --> 00:28:48,320
And I'm trying to push them to learn English.
475
00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:51,120
It's such a universal language and it's good for them.
476
00:28:51,120 --> 00:28:57,400
So I'm hoping those who need lessons in Chinese will soon convert to completely English.
477
00:28:57,400 --> 00:29:03,000
But your question of how does it feel to go from higher ed to teaching in pre-college
478
00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:05,680
and in China?
479
00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:08,520
I think in a way it's different.
480
00:29:08,520 --> 00:29:11,080
But on the other hand, it's the same.
481
00:29:11,080 --> 00:29:13,120
It's education.
482
00:29:13,120 --> 00:29:20,520
You know, you're teaching kids or college students to play better and also at the same
483
00:29:20,520 --> 00:29:24,840
time to be their guide and be their mentor in a way.
484
00:29:24,840 --> 00:29:27,560
So to express themselves.
485
00:29:27,560 --> 00:29:28,720
Yes.
486
00:29:28,720 --> 00:29:33,320
And I think in terms of just purely teaching, I don't think it differs that much.
487
00:29:33,320 --> 00:29:40,200
I mean, teaching highly depends on how talented the student is, no matter what age group and
488
00:29:40,200 --> 00:29:42,680
how hard they are willing to work.
489
00:29:42,680 --> 00:29:45,520
Then of course their relationship with the teacher.
490
00:29:45,520 --> 00:29:50,400
So I think any age group, perhaps not adults, because that's a little bit late and they
491
00:29:50,400 --> 00:29:56,200
usually learn for fun, but any other age group, they have good relationship in those three
492
00:29:56,200 --> 00:29:57,200
areas.
493
00:29:57,200 --> 00:30:02,400
I just mentioned, I feel they could advance very far in the higher ed.
494
00:30:02,400 --> 00:30:06,720
You see more students that are interested in other things.
495
00:30:06,720 --> 00:30:11,240
For example, it might be music education, music therapy, music industry.
496
00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:15,460
So their focus is different from the kids we are teaching right now.
497
00:30:15,460 --> 00:30:19,320
The kids we're teaching right now, they want to go into music professionally.
498
00:30:19,320 --> 00:30:23,040
So I think as a teacher, you have to adjust and adapt.
499
00:30:23,040 --> 00:30:25,440
There's no one student that's the same.
500
00:30:25,440 --> 00:30:26,440
And I'm learning.
501
00:30:26,440 --> 00:30:31,840
I always feel I'm learning so much from my student how to be a better teacher and better
502
00:30:31,840 --> 00:30:38,280
player because after so many years of teaching, I still run into teaching questions and teaching
503
00:30:38,280 --> 00:30:41,480
problems and you learn from it.
504
00:30:41,480 --> 00:30:46,880
So I'm growing as a teacher and my students are growing as well.
505
00:30:46,880 --> 00:30:54,320
But I feel no matter where you teach, either privately or in an institution, in a pre-college
506
00:30:54,320 --> 00:31:00,480
or in conservatories, I feel it's important to show them good examples as a person, how
507
00:31:00,480 --> 00:31:03,600
to behave well, how to be a good person.
508
00:31:03,600 --> 00:31:09,240
And I do believe to be a good musician starts being a good person.
509
00:31:09,240 --> 00:31:12,200
That's what I try to instill in my studio.
510
00:31:12,200 --> 00:31:17,520
And I think the biggest challenge about teaching these college students is to convince them
511
00:31:17,520 --> 00:31:24,720
to practice a little bit less and to do other things besides piano.
512
00:31:24,720 --> 00:31:30,640
We ran into an opposite problem from what we had in the United States.
513
00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:37,920
Over practicing and over singular, there's a singular focus.
514
00:31:37,920 --> 00:31:43,760
And I think for a lot of the students, it will be more rewarding if they could broaden
515
00:31:43,760 --> 00:31:50,120
their horizons a bit and further than their piano bands and their piano keys.
516
00:31:50,120 --> 00:31:58,080
But isn't that maybe one of the major cultural differences per se?
517
00:31:58,080 --> 00:32:06,680
So the Chinese, I don't want to stereotype them, but there's a cultural background of
518
00:32:06,680 --> 00:32:10,920
once they determine, they just go all the way sort of thing.
519
00:32:10,920 --> 00:32:12,600
I'm Asian, obviously.
520
00:32:12,600 --> 00:32:16,080
I'm from Japan originally, but I'm Korean.
521
00:32:16,080 --> 00:32:20,800
So we have this sort of determination.
522
00:32:20,800 --> 00:32:23,640
That's how we were taught as a young child.
523
00:32:23,640 --> 00:32:29,920
So as opposed to here in the United States, kids have more choices.
524
00:32:29,920 --> 00:32:31,520
You can take it easy.
525
00:32:31,520 --> 00:32:38,160
If you really like this, then you have the choice of drive yourself and work hard.
526
00:32:38,160 --> 00:32:40,200
But there's a difference.
527
00:32:40,200 --> 00:32:43,160
And do you feel that in teaching?
528
00:32:43,160 --> 00:32:44,160
Yeah.
529
00:32:44,160 --> 00:32:45,160
Sure.
530
00:32:45,160 --> 00:32:46,160
Yes, sure.
531
00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:49,880
The ancient Greeks, I'm going to look back into my heritage.
532
00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:52,560
The ancient Greek said, pan metron ariston.
533
00:32:52,560 --> 00:32:53,560
That's in Greek.
534
00:32:53,560 --> 00:33:01,240
Basically, you have to find the right balance for things, nothing in excess.
535
00:33:01,240 --> 00:33:07,840
In order to lead a healthy life, you have to find the balance between your work, your
536
00:33:07,840 --> 00:33:13,520
study, your friends, your family, or whatever it is, you have to strike the balance.
537
00:33:13,520 --> 00:33:15,760
It's hard to find and it takes a lot of time.
538
00:33:15,760 --> 00:33:21,160
But I think as teachers, we have to guide the students towards finding that balance.
539
00:33:21,160 --> 00:33:26,180
I think there's just so many piano teachers nowadays.
540
00:33:26,180 --> 00:33:29,040
There's so many really great artists and pianists.
541
00:33:29,040 --> 00:33:35,600
And more or less everybody can teach for the piano, crescendo, dibbinoendo, all of this
542
00:33:35,600 --> 00:33:37,600
technical musical jargon.
543
00:33:37,600 --> 00:33:43,520
But I think it's more important that you guide your students towards leading a healthy life.
544
00:33:43,520 --> 00:33:46,920
That's what our teachers at Juilliard, I think, did for us.
545
00:33:46,920 --> 00:33:52,560
And also, without underestimating the importance of dedication.
546
00:33:52,560 --> 00:33:58,800
I think to excel in any field, you must work very hard and you must have passion, especially
547
00:33:58,800 --> 00:34:00,080
for music.
548
00:34:00,080 --> 00:34:03,080
So these kids, they have those already.
549
00:34:03,080 --> 00:34:06,320
And they came in having dedication and passion.
550
00:34:06,320 --> 00:34:08,200
So our job is slightly different.
551
00:34:08,200 --> 00:34:11,680
We have to make sure they're living well-balanced lives.
552
00:34:11,680 --> 00:34:14,040
Yeah, temper them.
553
00:34:14,040 --> 00:34:19,920
Well, especially they have to travel so much over the weekend to come to study, right?
