Suzuki Music Academy of Hong Kong

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

Reflections from the Performers: Alice & Ayden Book 6 violin recital

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Alice and Ayden recently performed their Book 6 violin recital in front of a large audience of friends and family. It was their last time of performing a recital with a peer partner, as well as the first time they had complete responsibility of preparing their joint pieces without input from a teacher. Here are their reflections on the experience.

~from Ayden

After completing my book 6 recital, I felt satisfied with our performance. Before the recital, I didn’t feel very nervous. Instead, I felt comfortable, which helped my performance in sounding more confident.

In the few weeks before the recital, Alice and I had to make time to practice joint pieces, and book a room at Suzuki with Ms Marie Ann. Although we had chances to experience this during the Book 4 and 5 recital, this time we didn’t get joint lessons to work on them. This meant that we were fully responsible for rehearsing until we felt confident, and working on details such as dynamics, articulation and cues. I felt like we were usually ready to practice every time, and we collaborated efficiently, continuing on where we left off in the previous rehearsal.

For the solo pieces, this recital was also a new experience. This was the first time I played an entire Sonata in a recital. Most notable was the Handel Sonata, since it is a long piece; around 18 minutes, and develops throughout its 4 movements as a story. Moreover, this was the first time I have performed with both Ms Sonomi and Ms Diane. During the performance, I felt that our parts synchronized well, and that we were able to effectively change the mood and dynamics throughout the movements. 

Additionally, I learnt a new piece for the recital; Adoration. During the piece, I felt that I was able to change the colors of each section of the piece fairly well. I also focused on bringing out the vibrato and maintaining arm and elbow energy, especially in the climax (fortississimo).

For our joint pieces, I felt that we collaborated well. When Alice was leading, I was able to follow her bow divisions, articulation and dynamics, and we mostly played with the details that we practiced in our rehearsals. 

Lastly, the most remarkable joint piece we played was La Folia. During our practices, we dedicated lots of time to solely practicing La Folia, as there are many different tempo, dynamic and articulation changes throughout the piece. I felt that our performance was expressive. For me, I was able to effectively cue to both Ms Sonomi and Alice, to change the tempo and dynamics of each phrase. At the end, we were able to slowly progress through various phrases and colors to reach the last variation. We maintained the high energy up to the last chord of the piece.

Overall, this recital was a very memorable experience for me. Whether it was practicing with Alice on rehearsals, performing the Handel Sonata, or La Folia, it was an enjoyable experience.

~ from Alice

The book 6 recital is the last recital I get to perform with a partner, so I’m happy it turned out the way it did. The preparation process was a new experience for me because Ayden and I did all the work independently, with no guidance from Ms. Diane until the dress rehearsal one week before the recital. We scheduled all the times ourselves and had to book the rooms with Ms. Marie Ann independently, which I quite enjoyed, because I felt more comfortable at the sessions to work on what we needed to. The amount of agency and responsibility that we got in the preparation of this recital actually made me feel less stressed and more in control, even though I expected the opposite. 

My previous book recital was with Stacey, who I’m friends with. We also both talk a lot and have lots of energy. Ayden and I aren’t as close, and he usually doesn’t have as much energy as I do, so coming into the preparation process, I thought it would be challenging. However, it actually turned out that Ayden and I were very productive and worked on all the pieces well. We discussed dynamics, bow divisions, and many other musical elements that made the piece genuinely enjoyable to play. We had to work on leading and following, but I also think that I improved a lot, and I was satisfied with it during the book recital. One interesting aspect of the shared pieces is that we encountered problems with an unexpected piece: Twinkle. Both of us thought that the twinkles would be easy and smooth, so we only went over them a few times and didn’t spend much time working on them. In the dress rehearsal, we learned that a seemingly simple piece like Twinkle Theme actually required a lot of communication, coordination, and tone to play well, which we neglected due to underestimating the need to practice a piece that seemed so simple compared to La Folia or the Vivaldi. We spent some more time working on the piece and were eventually able to match our tone and playing. Still, the fact that “simple and easy pieces” like Twinkle actually proved to be a challenge and required effort and skill was a very insightful takeaway.

