Piano

Music has been a part of my life since I can remember. Pieces from the great American jazz standards, classical virtuosos, and acoustic guitarists constantly blew through the summer breezes of my childhood home in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Same thing is true today: if I’m awake, there’s a good chance there’s music on in the background. As a young toddler, I loved nothing more than singing and dancing for my parents (evidenced by the many home videos of this occurrence, it seemed like my natural state). So it was not a surprise when my parents fostered this love of music, and gave me piano lessons when I was five years old.

My love of music grew as I learned to play the piano. I had a great ear, which allowed me sound out many of my favorite songs as a kid. It also was a sense of accomplishment, playing something for M&D that I worked hard on. From elementary age and through high school, I was classically trained by concert pianist Dr. Jacquelyn Helin, who helped me strive for accurate rhythms and notes, but also focused on musicality (and often let me learn songs I wanted–which included Hedwig’s Theme from Harry Potter, Jelical Cats from Cats the Musical, I Won’t Dance, a famous Frank Sinatra song, and a rendition of Rhapsody in Blue.

I never knew where this love of music would take me. In fact, I first visited Stanford University as a sophomore in high school for a summer Stanford Jazz Camp, where I met musicians whom I am still in touch with today. I would proceed to carry music around with me (meaning I scrounged around for a piano everywhere I went as a college student: including a summer in New York City and a semester abroad in Copenhagen, Denmark). I was probably at my peak (for now at least) at that time, where I was under the tutelage of Professor Hao Huang. We shared a love of music and the richness it offers life, and he was able to push my technique to play pieces I never thought my fingers (and rather small hands) could handle.

In my graduate school years, piano took a backseat (for obvious reasons). But I had the pleasure of working with Kevin Kao, who patiently worked with me while I’d come unprepared lesson after lesson. We managed and understood that piano was an outlet for me. But I still made a point to show improvement. And eventually landed a chance to play one of my favorite Debussy pieces at Carnegie Hall in New York City (see featured photo) on literally the most beautiful instrument I’ve laid hands on (all thanks to Kevin). It was an incredible experience, one rooted deep in my brain. It was the best I’ve ever performed (I’m a huge self-critic, and actually it was truly something!). For somebody with stage fright, it was a big accomplishment. And to top it off, I had a handful of my top supporters there cheering me on (and speakeasy hopping with me well into the night).

I’ve always enjoyed all kinds of music, and find myself discovering new favorites all the time. So please enjoy these tunes I’ve played, and if you adore music the way I do…may the music never end.