554
00:34:19,920 --> 00:34:21,920
And they stay there the whole entire day.
555
00:34:21,920 --> 00:34:27,760
And because I went to a conservatory there, so I was already viewed as an odd kid because
556
00:34:27,760 --> 00:34:34,120
we had sort of a college level class set up since we were 11.
557
00:34:34,120 --> 00:34:39,320
So you can see me on the street after five o'clock where most other students, they have
558
00:34:39,320 --> 00:34:42,280
to study until like 10, 11, I don't know.
559
00:34:42,280 --> 00:34:49,560
I don't know how these students, especially if they are already, they're also in other
560
00:34:49,560 --> 00:34:54,240
middle school, high school, like general schools.
561
00:34:54,240 --> 00:34:56,160
How can they find the time to even?
562
00:34:56,160 --> 00:34:59,560
It's very hard.
563
00:34:59,560 --> 00:35:05,280
And according to many of our students, according to many sources, pre-college days, they're
564
00:35:05,280 --> 00:35:06,280
highlights.
565
00:35:06,280 --> 00:35:07,280
They're the highlight of their week.
566
00:35:07,280 --> 00:35:08,280
They love it.
567
00:35:08,280 --> 00:35:12,000
They don't want to go back to regular school.
568
00:35:12,000 --> 00:35:13,000
They just want to stay there.
569
00:35:13,000 --> 00:35:15,960
They love watching their friends and their community in there.
570
00:35:15,960 --> 00:35:18,680
It's just, yeah, it's a great day.
571
00:35:18,680 --> 00:35:22,320
It's action packed.
572
00:35:22,320 --> 00:35:24,640
But I can understand the fatigue.
573
00:35:24,640 --> 00:35:29,280
It takes a toll on everybody's health.
574
00:35:29,280 --> 00:35:31,440
And it's a great exposure for them.
575
00:35:31,440 --> 00:35:34,960
But how is dealing with parents?
576
00:35:34,960 --> 00:35:40,000
Or do you get to deal with parents or they just drop the kids off and they go shopping?
577
00:35:40,000 --> 00:35:43,520
Actually, all the parents are very dedicated too.
578
00:35:43,520 --> 00:35:45,600
They are there the whole day together.
579
00:35:45,600 --> 00:35:46,600
Oh my gosh.
580
00:35:46,600 --> 00:35:47,600
Yes.
581
00:35:47,600 --> 00:35:48,600
Yeah.
582
00:35:48,600 --> 00:35:49,600
They are.
583
00:35:49,600 --> 00:35:52,440
I have to say most of the parents in my studio are just wonderful.
584
00:35:52,440 --> 00:35:53,440
Yeah.
585
00:35:53,440 --> 00:35:54,840
Most of them were fantastic.
586
00:35:54,840 --> 00:36:00,440
And of course, there are one or two here and there that are a little bit harder to deal
587
00:36:00,440 --> 00:36:01,440
with, but that's normal.
588
00:36:01,440 --> 00:36:03,360
I think that's normal everywhere.
589
00:36:03,360 --> 00:36:11,400
But I think these parents, I think they have a different goal for their children by sending
590
00:36:11,400 --> 00:36:14,320
them to the Tianjin Junior School.
591
00:36:14,320 --> 00:36:20,120
I think they do want them to be exposed to Western culture, to Western style of teaching,
592
00:36:20,120 --> 00:36:23,400
potentially sending their kids abroad.
593
00:36:23,400 --> 00:36:26,480
And so I think they came in with a different mentality already.
594
00:36:26,480 --> 00:36:27,480
Wow.
595
00:36:27,480 --> 00:36:29,720
That's a different perspective.
596
00:36:29,720 --> 00:36:30,900
I didn't realize that.
597
00:36:30,900 --> 00:36:36,600
I was really thinking of just music school and because it's Juilliard, so the parents
598
00:36:36,600 --> 00:36:40,280
would send those kids to Tianjin Juilliard School.
599
00:36:40,280 --> 00:36:42,720
But yeah, there's that aspect of it too.
600
00:36:42,720 --> 00:36:46,720
And especially on campus, you guys are speaking in English mainly, right?
601
00:36:46,720 --> 00:36:47,720
Yes.
602
00:36:47,720 --> 00:36:48,720
Makes sense.
603
00:36:48,720 --> 00:36:49,720
Makes sense.
604
00:36:49,720 --> 00:36:50,720
Professionalism is there.
605
00:36:50,720 --> 00:36:51,720
Don't get us wrong.
606
00:36:51,720 --> 00:36:52,720
Definitely.
607
00:36:52,720 --> 00:36:53,720
Of course.
608
00:36:53,720 --> 00:36:54,720
We ask for excellence.
609
00:36:54,720 --> 00:37:00,400
We ask for a super quality of playing.
610
00:37:00,400 --> 00:37:05,760
But we're talking about the other area that's not usually addressed in a regular school.
611
00:37:05,760 --> 00:37:11,840
No, the level of the students is very, very high and the dedication and the passion and
612
00:37:11,840 --> 00:37:15,280
the excitement about doing music and playing the piano is there.
613
00:37:15,280 --> 00:37:22,880
And I think there is this idea that everybody wants to become a superstar.
614
00:37:22,880 --> 00:37:27,320
I think that's why they also work so hard.
615
00:37:27,320 --> 00:37:36,720
I think Lang Lang as a personality, he has been a prodigious and he has changed everything
616
00:37:36,720 --> 00:37:40,720
about classical music in the world and certainly in China.
617
00:37:40,720 --> 00:37:46,560
So he's a role model for a lot of the students, the piano students.
618
00:37:46,560 --> 00:37:52,360
And there's nothing inherently wrong with that, with wanting to be a star and wanting to,
619
00:37:52,360 --> 00:37:53,360
nothing wrong with that.
620
00:37:53,360 --> 00:37:57,160
But it's not the only way.
621
00:37:57,160 --> 00:38:00,280
And I think that's important also to get across.
622
00:38:00,280 --> 00:38:01,520
Yeah, makes sense.
623
00:38:01,520 --> 00:38:02,520
Makes sense.
624
00:38:02,520 --> 00:38:06,920
That's something also as an educator, it's important, right?
625
00:38:06,920 --> 00:38:10,440
Because music is not about becoming a famous person.
626
00:38:10,440 --> 00:38:12,000
Music is about passion.
627
00:38:12,000 --> 00:38:14,840
Music lives within us.
628
00:38:14,840 --> 00:38:16,520
And so it's free of that.
629
00:38:16,520 --> 00:38:18,880
What do you think of some sort of myth?
630
00:38:18,880 --> 00:38:24,440
It's a completely different, I mean, it just goes off the rail a little bit, but I'm thinking
631
00:38:24,440 --> 00:38:29,680
because you mentioned something about, okay, the music is for anyone to express, right?
632
00:38:29,680 --> 00:38:35,780
But then there's the notion of, especially I hear this among people that I sometimes
633
00:38:35,780 --> 00:38:43,000
deal with, then classical musicians are so trained to become this one thing.
634
00:38:43,000 --> 00:38:47,920
And so are you guys even be creative?
635
00:38:47,920 --> 00:38:50,440
So how do you answer that?
636
00:38:50,440 --> 00:38:52,440
If we can be creative.
637
00:38:52,440 --> 00:38:53,440
Yeah.
638
00:38:53,440 --> 00:38:59,600
Or are we even be creative on using music?