In my own individual preparation, I didn’t do as well. I wasn’t practicing efficiently initially, and my solo pieces still needed much more work. After guidance from Ms. Diane at a private lesson and some more practicing, I could play my solo pieces better, and at the recital, I really enjoyed playing my Handel Sonata’s first movement. I played this piece with both Ms. Sonomi and Ms. Diane, and I really liked having that option because it added so much more to the music. I also used some of the skills from the book 4 & 5 recital, such as transitioning between movements and the bariolage, demonstrating that every skill is meaningful and valuable in many different pieces, and that learning carries on through different books.

Overall, the book 6 recital was a meaningful and inspiring experience that helped me learn a lot about my playing and collaboration, and I’m generally happy with how it went.

p.s. This is kind of unrelated, but Ayden’s mom brought the most delicious box of tarts to the reception, so that was another highlight from this recital.

Reflections of the Performers: Miles Wu and Emma Li Book 3 violin recital

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Unusually, we had a summer book recital! In this case, scheduling the recital in the summer was necessary; however, it brought a lot of extra challenges in scheduling rehearsals and joint lessons due to unpredictable schedules in the summer! In spite of the challenges, Emma and Miles persevered and were able to give their performance. Here are their reflections on the experience:

~from Miles

In this recital, I think I did fine overall, but with much room for improvement. The piece that I think I played best was Martinni Gavotte, as I improved a lot from the start of preparation for the recital. I also made sure to communicate dynamics and give cues to Emma and/or Ms Sonomi. Individually, I made sure to use contrasting dynamics between each section and use appropriate bow divisions. However this piece also had some issues, with the E section having some mistakes and maintaining an issue to play with the harmony. The piece that needed the most improvement was Gavotte in G minor as the dynamics were inconsistent, as the way they increased or decreased depending on how high the note was wasn’t linear and the dynamics would seem to suddenly increase as I arrived at the e string. I also forgot the correct structure of the piece and unlike other pieces with mistakes, it took a very long time for me to reset myself and keep going. The piece where I communicated the best was Gossec Gavotte. In Gossec, specifically at the end of the B section and start of the C section where I did the retard and pause into 2 cues with different tempos. In conclusion, the recital went well overall from communication and teamwork ingredients aspects but with too many small individual mistakes sprinkled throughout.

~from Emma

As I’m typing this reflection I can’t form every thing that happened in this recital into words, there were so many things that I want to change, so many things that could have been better, so many hours spent on making this recital better. But there were also so many things that I couldn’t do before and can now, so many things that I’m proud of, so many praises from others. 
If I were to go back in time, there are so many things that I want to change, from little details to major parts. In the beginning of the recital, I was really nervous, my fingers were frozen stuck, my brain went blank, and my eyes were glued onto my fingers. I couldn’t focus, I was too focused on thinking negatively that I completely forgot about many things that I spent hours working on. More dynamics and articulation in Humoresque, especially in the first B section. And also not only sticking to super loud and super soft in Bach Bouree, to have more variation in the piece. With more practice, these mistakes could have been avoided, my goal for my next recital would be to play to the absolute best of my ability, use my time to practice wisely, and hopefully play better than I did in this recital.
On the bright side I had surprised my own expectations in pieces such as in the Minuet when I played with great dynamics, and I communicated well with Miles, which made a really well rehearsed duet. I also thought Gavotte in D major had good dynamics, and a lot of energy that fit the vibe of the piece. As the recital went on my nervousness started to fade, replaced with a sense of confidence.
The recital wasn’t perfect but it was filled with many memories, both good and bad, memories that I will cherish forever.

Reflection from the Performer: Isabel Zeng Book 7 Violin Recital

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~by Isabel

Upon completion of my Book 7 recital, I felt quite satisfied with the whole experience, and I felt like all the work I put in really paid off. Surprisingly, I felt a lot more comfortable during the recital, and was a lot less nervous than previously, which definitely helped my playing, and allowed me to be more expressive. 

In the weeks leading up to the recital, I was responsible for scheduling rehearsals with Ms. Sonomi, and although that was a responsibility that I hadn’t had to take care of in the past, it was important, and even though I struggled a bit with communication at first, it soon got easier.

