Suzuki Music Academy of Hong Kong

"Music Exists for the purpose of growing an admirable heart" ~Shinichi Suzuki

Alice’s Night with Iskandar (and Dad)

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by Ming and Alice Wan

Once a violinist said “there is no right age limit. Some kids can sit still in a concert for a couple hours at age 6, some have to wait until age 13. Every child is different so don’t try to force the issues. You will know when your child is ready.”

Last November Alice and I went to a young violinist Iskandar Widjaja’s Hong Kong recital debut.  This concert was recommended by Ms. Diane.

It was not the first time Alice and I went to concert. But still I was concerned about whether Alice can sit through the whole recital given it is a 100-minute concert.  C. Franck, Bach, Handel, Schuman, will she really understand all those?

We arrived in City Hall twenty minutes earlier. So, Alice had enough time to get ready, and I can remind her to keep quiet during the performance. I had been promoting that Iskandar was once a Suzuki student, which got Alice excited.

Iskandar was young, energetic and handsome, and his varied techniques on sonic nuances and facets were impressive. Alice concentrated on the violinist’s performance and seemed much enjoyed. The second piece was C. Franck’s Sonata in A major, 28 minutes long. That raised some challenges to Alice and she started to move around in her chair. Then I had to place my hand on her shoulder to remind her.

Alice and I left the concert a bit earlier than its ending. Alice told me two things: first, she thought the violinist’s dress looked funny, and secondly, she wanted to become a violinist just like Iskandar. When I asked Alice if she enjoyed the concert, she gave me a firm “yes”.

Bringing kids to concert is challenging as it is usually hard for our kids to sit through a concert. However, sharing beautiful classic music is one of the greatest gifts a parent can give their child and each concert can encourage children’s imagination and creativity. I’m glad that I brought Alice to the concert and will continue doing so.

Last, FYI, the American violinist Rachel Barton Pine will perform in the coming June in HK.  Rachel was a Suzuki student and once taught by Ms. Diane at a summer camp.  This time she is going to play two pieces from the Suzuki repertoire!

Thank you to the Lee family!

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Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

Many thanks to the Lee family who have donated their piano to KSMA!  We are thrilled that both Mr. Jason and Ms. Shoko will be able to have two pianos in their studios.

Please help us continue to express our gratitude to Yolandy, Nicole and Nathan when you see them around school!

Chamber Music Concert

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January brought KSMA’s first-ever chamber music program concert!

Students have been working together with coaches Ms. Elizabeth, Mr. Graham, Mr. Jason, Ms. Monica, and Ms. Yuko since September.  Some of what they have been working on are the skills that are part of being a member of a chamber group, which is very different from playing in an orchestra or group class.

 

At the beginning of the concert, Ms. Elizabeth and Ms. Monica talked a bit about all of the things on which the groups have been working, and had the students answer some questions.

 

In a chamber group, each person plays a different part, and all of the parts interact with one another.  Every person is very important to the success of the experience of the whole group!

 

 

Please enjoy the students’ (and some coaches’) performances!

The Athena’s Trio

 

 

Couldn’t Think of a Name

 

The Duck Quartet

 

Empty Pizza Box

 

Rainbow Unicorns

 

Congratulations to all of the students and coaches for their work!   We are already looking forward to the next concert in May!

                         

 

 

Parents as Partners Online Returns!

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We are thrilled to announce that the Suzuki Association of the Americas’ Parents as Partners Online virtual conference will return beginning 25 January, 2017.   It has been so successful that they’ve extended the dates of the conference by four months!   This year, once released, videos will be available until October rather than just to June.

Parents as Partners Online conference offers video inspiration and support.  Although it’s marketed for parents, it is very useful for teachers as well.   Our KSMA teachers view and discuss one video at every weekly staff meeting, which gives each of us more tools for our teaching toolbox.

Parents who have participated in the conference in the past have found it to be very valuable; in fact, we have been receiving emails for the past several months asking about it…finally, today, the SAA has released the information!

If you would like to join, please complete the form below and give your payment to Ms. Lan.

Cost

before 25 January:  HK$90

after 25 January: HK$120

 

Reflections from the Performers: Hermione and Ryan

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Ryan and Hermione recently performed their Book 3 recital together.   Here is what they have to share with us about their experience:

 

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by Ryan Cheng

This was my first recital pairing up with anyone. I had no idea how it would be like. Ms Monica didn’t tell me I would be facing 4 teachers but I still practiced a lot.

 I felt it very boring and frustrating as I had to play various songs again and again. It really was hard to memorize 2 duets and 5 melodies at the same time! I hardly had any time to play. I know that I had around 3 – 4 weeks to work on it, but hey, who had more time than me? I bet a whole batch of students had. Anyway, I had most of the lessons polishing the minuet duet’s D section, so I had only 10-15 minutes on the other songs.

 On the day of the recital, I was kind of nervous. Now I’m just happy as the recital has passed, and I’m able to learn other pieces of music in Book 4 and play again.

 

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by Hermione Au

I was very nervous during my recital because this is the first time I have performed in front of soooooooo much people and it took me a long time to learn the duet a super hard at part F, that’s why I did not know how to play it, it was easy to learn part A, and it was easy because that was the first time I have done a duet, but I practised a lot of part A so it got easier. And the rest was easy, except I always forget about the repeats and it feels better to do my recital early so I don’t have to worry about it after I finish my book 3 recital and that’s all. I liked my Book 3 recital. It was very (super and great) fun. Best, super, very, 100 percent Book 3 Recital!

 

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