639
00:38:59,600 --> 00:39:05,800
And I always answer, well, actually playing classical music by Chopin or Beethoven, we
640
00:39:05,800 --> 00:39:13,580
are actually be creative of interpreting the phrase, for example, right?
641
00:39:13,580 --> 00:39:17,740
Or expressing, because yes, there is the phrase that we follow.
642
00:39:17,740 --> 00:39:22,640
There's a marking, crescendo, minimendo, piano, all these things, forzando, we follow.
643
00:39:22,640 --> 00:39:25,040
However, there is of course me.
644
00:39:25,040 --> 00:39:26,820
I am playing.
645
00:39:26,820 --> 00:39:34,640
I'm not a machine, so I'm not this machine where you press the button and then robot,
646
00:39:34,640 --> 00:39:37,720
but I'm a person and then there's my interpretation.
647
00:39:37,720 --> 00:39:43,680
So that's my way of being expressive and that's my way of being creative.
648
00:39:43,680 --> 00:39:51,040
I mean, not to erase the piano forte on the score, but what do you think of that notion?
649
00:39:51,040 --> 00:39:58,520
Well, I think musicians, artists in general are inherently creative.
650
00:39:58,520 --> 00:40:06,200
I cannot imagine a person that is not creative that can be a good musician.
651
00:40:06,200 --> 00:40:09,840
Maybe there's a lot of bad musicians that are not creative.
652
00:40:09,840 --> 00:40:17,000
I think anybody half-decent, anybody committed, anybody with a smidge of a talent and the
653
00:40:17,000 --> 00:40:21,880
passion for music, I think it's impossible to say that they are not creative.
654
00:40:21,880 --> 00:40:27,720
I think we find creativity in all aspects of our lives, in fact.
655
00:40:27,720 --> 00:40:32,880
The industry and the job itself is one creative, working with students.
656
00:40:32,880 --> 00:40:37,280
You have to be creative about how to solve problems.
657
00:40:37,280 --> 00:40:42,760
I'm not even talking just about musical problems.
658
00:40:42,760 --> 00:40:47,760
Everybody has their own set of problems about life too.
659
00:40:47,760 --> 00:40:52,120
The way you're going to handle some of these questions and the way you're going to guide
660
00:40:52,120 --> 00:40:59,080
them, the way you're going to resolve technical problems on the piano, moving around the keyboard
661
00:40:59,080 --> 00:41:05,080
is highly, it requires top-notch coordination and reflexes.
662
00:41:05,080 --> 00:41:10,120
How do you build a solid technical foundation so that you can be more creative while you
663
00:41:10,120 --> 00:41:11,120
perform?
664
00:41:11,120 --> 00:41:14,200
That in and of itself is a challenge.
665
00:41:14,200 --> 00:41:18,120
I think educators, I'm going to take it a step further, I think educators in general
666
00:41:18,120 --> 00:41:24,480
are the most creative people that are out there because there are so many challenges
667
00:41:24,480 --> 00:41:30,200
that they have to face every day in the classroom or dealing with a range of students and parents
668
00:41:30,200 --> 00:41:37,160
and colleagues and administration and school and their own art and their own.
669
00:41:37,160 --> 00:41:39,120
I don't know if this answers the question.
670
00:41:39,120 --> 00:41:40,120
Yeah, it does.
671
00:41:40,120 --> 00:41:42,320
Yes, do you need to add anything, Ching-Wen?
672
00:41:42,320 --> 00:41:44,680
No, I think it's very well said.
673
00:41:44,680 --> 00:41:46,600
I absolutely agree.
674
00:41:46,600 --> 00:41:55,720
And I do think musicians are one of the most adaptable people to situations and to life
675
00:41:55,720 --> 00:41:57,360
changes.
676
00:41:57,360 --> 00:42:03,640
I feel they're so focused in a way and that's where the creativity comes in.
677
00:42:03,640 --> 00:42:07,120
They're so focused, they're very skilled and they're creative.
678
00:42:07,120 --> 00:42:11,480
So they usually are excellent in many different areas.
679
00:42:11,480 --> 00:42:17,880
You see many of our colleagues that went into law, went into medicine, went into cooking,
680
00:42:17,880 --> 00:42:20,360
excel in all areas.
681
00:42:20,360 --> 00:42:26,160
And I think that's a proven fact that it's important to learn music and it's good to
682
00:42:26,160 --> 00:42:29,720
be a musician because you have even more options.
683
00:42:29,720 --> 00:42:35,840
Even if you don't want to become a pianist or performer in the future, you can do many,
684
00:42:35,840 --> 00:42:37,200
many things and you'll do well.
685
00:42:37,200 --> 00:42:40,200
You'll excel in life.
686
00:42:40,200 --> 00:42:48,280
In fact, I don't quite think that the pre-college here in Tange and Julia School is exactly
687
00:42:48,280 --> 00:42:52,040
the same as the pre-college in New York.
688
00:42:52,040 --> 00:42:56,320
But I would say that a lot of the students, pre-college students in New York, they are
689
00:42:56,320 --> 00:43:02,880
very, very driven and they have so many different interests.
690
00:43:02,880 --> 00:43:08,120
And they do everything on high level.
691
00:43:08,120 --> 00:43:14,800
And so it is not uncommon for some of the pre-college in New York to go into a different
692
00:43:14,800 --> 00:43:16,320
path when they graduate.
693
00:43:16,320 --> 00:43:21,720
A lot of the students really don't necessarily want to become professional musicians.
694
00:43:21,720 --> 00:43:27,160
And yet they spend all the time that we know, we know how the time commitment that you need
695
00:43:27,160 --> 00:43:30,080
to have to do well, right?
696
00:43:30,080 --> 00:43:36,640
At such a competitive field and that requires so much attention.
697
00:43:36,640 --> 00:43:38,080
And they do it at the highest level.
698
00:43:38,080 --> 00:43:40,680
And that's just one of their interests.
699
00:43:40,680 --> 00:43:44,760
And then they become, they succeed in all these other fields.
700
00:43:44,760 --> 00:43:53,240
Pre-college, I would say specifically, is not necessarily about building the next generations
701
00:43:53,240 --> 00:43:57,520
of musicians, but it's about building the next generation of humans.
702
00:43:57,520 --> 00:43:58,520
Wow.
703
00:43:58,520 --> 00:43:59,520
I think so.
704
00:43:59,520 --> 00:44:00,520
Wow.
705
00:44:00,520 --> 00:44:05,680
But you know, all the musical training will teach anyone to be disciplined about things
706
00:44:05,680 --> 00:44:08,720
and teaches you how to practice, right?
707
00:44:08,720 --> 00:44:09,720
Yeah.
708
00:44:09,720 --> 00:44:10,720
Practicing.
709
00:44:10,720 --> 00:44:11,720
Anything.
710
00:44:11,720 --> 00:44:12,720
Anything.
711
00:44:12,720 --> 00:44:13,720
Exactly.
712
00:44:13,720 --> 00:44:16,300
You can apply that, but you can start by doing musical training.
713
00:44:16,300 --> 00:44:22,020
You can start from really young about discipline and what practice does to your mind and does
714
00:44:22,020 --> 00:44:23,020
to your life.
715
00:44:23,020 --> 00:44:28,400
I think that's one of the very important lessons of playing the piano and then playing the
716
00:44:28,400 --> 00:44:33,280
piano to the point of really in a much higher level.