Regarding my playing, I think that it went smoothly for the most part; there were some slip-ups here and there and I played the wrong piece by accident, but I was actively trying to implement all of the techniques that I worked on such as using my elbow, using the right amount and intensity of vibrato, using my arm (especially for more tone-related pieces), and trying to keep my tempo consistent (such as in the 1st movement of Bach A minor and the 3rd movement of Handel A major).

Some pieces were, of course, less challenging than others both regarding technique, and how easily the musicality aspect of it came to me, but even though playing them was like taking a small break, it was still a bit of a challenge to remain engaged while that was happening. 

In contrast, pieces such as Legende were far more difficult. I had performed Legende once previously, and because of that, it made this performance of the piece go more smoothly. I was able to get a better grasp of what I wanted the piece to sound like and be, and that allowed me to be more expressive and lean into the musical aspects rather than only focusing on the technical parts. Of course, I did have to pay significant attention to things such as intonation, given its rather lengthy passage of double-stops and chords, which although was something I worked really hard on, some sections were still difficult but I tried to not let that stand in the way of the piece overall. Despite all of its challenges, I enjoyed playing Legende again, and I think that it was definitely a great experience.

Overall, I think that I did well in my Book 7 recital, and I am proud of the progress I made between this recital and the one prior. I was able to not only grow in my technical abilities, but also in confidence and expressiveness, and scheduling rehearsals and communicating with Ms. Sonomi helped me improve my communication skills and become more responsible.

Finally, I would like to thank Ms. Sonomi, Ms. Diane, and Ms. Marie Ann so much for everything they’ve done in order to make the recital possible. To Ms. Sonomi, thank you so much for all of the effort and time you put into this and thank you for being patient with me throughout the rehearsals. Ms. Diane, thank you for working on the pieces with me and helping me improve certain sections over and over again, and also for making the amazing programme. Ms. Marie Ann, thank you for bearing with me especially when I had some communication related mess-ups. Last but not least, thank you again to everyone who came and made this experience so memorable.

Reflection from the Performers: Elaine & Evelyn Book 1 Violin Recital

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~ from Evelyn

After spending my daily effort to practise the violin, I am happy that I can share the music I’ve learnt, and show others that, with effort, there will surely be a day of success. I hope I can continue to work hard and finish book 2 soon. Thank you Ms Diane for teaching me, and Ms Sonomi for playing the piano with me in the book 1 recital

~from Elaine

My book 1 recital is an experience I will never forget. When I was younger, I vividly remember watching Eric and Wesley do their recital once. The music, layout, just everything seemed perfect. As I watched them take a final bow, I couldn’t help but wonder when it would be my turn. 

And then suddenly, it was my turn. Though I understood that the recital would be complicated, I never expected the amount of work involved. It started when my mom forwarded me the email Mrs. Diane sent a congratulation note and recital information. My heart skipped a beat when I realized it was really happening. With a mixture of fear and excitement, me and Evelyn (My recital partner) went to Mrs. Dianes room after group class. Then we decided on the pieces and had a brief overview of what was going on. From then on, we each spent time working on them in private lessons and the joined pieces on joint lessons. Through this process, I revisited and corrected the old skills that I used to learn each piece. For example, one piece I was playing was Allegro. I needed to use quick bows for the whole bows, because you had to be quick to have a nice staccato sound. (Hence the name) And for Gavotte, I learned that I had to relax rather than tense up to do the hooked bows in the D section. 

I also learned how to collaborate with a partner. I got to know Evelyn better and we had to learn how to communicate to succeed. We both led a different piece and learned how to be a leader and follower. Skills like listening to each other were used often and we became closer. We both worked really hard to make the recital work, and I think it paid off. Though mistakes were made, I think we actually got to enjoy it and share music with others. The recital did make me nervous, after I learned that so many people were coming. But me and Evelyn handled it, (sort of) and did a great job.  With the help of many people, Mrs. Diane, Mrs. Sonomi, our parents, and friends, we completed our book 1 recital. Thank you!

Reflections of the Performers: Alice Wan and Stacey Fung, Book 4 & 5 Violin Recital

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Alice and Stacey worked together to prepare and perform their Book 4 & 5 violin recital. It was the first time they got to combine their friendship with independent responsibility for learning and preparation…here are their thoughts about the experience!

~from Stacey

I was so happy when I knew that Alice and I were going to have our book 4-5 recital together. This was a really big milestone for both of us. At the start of the preparations, Alice and I had planned perfectly how we were going to prepare for this recital, but we had a very busy schedule so sometimes we would have to reschedule.

