Suzuki Music Academy of Hong Kong

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

Reflections from the Performer: Ayden’s Book 6 Piano Recital

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~from Ayden

Although I have had two piano solo recitals before, I felt this time is much different as the
pieces are more complex and needed more color and expressive feelings. I practiced every
recital piece on the recital day, and particularly focused on a piece that I wasn’t as
comfortable with as there were complicated movements and techniques in the pieces.
During the recital, I first felt sort of underwhelmed playing in front of the audience as it was
something I’ve experienced many times before. I started feeling anxious and kept playing
quicker once I got to more difficult pieces. I felt like I rushed through the first section and
didn’t pay enough attention to the tonality. So after realising this, I took a deep breath and
pretended I was just practicing in the tense atmosphere. Slowly I started getting more
relaxed to play smoothly and naturally. Towards the end, I played one of the most
challenging pieces in book 6, this piece is full of excitement, passion and fun. I was able to
show extensive wide variations in mood and tonality for the challenging pieces. I became
more confident and motivated to perform for my friends and family who were supporting me
in person and on zoom.


After the recital, I felt very grateful to friends and family for coming to my recital despite the
red rain as well as relieved that I had finished the recital with not messed anything up too
badly. Thank you Ms Sonomi for your inspiration and guidance, helping me encounter the
piece I don’t fully master. I am very proud that I was able to perform my book recital with full
confidence and dedication to the end.

Reflections from the Performers: Camy and Emma Book 3 Recital

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~from Camy

~from Emma

This book three recital was much more different than my last graduation recital, I thought using Acapella was a brilliant idea because me and my partner, Camy were far from each other.

I personally thought the Bach Bourree was enthusiastic, exciting and “jumpy”! I felt like it was a brilliant way to start off the recital.

I think I could’ve done better on following the dynamics in the beginning for Gossec Gavotte, otherwise everything else was fine.

Nothing was out of the ordinary for the Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star Variations.

I think Martini Gavotte was well represented as a Gavotte (a dance) most of the time, at first I hadn’t really thought about my dynamics for the A sections, this made around a third of the time really boring.

Overall I think my harmony part for Minuet Three was pretty great! The only part I would change then at the end would be making eye contact with Ms Sonomi before the end (I did do this, but I would’ve been able to make the last three notes and the retard more grand if I’d made eye contact a bit more sooner).

We first practiced and learnt our parts then played along with our partners from a video to get to know each others playing style, when me and Camy played together in person, I didn’t feel anticipation on what kind of articulation or dynamics Camy would do next, I found this strategy very helpful.

As for my solo pieces, I feel like my dynamics could’ve been more exaggerated during Gavotte in G Minor. I feel most proud about my Gavotte in D Major, it had a range of articulation (something I had to be reminded about a few times by Ms Diane), it was probably the most fun piece and the piece I enjoyed the most in the recital.

Thank you to everyone that helped make this recital possible, a big thank you for Ms Diane for helping me and Camy along the way as well as Ms Sonomi for playing the accompaniment on the piano for us! it was a great experience!

Reflection from the Performer: Cecilia’s Book 7 Recital

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~by Cecilia Hao

Since I was performing on my own for the first time, my violin recital for book 7 was considerably different from my recital for book 6 in the past. I had to independently schedule rehearsal times with Ms. Sonomi and during the rehearsals, we had to communicate clearly so that the violin and piano parts would fit well together. I was able to improve my communication abilities and gain more confidence as a result of multiple practice sessions I had with Ms Sonomi. In addition, compared to the many rehearsals I’ve had, I felt more comfortable voicing my ideas this time. Because the success of this recital depended on how much I had prepared and how secure I was in myself, it encouraged me to be much more responsible. Despite some bumps in the road during the performance, I have to admit that I am very pleased with myself for such an outstanding achievement. Being able to balance the violin on top of school work more successfully than normal also made me feel more mature. There is still room for improvement in terms of interacting with the piano and having more strong opinions. I am beyond grateful for all the support I received from my parents, teachers and friends, and I eagerly anticipate my next recital.

Reflection of the Performer: Ha Jin’s Book 4 Viola Recital

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~from Ha Jin

I think that in the end, my book 4 recital went better than I expected it too, despite the many setbacks I had while preparing for the recital. Originally my recital was scheduled to be in November, 2022, but after fracturing my wrist I wasn’t able to play for many weeks. It was a difficult time, as I had put a lot of effort into my playing prior to the injury and I was not able to perform. Even after getting my cast off, I almost had to relearn how to play my viola, and it was very challenging to get back to the level I had before I got injured. It took many more weeks to even get all of my fingers properly placed on the fingerboard. Then, I had to spend tremendous amounts of time to get other things back, such as my vibrato and my shifting. However, as I reflect back on my experience, I think that this delay of my book recital was for the better. It allowed me to slow down and focus more on the pieces. I practiced the pieces in ways I didn’t before my recital. Therefore, during the recital, I was able to play all of the pieces much more confidently. During the recital, I was anxious as I had been making mistakes in dress rehearsals and when I practiced. However, I told myself not to overthink anything and I was able to perform all of the pieces well. I was relieved to finally have performed. Overall, I think that my recital was very successful, and I learned a lot about myself and perseverance from this experience. I would like to thank everyone who made this book recital possible and those who have always encouraged me. 

  • Thank you, Ms Sonomi!
  • Mom, HaJin, Ms Sonomi and Ms Susan. Great efforts by all!
  • Celebrating with Ms Susan!
  • Congratulatory comments from the Zoom audience
  • Recorded Duet with Ms Susan for the Telemann Double!

Reflections of the Performers: Andrew, Miko and Tejbir

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Miko, Andrew and Tejbir performed their Book 1 Recital on 29 April 2023. Here are their thoughts about the experience:

~from Miko

At first, I was really nervous when I heard that I had to do a book 1 recital. I don’t really like being in the spotlight in front of crowds, but at least it wasn’t a solo recital. This recital was going to be different, because we’re not only playing one piece, but we’re playing about 4 pieces each. 

I felt comfortable that we were going to have a few joint lessons and recital practices, to get warmed up and get the idea of how the recital will run. I was a bit nervous when I saw that my solo was first, but it would also mean that I could get my solo’s done quicker. 


When practicing at home, I try to stay with the recording and with the beat, and I think at the recital, I stayed with the beat on the solo’s too. 

I think the recital went really well, but of course we made little mistakes. I think the tone sounded really well, and I think we did the echos well too. I especially think we did the twinkles well, and that we stayed with each other. We played Govotte perfectly, and i think we didn’t slow down throughout the piece. I am sure that part of this happended because we practiced a lot, preparing for this recital.

~from Andrew

My book 1 recital was very fun.

what I liked the most was all the preparation. I had to practice a lot of pieces I already knew how to play, but I had to polish them even more. I enjoyed the recital very much and it was a lot of fun! I hope the book 2 recital will go well too!

~from Tejbir

On Saturday, I had my Book 1 recital. My partners were Andrew and Miko. First we chose what solos we wanted to play. And then we practised the Twinkles and Gavotte. Then we had the dress rehearsal. Finally we had the Book 1 recital. I was nervous. We had a little warm-up before the recital. After the recital we ate some snacks. I was happy and nervous before the recital but after the recital I felt happy and tired.

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