717
00:44:33,280 --> 00:44:38,320
And if music is really the child's calling, wonderful, go for it.
718
00:44:38,320 --> 00:44:39,320
Yeah.
719
00:44:39,320 --> 00:44:40,320
Yeah.
720
00:44:40,320 --> 00:44:45,120
It's about encouraging the students to find their voice.
721
00:44:45,120 --> 00:44:46,120
Wow.
722
00:44:46,120 --> 00:44:48,320
Your students are very fortunate to have you.
723
00:44:48,320 --> 00:44:51,280
I mean, yeah, sure.
724
00:44:51,280 --> 00:44:55,920
Then my last, I may ask more, but for now, this would be my last one.
725
00:44:55,920 --> 00:45:03,960
So then right now, well, especially in the United States, I think culture is changing.
726
00:45:03,960 --> 00:45:08,560
And as a classical musician, I'm not sure if you agree or not, but I'm getting this
727
00:45:08,560 --> 00:45:15,520
sort of ideas or sort of opinions a lot because we do obviously podcasting.
728
00:45:15,520 --> 00:45:17,600
So we get some comments.
729
00:45:17,600 --> 00:45:22,240
Do you think we need a little bit more tools in our toolbox?
730
00:45:22,240 --> 00:45:27,560
Twenty-first century musicians are required to be a little bit more than just pianists.
731
00:45:27,560 --> 00:45:34,600
Let's say I have my own piano studio, so somewhat I'm considered entrepreneur.
732
00:45:34,600 --> 00:45:41,240
I have to study a little bit about marketing or business or finance part of, I mean, anybody
733
00:45:41,240 --> 00:45:43,000
should learn about finance.
734
00:45:43,000 --> 00:45:50,560
But what do you think of that, about this notion of, let's say, as a musician, should
735
00:45:50,560 --> 00:45:53,040
we have many different skills?
736
00:45:53,040 --> 00:45:59,600
I think it is what you're describing is, you know, we are musicians and we always think
737
00:45:59,600 --> 00:46:04,880
everything in line of music.
738
00:46:04,880 --> 00:46:13,520
But I think what you're describing is a 21st century problem in anything you do.
739
00:46:13,520 --> 00:46:19,640
If you're a dentist, you still have to market yourself because there's so many other dentists
740
00:46:19,640 --> 00:46:20,640
out there.
741
00:46:20,640 --> 00:46:29,240
You know, we live in an era where there's just so much over-specialization and everybody's
742
00:46:29,240 --> 00:46:34,920
educated, everybody goes to college, everybody has degrees, everybody.
743
00:46:34,920 --> 00:46:43,160
It is pretty much impossible to find students nowadays, graduates of conservatories or universities
744
00:46:43,160 --> 00:46:49,080
that don't have at least a master's, most of them even a PhD.
745
00:46:49,080 --> 00:46:52,280
You know, that didn't used to be the case.
746
00:46:52,280 --> 00:46:55,320
But now we live in this era of over-specialization.
747
00:46:55,320 --> 00:47:01,460
You need to have A and B and C and maybe D and then you can start thinking about building
748
00:47:01,460 --> 00:47:03,120
your career and your life.
749
00:47:03,120 --> 00:47:05,600
And so it's just very, very competitive.
750
00:47:05,600 --> 00:47:13,160
There's too many people in all fields and it's a matter of, you know, demand and it's
751
00:47:13,160 --> 00:47:15,640
a matter of, you know.
752
00:47:15,640 --> 00:47:20,840
So I think, is it maybe more for music?
753
00:47:20,840 --> 00:47:22,840
Does it pertain a little bit more to music?
754
00:47:22,840 --> 00:47:23,840
Possibly.
755
00:47:23,840 --> 00:47:28,400
Possibly I don't have the necessary data to say for sure.
756
00:47:28,400 --> 00:47:31,040
Possibly it is maybe a little bit more challenging for music.
757
00:47:31,040 --> 00:47:41,200
So does it hurt to be invested in different things and to know a thing or two about finances
758
00:47:41,200 --> 00:47:42,200
and business?
759
00:47:42,200 --> 00:47:43,360
And of course not.
760
00:47:43,360 --> 00:47:46,680
I think it's a healthy thing to do.
761
00:47:46,680 --> 00:47:49,000
It's not necessary always though.
762
00:47:49,000 --> 00:47:50,960
Not everybody has to be an entrepreneur.
763
00:47:50,960 --> 00:47:56,360
You see, I am against the idea that it is absolutely necessary.
764
00:47:56,360 --> 00:48:01,440
If somebody does not want to be an entrepreneur and just wants to play the piano and teach
765
00:48:01,440 --> 00:48:05,640
the piano, I think that's okay.
766
00:48:05,640 --> 00:48:12,920
If you want to create something of your own, a festival, a podcast, a competition, great.
767
00:48:12,920 --> 00:48:13,920
Go ahead and do it.
768
00:48:13,920 --> 00:48:18,520
You live in a time where you can do this fairly comfortably and easily.
769
00:48:18,520 --> 00:48:22,000
But I don't think, I don't want to pass on to my students that if they don't want to
770
00:48:22,000 --> 00:48:28,280
do something, they have to do it in order to succeed, you know, just to get there.
771
00:48:28,280 --> 00:48:30,000
More flexible in that way.
772
00:48:30,000 --> 00:48:36,000
And just to add, I think it has always been this case, but even more so now in the 21st
773
00:48:36,000 --> 00:48:39,640
century, that it's important for artists to be well-rounded.
774
00:48:39,640 --> 00:48:42,800
It's not enough just to play the piano well.
775
00:48:42,800 --> 00:48:47,360
The golden age of winning one competition and you get a lifetime concert career, it's
776
00:48:47,360 --> 00:48:48,360
done already.
777
00:48:48,360 --> 00:48:49,360
It's long gone.
778
00:48:49,360 --> 00:48:52,880
There are so many more competitions out there, amazing players.
779
00:48:52,880 --> 00:49:00,840
So that forces the current musicians to think outside of the box and to equip themselves
780
00:49:00,840 --> 00:49:07,760
with more tools, more skills, people skill, marketing skill, business, all sorts of things
781
00:49:07,760 --> 00:49:13,200
that you think of that could further advance your career.
782
00:49:13,200 --> 00:49:18,040
I think it has become more so now in the current era.
783
00:49:18,040 --> 00:49:23,360
And I think that's what we're trying to instill in our kids here at pre-college.
784
00:49:23,360 --> 00:49:26,600
Do not just sit in the practice room for 12 hours a day.
785
00:49:26,600 --> 00:49:28,600
That's not how you become successful.
786
00:49:28,600 --> 00:49:29,600
Not now.
787
00:49:29,600 --> 00:49:30,600
Yeah.
788
00:49:30,600 --> 00:49:35,440
And maybe we go through a cycle, you know, history always cycle itself.
789
00:49:35,440 --> 00:49:40,280
Maybe in 10, 20 years, you know, the golden era of winning competition and have a career
790
00:49:40,280 --> 00:49:41,280
will come back.
791
00:49:41,280 --> 00:49:43,800
But for now, they need to think outside the box.
792
00:49:43,800 --> 00:49:45,600
They need to be well-rounded.
793
00:49:45,600 --> 00:49:48,240
And that ties to the previous question about creativity.
794
00:49:48,240 --> 00:49:54,600
You have to be creative about how you're going to present yourself.