Some joint pieces were enjoyable while some were very challenging. For example, the bach double. I always thought that it was really hard to listen to others while playing and matching my part to theirs. The Bach double requires lots of listening, practice and communication. Alice and I first tackled this piece by practicing separately then using the music to play together, this really helped us match our two parts together. But as we had a lot of other activities, we couldn’t always have consistent rehearsal times, we would often make mistakes in the bach double and it would become very frustrating. In the end, through lots of feedback and practice, we managed to get more comfortable with this joint piece and even add on great dynamics and communication in our piece. Right before we performed the bach double, it was super nerve racking, Alice and I recited the key details of this piece and went on “stage” . Thankfully, our bach double was played beautifully with no mistakes!

Other than the joint pieces, I struggled with one of my solo pieces in particular, which was the vivaldi concerto in A minor, this was the first time I would have to play an entire concerto in one go. At first I thought that it would be the hardest piece I could do. I slowly got used to the length of the pieces and was able to play the piece comfortably. But I was missing something. I was missing a lot of dynamics! I had to go back to each movement and work on the dynamics for each part of the piece. Although the process was tedious, I managed to polish the concerto and could perform with Miss Sonomi. I think my best piece on the day of the recital would have been this piece since it had so many different elements and it really developed me as a violin player. I learnt so much about the timing between each movement and how to settle into the mood of each movement. I also really enjoyed playing Seitz 5. 1. This piece was my favorite piece in book 4, it was such a pleasure to play this with great dynamics and energy at my recital. During this piece, I focused alot on my elbow and the energy of the song, listening back to the videos my parents took, I was really happy to be able to play this piece.

  Lastly, I would like to thank all the people who have helped me prepare for this recital. I would like to thank Ms. Diane, for teaching me and setting the standards higher than ever. Ms. Sonomi, for accompanying with me(she basically saved me 17 times in my life).Ms. Marie Ann, for organizing everything you could ever imagine. My mom and dad, for always supporting me in my practice. And Alice for being such a great friend and partner to complete my book 4-5 recital with. Thankyou!

~ from Alice

I gave the book four and five recital with one of my friends Stacey. Overall it was a really fun experience, but it was a very special book recital and definitely challenged us a lot. One thing that you need about the book 4 and five recital is the preparation process. Unlike the recitals that we have given before, the book 4 and five recital requires a lot of independent preparation. We had to arrange our time ourselves and practice without any adult guidance, which started out to be quite a challenge, because me and Stacey are both very energetic people that get distracted easily. We also had a lot of trouble with hard pieces because we didn’t know how to practice them at first, and without supervision from Ms. Diane, things could go off the rails sometimes. One of the hardest pieces, the Bach Double, which we had trouble finding ways to practice and make progress on during our practice sessions. However, we were able to overcome this challenge eventually and stayed on task during most of our practice sessions. We made a lot of progress during the sessions and we also learned how to work and collaborate with each other. The preparation process really taught as how to explore different practice methods and identify areas of growth within our playing.

Another thing that the book recital taught us was about performance skills. During our dress rehearsal we stopped and started many times, which we had to eventually overcome by putting in more work, forcing ourselves to keep going, and communicating with each other and our accompaniment pianist miss Sonomi, who is also an amazing teacher. We also had to learn about how to play an entire concerto and how to switch moods in between movements to engage our audience. We also developed skills like following each other and communicating while playing. A good example of this is when we had to pay the Bach double and because it’s a duet, and we had problems communicating with each other, when we performed for the first time it was very messy. We improved this by communicating more often and it solved the problem. Something else that we learned we had to learn the hard way. Our seats while we weren’t playing between the pieces were behind the piano, so we thought no one could see or hear us when we were there. We were whispering a lot, and turns out not only could you see it, you could hear it too! We only realised this halfway through the recital when the audience appeared to notice our communication behind the piano. Now we learned to always be cautious and never talk or snap out of performance character onstage.

While there were a few hiccups along the way, the recital taught me a lot about collaboration, performing and playing the violin. It was a great experience with many takeaways and we had a lot of fun! (Plus there was a reception with all sorts of delicious food and drinks.

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