795
00:49:54,600 --> 00:49:58,500
The bottom line is you have to be excellent in what you do.
796
00:49:58,500 --> 00:50:03,320
You have to be an excellent player in order to be successful.
797
00:50:03,320 --> 00:50:05,480
Everything is built on top of that.
798
00:50:05,480 --> 00:50:09,200
Yeah, it's important to strive for excellence in everything you do.
799
00:50:09,200 --> 00:50:14,160
And it's important that you're genuine about what you want to do and what you do and that
800
00:50:14,160 --> 00:50:17,800
you wake up every day and you do the things that you want to do.
801
00:50:17,800 --> 00:50:21,880
You know, that's what's going to make you a successful person in what you do.
802
00:50:21,880 --> 00:50:25,680
If you enjoy to the maximum, you know, what you do.
803
00:50:25,680 --> 00:50:28,840
Well, so now I want to bring the elephant in.
804
00:50:28,840 --> 00:50:37,200
How was the pandemic affecting you guys or maybe I don't know how it's like in Tianjin.
805
00:50:37,200 --> 00:50:40,320
I became an American citizen right before the lockdown.
806
00:50:40,320 --> 00:50:43,960
So now I cannot even go back to visit my parents.
807
00:50:43,960 --> 00:50:47,600
But I see obviously what they are doing every day.
808
00:50:47,600 --> 00:50:53,840
And it seems like my mother is very involved in the local community that she is a model
809
00:50:53,840 --> 00:50:55,480
at 62 years old.
810
00:50:55,480 --> 00:50:59,600
So she does all these concerts and my dad is very musical as well.
811
00:50:59,600 --> 00:51:00,600
They are not musicians.
812
00:51:00,600 --> 00:51:06,200
So I see it's almost like they're not even that affected until this recent time.
813
00:51:06,200 --> 00:51:08,760
So I want to hear from you guys.
814
00:51:08,760 --> 00:51:13,280
What was it like for you guys being foreigners in China?
815
00:51:13,280 --> 00:51:17,880
Well, we moved here in September 2020.
816
00:51:17,880 --> 00:51:21,480
You know, it's basically right at the peak of pandemic in the state.
817
00:51:21,480 --> 00:51:27,000
So we felt really, really lucky to be coming to China at this time.
818
00:51:27,000 --> 00:51:31,360
We have lots of concerts we were able to teach in person.
819
00:51:31,360 --> 00:51:36,680
So we have fairly normal musical life last year.
820
00:51:36,680 --> 00:51:41,720
This year, I feel due to the Olympics that they're trying to make sure the country is
821
00:51:41,720 --> 00:51:42,720
in good shape.
822
00:51:42,720 --> 00:51:45,720
They're even more stringent this year.
823
00:51:45,720 --> 00:51:51,360
So currently we're teaching online and we hope the Chinese New Year you opened up again.
824
00:51:51,360 --> 00:51:56,640
And overall, you know, if you compare the number of cases in China with other countries,
825
00:51:56,640 --> 00:51:59,040
this is day and night.
826
00:51:59,040 --> 00:52:03,680
You know, just recently they found two cases in Tianjin and they locked the whole city
827
00:52:03,680 --> 00:52:06,500
down and that's how effective they are.
828
00:52:06,500 --> 00:52:11,280
So we're really in awe with the efficiency of the government.
829
00:52:11,280 --> 00:52:17,920
The mechanisms in place to ensure the health, you know, the public health.
830
00:52:17,920 --> 00:52:23,760
It is just I don't think it's conceivable by a lot of the Western countries.
831
00:52:23,760 --> 00:52:28,960
The idea that, you know, you find a couple of cases and immediately you lock down.
832
00:52:28,960 --> 00:52:36,680
Well, it's not lockdown, but immediately, you know, city-wide testing.
833
00:52:36,680 --> 00:52:39,520
We're talking about the city of 14 million people.
834
00:52:39,520 --> 00:52:45,480
14 million people and they were all tested within a weekend and then they were tested
835
00:52:45,480 --> 00:52:46,480
another three times.
836
00:52:46,480 --> 00:52:48,440
Eight, nine times, right?
837
00:52:48,440 --> 00:52:53,640
Some of them were tested from the certain districts that were in close proximity with
838
00:52:53,640 --> 00:52:54,640
the cases.
839
00:52:54,640 --> 00:52:57,200
They had 10 tests.
840
00:52:57,200 --> 00:52:59,640
I mean, this is inconceivable.
841
00:52:59,640 --> 00:53:04,360
Nobody can fathom something like this happening anywhere else.
842
00:53:04,360 --> 00:53:10,520
To that fast, that efficiently and, you know, with the results.
843
00:53:10,520 --> 00:53:18,880
So I think it's that kind of urgency that has allowed us to live fairly normal lives
844
00:53:18,880 --> 00:53:22,520
during the past two years.
845
00:53:22,520 --> 00:53:27,320
We walk out and, you know, we wear our masks when, you know, especially when, you know,
846
00:53:27,320 --> 00:53:31,560
when you go into malls or, you know, the train station or some public spaces.
847
00:53:31,560 --> 00:53:33,540
But overall, you can walk out freely.
848
00:53:33,540 --> 00:53:34,540
You can go shopping.
849
00:53:34,540 --> 00:53:35,540
You can eat.
850
00:53:35,540 --> 00:53:36,780
It hasn't, nothing has been closed.
851
00:53:36,780 --> 00:53:41,240
We can travel fairly okay even within the country, you know.
852
00:53:41,240 --> 00:53:46,160
A lot of our colleagues travel to Sanya or, you know, some other places all around.
853
00:53:46,160 --> 00:53:51,760
We went to Shanghai for, you know, for, you know, New Year's and, you know, Christmas.
854
00:53:51,760 --> 00:53:59,040
So it's, you know, it has been normal and we, you know, in Greece it has been challenging.
855
00:53:59,040 --> 00:54:00,720
We have many cases.
856
00:54:00,720 --> 00:54:05,200
Pretty much by now all of my family has caught COVID at one time.
857
00:54:05,200 --> 00:54:06,200
Oh really?
858
00:54:06,200 --> 00:54:07,200
Yeah.
859
00:54:07,200 --> 00:54:13,920
Even right now my nephew and my sister and here my brother-in-law, they all had COVID.
860
00:54:13,920 --> 00:54:19,800
And it's impossible to avoid because it's just 10,000 cases every day, you know.
861
00:54:19,800 --> 00:54:22,840
But they had lockdown, severe lockdowns for a long time.
862
00:54:22,840 --> 00:54:26,080
So they were very desperate to reopen the country.
863
00:54:26,080 --> 00:54:28,920
Well here it's so far.
864
00:54:28,920 --> 00:54:35,280
I mean the funny thing is that I see, you know, sometimes, you know, I'm a little westernized,
865
00:54:35,280 --> 00:54:39,680
but when it comes to this, you know, situation, I kind of juggle my, you know, good thing
866
00:54:39,680 --> 00:54:44,280
is I work for myself and I, all of my students are online so I don't really have to.
867
00:54:44,280 --> 00:54:48,480
But you know, most of my friends up to this new year have caught it.
868
00:54:48,480 --> 00:54:53,640
And you know, luckily nobody is super, super sick and, you know, most of us have had the
869
00:54:53,640 --> 00:54:54,640
three shots.
870
00:54:54,640 --> 00:54:59,840
But you know, when I'm seeing what China is doing, where my parents, my relatives,
871
00:54:59,840 --> 00:55:04,360
my friends, even my 11 year old niece, she's not even complaining, you know.
872
00:55:04,360 --> 00:55:09,840
It's kind of shocking to me how everybody just kind of, you know, okay, this is it.
873
00:55:09,840 --> 00:55:11,120
Let's all go downstairs.
874
00:55:11,120 --> 00:55:14,120
And you know, they were doing some testing like three or four o'clock in the morning
875
00:55:14,120 --> 00:55:16,040
and it's fine.
876
00:55:16,040 --> 00:55:18,480
Nobody is like, so that's the shocking part.
877
00:55:18,480 --> 00:55:25,160
I wonder, you know, is that a discipline of, you know, these people where maybe they just
878
00:55:25,160 --> 00:55:26,600
cannot complain?
879
00:55:26,600 --> 00:55:27,600
I don't know.
880
00:55:27,600 --> 00:55:32,960
You know, it's something I guess we will find out years, you know, in the future.
881
00:55:32,960 --> 00:55:33,960
Right.
882
00:55:33,960 --> 00:55:40,720
There is a willingness, I think, from the community to take care of one another in that
883
00:55:40,720 --> 00:55:42,640
regard, in that regard.
884
00:55:42,640 --> 00:55:46,120
To cooperate willingly, not, you know, in any...
885
00:55:46,120 --> 00:55:47,560
Especially in Tianjin, right?
886
00:55:47,560 --> 00:55:51,800
Sophie sent me quite a few videos of like all these kui ban, you know, people are playing
887
00:55:51,800 --> 00:55:57,440
kui ban to the Chinese rap music to get people tested.
888
00:55:57,440 --> 00:56:02,960
So you know, you can be as you know, Vesity is like a famous for comedian, like comedies
889
00:56:02,960 --> 00:56:05,600
and you know, so it's quite interesting.
890
00:56:05,600 --> 00:56:12,000
Well, we are, you know, getting to the last bit of the show, you know, we really enjoy
891
00:56:12,000 --> 00:56:16,000
talking with you guys and this is just such a wonderful episode.
892
00:56:16,000 --> 00:56:19,560
But you know, we have a couple more questions before we go to the fun part.
893
00:56:19,560 --> 00:56:26,880
And for me, I'm curious, like, are you guys thinking of staying in China indefinitely?
894
00:56:26,880 --> 00:56:30,620
Are you planning to move back anytime or?
895
00:56:30,620 --> 00:56:32,320
We have no plans so far.
896
00:56:32,320 --> 00:56:34,160
We are happy here.
897
00:56:34,160 --> 00:56:35,160
Yeah.
898
00:56:35,160 --> 00:56:41,360
As long as we're living happy lives, joyful lives here, there's no plan to go back.
899
00:56:41,360 --> 00:56:42,360
But yeah.
900
00:56:42,360 --> 00:56:45,120
But we will be visiting this summer for sure.
901
00:56:45,120 --> 00:56:46,120
We'll be visiting.
902
00:56:46,120 --> 00:56:47,120
Okay.
903
00:56:47,120 --> 00:56:48,120
Let us know.
904
00:56:48,120 --> 00:56:49,120
Yeah, for sure.
905
00:56:49,120 --> 00:56:50,120
We will definitely visit New York.
906
00:56:50,120 --> 00:56:51,120
Yes, definitely.
907
00:56:51,120 --> 00:56:52,120
Come back to New York.
908
00:56:52,120 --> 00:56:53,120
Yes.
909
00:56:53,120 --> 00:56:54,120
Friends and family there.
910
00:56:54,120 --> 00:56:56,160
My brother is still there.
911
00:56:56,160 --> 00:56:57,160
So we'll be back.
912
00:56:57,160 --> 00:56:58,160
Okay.
913
00:56:58,160 --> 00:57:01,440
How is it living in like Tianjin feels like?
914
00:57:01,440 --> 00:57:06,040
Do you feel comfortable, you know, in the city or, you know, it's been so many years
915
00:57:06,040 --> 00:57:07,040
for me.
916
00:57:07,040 --> 00:57:09,160
So I don't even really remember.
917
00:57:09,160 --> 00:57:10,160
Very comfortable.
918
00:57:10,160 --> 00:57:15,280
And it's so advanced, you know, the high speed railroad and the subway system.
919
00:57:15,280 --> 00:57:16,520
The things are so clean.
920
00:57:16,520 --> 00:57:21,080
And when I first landed and came to Tianjin, I said, this is like Chicago.
921
00:57:21,080 --> 00:57:27,160
To me, you have the river, you have high rise building and but still very open.
922
00:57:27,160 --> 00:57:29,160
So it's a beautiful city.
923
00:57:29,160 --> 00:57:31,680
Tianjin is a very nice city.
924
00:57:31,680 --> 00:57:32,680
It's not Shanghai.
925
00:57:32,680 --> 00:57:33,680
Right.
926
00:57:33,680 --> 00:57:34,680
A little bit different.
927
00:57:34,680 --> 00:57:35,680
Right.
928
00:57:35,680 --> 00:57:38,840
Shanghai is my top destination in the world so far.
929
00:57:38,840 --> 00:57:40,920
I just really love it.
930
00:57:40,920 --> 00:57:43,480
It's as cosmopolitan as New York.
931
00:57:43,480 --> 00:57:47,160
You know, I'm a fan of culinary experiences.
932
00:57:47,160 --> 00:57:49,960
I love going to restaurants and trying, you know, different things.
933
00:57:49,960 --> 00:57:52,960
And Shanghai is top.
934
00:57:52,960 --> 00:57:53,960
You love Shanghai.
935
00:57:53,960 --> 00:57:54,960
I love Shanghai.
936
00:57:54,960 --> 00:57:55,960
I love Shanghai.
937
00:57:55,960 --> 00:57:56,960
Yes.
938
00:57:56,960 --> 00:57:59,720
It's a great place.
939
00:57:59,720 --> 00:58:02,520
It's a lot of fun.
940
00:58:02,520 --> 00:58:06,720
But compared to New York, it's clean and quiet.
941
00:58:06,720 --> 00:58:09,400
Ours are not allowed to honk.
942
00:58:09,400 --> 00:58:10,600
It's part of the rules.
943
00:58:10,600 --> 00:58:15,280
And then, you know, you walk in the streets and you don't see garbage or, you know, New
944
00:58:15,280 --> 00:58:20,160
York, you started with this, has that distinct New York smell.
945
00:58:20,160 --> 00:58:21,160
Which I love.
946
00:58:21,160 --> 00:58:24,160
Well, it's a true New Yorker.
947
00:58:24,160 --> 00:58:26,920
Well, not during the summer though.
948
00:58:26,920 --> 00:58:27,920
The summer.
949
00:58:27,920 --> 00:58:29,920
The New York perfume.
950
00:58:29,920 --> 00:58:30,920
That's true.
951
00:58:30,920 --> 00:58:34,360
Well, especially the subway, you know, lately.
952
00:58:34,360 --> 00:58:35,880
That's been such a nightmare.
953
00:58:35,880 --> 00:58:38,040
And so that's, you know, but.
954
00:58:38,040 --> 00:58:39,040
All right.
955
00:58:39,040 --> 00:58:44,040
Well, maybe we will end with this last question we always ask everybody.
956
00:58:44,040 --> 00:58:46,880
What is your advice for young musicians?
957
00:58:46,880 --> 00:58:49,360
You may have already answered some, but yeah, we have.
958
00:58:49,360 --> 00:58:51,000
Yes, yes, yes, yes.
959
00:58:51,000 --> 00:58:53,880
But any last advice?
960
00:58:53,880 --> 00:58:59,160
I would say keep doing what you love and work hard.
961
00:58:59,160 --> 00:59:04,000
And, but, you know, expand your horizon at the same time.
962
00:59:04,000 --> 00:59:05,000
Expand your horizons.
963
00:59:05,000 --> 00:59:09,440
I think, I think that's very, very important for the students.
964
00:59:09,440 --> 00:59:10,760
Don't feel competitive.
965
00:59:10,760 --> 00:59:11,760
Just do what you love.
966
00:59:11,760 --> 00:59:13,760
That is really beautiful.
967
00:59:13,760 --> 00:59:16,120
Constantino, are you learning Chinese now?
968
00:59:16,120 --> 00:59:19,080
Especially, are you learning Tianjin Chinese now?
969
00:59:19,080 --> 00:59:20,080
A little bit.
970
00:59:20,080 --> 00:59:21,080
Oh, very good.
971
00:59:21,080 --> 00:59:22,080
Very good.
972
00:59:22,080 --> 00:59:23,080
Very good.
973
00:59:23,080 --> 00:59:28,280
Next time when I come back, you guys have to be my tour guide.
974
00:59:28,280 --> 00:59:30,280
Clueless, clueless, clueless here.
975
00:59:30,280 --> 00:59:36,320
As a matter of fact, as soon as we're finished with the podcast, I have my Chinese lesson.
976
00:59:36,320 --> 00:59:37,800
Oh, very important.
977
00:59:37,800 --> 00:59:39,800
I'm getting ready mentally.
978
00:59:39,800 --> 00:59:40,800
I'm preparing.
979
00:59:40,800 --> 00:59:41,800
Great.
980
00:59:41,800 --> 00:59:48,080
Well, we're going to end with some fun stuff so you can go into your lesson, you know,
981
00:59:48,080 --> 00:59:49,080
high energy.
982
00:59:49,080 --> 00:59:51,920
So are we all ready?
983
00:59:51,920 --> 00:59:53,880
The rapid fire question.
984
00:59:53,880 --> 00:59:54,880
All right.
985
00:59:54,880 --> 00:59:56,960
I will go to start.
986
00:59:56,960 --> 00:59:58,960
What is your comfort food?
987
00:59:58,960 --> 01:00:01,960
Burger, pizza, both.
988
01:00:01,960 --> 01:00:02,960
All right.
989
01:00:02,960 --> 01:00:03,960
Pizza burger.
990
01:00:03,960 --> 01:00:04,960
Cheese.
991
01:00:04,960 --> 01:00:05,960
Cheese.
992
01:00:05,960 --> 01:00:06,960
That's kind of true.
993
01:00:06,960 --> 01:00:07,960
It is a block of cheese.
994
01:00:07,960 --> 01:00:12,960
Now you're in Tianjin, you have to have some mahua, right?
995
01:00:12,960 --> 01:00:17,960
Or goblibao, which I have never had.
996
01:00:17,960 --> 01:00:18,960
Nice.
997
01:00:18,960 --> 01:00:21,960
Oh, bubble tea.
998
01:00:21,960 --> 01:00:22,960
Tianjinites.
999
01:00:22,960 --> 01:00:25,960
Oh, that's right.
1000
01:00:25,960 --> 01:00:26,960
All right.
1001
01:00:26,960 --> 01:00:27,960
My question.
1002
01:00:27,960 --> 01:00:33,960
I may already know this answer, but cats or dogs, cats or dogs?
1003
01:00:33,960 --> 01:00:34,960
Dogs.
1004
01:00:34,960 --> 01:00:35,960
All right.
1005
01:00:35,960 --> 01:00:36,960
I'm going to bring tofu.
1006
01:00:36,960 --> 01:00:37,960
OK, great.
1007
01:00:37,960 --> 01:00:38,960
Yes.
1008
01:00:38,960 --> 01:00:39,960
All right.
1009
01:00:39,960 --> 01:00:40,960
Chivin, you can continue.
1010
01:00:40,960 --> 01:00:44,920
What is your word or words to live by?
1011
01:00:44,920 --> 01:00:48,560
Be happy.
1012
01:00:48,560 --> 01:00:50,560
And you can be happy with this.
1013
01:00:50,560 --> 01:00:53,560
Oh, hi, tofu.
1014
01:00:53,560 --> 01:00:54,560
So cute.
1015
01:00:54,560 --> 01:00:57,560
This tofu is seven months old.
1016
01:00:57,560 --> 01:00:58,560
Oh, my God.
1017
01:00:58,560 --> 01:00:59,560
It's a baby.
1018
01:00:59,560 --> 01:01:00,560
Oh, my gosh.
1019
01:01:00,560 --> 01:01:01,560
I have to take some photos.
1020
01:01:01,560 --> 01:01:02,560
It's super sweet.
1021
01:01:02,560 --> 01:01:03,560
Tofu, say, Tianjin.
1022
01:01:03,560 --> 01:01:04,560
He just woke up.
1023
01:01:04,560 --> 01:01:05,560
He just woke up.
1024
01:01:05,560 --> 01:01:06,560
So cute.
1025
01:01:06,560 --> 01:01:07,560
Yes, super sweet.
1026
01:01:07,560 --> 01:01:08,560
OK.
1027
01:01:08,560 --> 01:01:09,560
So my question.
1028
01:01:09,560 --> 01:01:10,560
All right.
1029
01:01:10,560 --> 01:01:19,560
What is the most important quality you look for in other people?
1030
01:01:19,560 --> 01:01:20,560
Honesty.
1031
01:01:20,560 --> 01:01:21,560
Honesty.
1032
01:01:21,560 --> 01:01:22,560
Sincerity.
1033
01:01:22,560 --> 01:01:28,560
What is the worst quality you stay away from people?
1034
01:01:28,560 --> 01:01:29,560
Gossiping.
1035
01:01:29,560 --> 01:01:30,560
Bad mouthing.
1036
01:01:30,560 --> 01:01:31,560
Fake.
1037
01:01:31,560 --> 01:01:32,560
Fake.
1038
01:01:32,560 --> 01:01:33,560
Fakeness.
1039
01:01:33,560 --> 01:01:34,560
Dishonesty.
1040
01:01:34,560 --> 01:01:43,520
All right.
1041
01:01:43,520 --> 01:01:44,880
My question.
1042
01:01:44,880 --> 01:01:49,840
Name one composer, living or dead, whom you want to hang out at the bar.
1043
01:01:49,840 --> 01:01:50,840
Brahms.
1044
01:01:50,840 --> 01:01:51,840
Oh, Brahms.
1045
01:01:51,840 --> 01:01:52,840
Rachmaninoff.
1046
01:01:52,840 --> 01:01:53,840
Rachmaninoff.
1047
01:01:53,840 --> 01:01:54,840
Rachmaninoff.
1048
01:01:54,840 --> 01:01:55,840
Great.
1049
01:01:55,840 --> 01:01:58,880
He was on the Upper West Side before, right?
1050
01:01:58,880 --> 01:02:00,880
How many floors?
1051
01:02:00,880 --> 01:02:02,360
That's right.
1052
01:02:02,360 --> 01:02:03,520
That's right.
1053
01:02:03,520 --> 01:02:06,040
Name someone who truly inspires you.
1054
01:02:06,040 --> 01:02:07,040
There's many.
1055
01:02:07,040 --> 01:02:08,040
So many.
1056
01:02:08,040 --> 01:02:09,040
It's so hard.
1057
01:02:09,040 --> 01:02:10,040
I know.
1058
01:02:10,040 --> 01:02:11,040
Hard to choose.
1059
01:02:11,040 --> 01:02:13,040
I have to say my teacher, Veda Koplinski.
1060
01:02:13,040 --> 01:02:14,040
Somebody.
1061
01:02:14,040 --> 01:02:17,280
Julia Martin, my teacher in New York.
1062
01:02:17,280 --> 01:02:18,280
You guess.
1063
01:02:18,280 --> 01:02:19,280
I mean, all of my teachers.
1064
01:02:19,280 --> 01:02:21,760
I don't want to put one name in my head all the time.
1065
01:02:21,760 --> 01:02:22,760
It's hard.
1066
01:02:22,760 --> 01:02:24,760
My family is Julia in New York.
1067
01:02:24,760 --> 01:02:25,760
OK.
1068
01:02:25,760 --> 01:02:26,760
Sounds good.
1069
01:02:26,760 --> 01:02:27,760
Sounds good.
1070
01:02:27,760 --> 01:02:28,760
All right.
1071
01:02:28,760 --> 01:02:31,000
What is your desert island piece?
1072
01:02:31,000 --> 01:02:32,000
Oh, man.
1073
01:02:32,000 --> 01:02:33,800
Name one.
1074
01:02:33,800 --> 01:02:34,800
OK.
1075
01:02:34,800 --> 01:02:35,800
Brahms Requiem.
1076
01:02:35,800 --> 01:02:36,800
Oh, beautiful.
1077
01:02:36,800 --> 01:02:37,800
Beautiful.
1078
01:02:37,800 --> 01:02:41,800
I would say Schubert's E-flat Trio.
1079
01:02:41,800 --> 01:02:42,800
Beautiful.
1080
01:02:42,800 --> 01:02:47,800
And name one book title in your library.
1081
01:02:47,800 --> 01:02:50,800
Oh, the Bible.
1082
01:02:50,800 --> 01:02:51,800
Great.
1083
01:02:51,800 --> 01:02:52,800
Beautiful.
1084
01:02:52,800 --> 01:02:55,800
All of the Harry Potter series.
1085
01:02:55,800 --> 01:02:58,800
I mean, Harry Potter.
1086
01:02:58,800 --> 01:03:03,800
All of the Harry Potter series.
1087
01:03:03,800 --> 01:03:06,800
Lord of the Rings.
1088
01:03:06,800 --> 01:03:07,800
We got it.
1089
01:03:07,800 --> 01:03:08,800
We got it.
1090
01:03:08,800 --> 01:03:09,800
The last one.
1091
01:03:09,800 --> 01:03:10,800
Last one.
1092
01:03:10,800 --> 01:03:11,800
Are you ready?
1093
01:03:11,800 --> 01:03:12,800
Fill in the blank.
1094
01:03:12,800 --> 01:03:14,800
Music is blank.
1095
01:03:14,800 --> 01:03:15,800
Peace.
1096
01:03:15,800 --> 01:03:18,800
Music is food for soul.
1097
01:03:18,800 --> 01:03:20,800
Food for soul.
1098
01:03:20,800 --> 01:03:21,800
Great answers.
1099
01:03:21,800 --> 01:03:22,800
Wow.
1100
01:03:22,800 --> 01:03:23,800
Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding.
1101
01:03:23,800 --> 01:03:24,800
Who won?
1102
01:03:24,800 --> 01:03:25,800
You guys have won.
1103
01:03:25,800 --> 01:03:26,800
Did I win?
1104
01:03:26,800 --> 01:03:27,800
Total.
1105
01:03:27,800 --> 01:03:28,800
Total won.
1106
01:03:28,800 --> 01:03:29,800
Of course.
1107
01:03:29,800 --> 01:03:30,800
OK.
1108
01:03:30,800 --> 01:03:33,800
Well, thank you so much for joining us.
1109
01:03:33,800 --> 01:03:36,800
And that concludes this episode of the PianoPod.
1110
01:03:36,800 --> 01:03:37,800
Thank you, Chi-wen.
1111
01:03:37,800 --> 01:03:38,800
And because the T knows.
1112
01:03:38,800 --> 01:03:39,800
Perfection.
1113
01:03:39,800 --> 01:03:40,800
Thank you for having us.
1114
01:03:40,800 --> 01:03:41,800
Share your stories.
1115
01:03:41,800 --> 01:03:42,800
It's been a pleasure.
1116
01:03:42,800 --> 01:03:47,800
Your insights and expertise and more information about them, we are going to link in the description
1117
01:03:47,800 --> 01:03:48,800
below.
1118
01:03:48,800 --> 01:03:53,800
And I would like to remind our viewers that you can also use the link in the description
1119
01:03:53,800 --> 01:03:54,800
below.
1120
01:03:54,800 --> 01:03:58,800
And I would like to remind our audience to check out there.
1121
01:03:58,800 --> 01:04:02,800
You have a double piano work in the making, right?
1122
01:04:02,800 --> 01:04:04,800
That you guys are working on.
1123
01:04:04,800 --> 01:04:06,800
It's called the stained glasses.
1124
01:04:06,800 --> 01:04:09,800
Again, we are ready to list everything below.
1125
01:04:09,800 --> 01:04:10,800
Great.
1126
01:04:10,800 --> 01:04:11,800
Fantastic.
1127
01:04:11,800 --> 01:04:12,800
Thank you.
1128
01:04:12,800 --> 01:04:13,800
Thank you.
1129
01:04:13,800 --> 01:04:15,800
And thank you to our audience and fans for tuning in.
1130
01:04:15,800 --> 01:04:19,800
If you enjoyed today's episode, please rate and review on whatever podcasting platform
1131
01:04:19,800 --> 01:04:20,800
you used.
1132
01:04:20,800 --> 01:04:24,800
If you are watching us on YouTube, remember to hit the thumbs up button.
1133
01:04:24,800 --> 01:04:26,800
Be sure to subscribe to our channel.
1134
01:04:26,800 --> 01:04:29,800
You can also find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
1135
01:04:29,800 --> 01:04:32,800
The links are in the description below.
1136
01:04:32,800 --> 01:04:37,800
If you have feedback for us, please leave it in the comments or DM us via social media.
1137
01:04:37,800 --> 01:04:43,800
Or you can also email us at the pianopod.nyc at gmail.com.
1138
01:04:43,800 --> 01:04:46,800
We'll see you for the next episode of the PianoPod.
1139
01:04:46,800 --> 01:04:47,800
Thank you, everyone.
1140
01:04:47,800 --> 01:04:48,800
Thank you, Capsantino.
1141
01:04:48,800 --> 01:04:49,800
Thank you, Chi-wen.
1142
01:04:49,800 --> 01:04:50,800
Thank you, too.
1143
01:04:50,800 --> 01:04:51,800
Bye.
1144
01:04:51,800 --> 01:04:52,800
Bye.
1145
01:04:52,800 --> 01:04:53,800
Bye.
1146
01:04:53,800 --> 01:05:19,800
Bye.