Hello, my name is Yan Liu. My first experience in a piano class was when I was still in elementary school, then I played violin in my elementary school orchestra for a couple years. Then in high school I started my journey at EKS with piano again. While I haven’t been here for as long as some of my peers, I have learned a lot from my time here. I’ve learned techniques to better my piano playing and the delicate balance of playing what’s written on the page and playing with expression and emotion. Putting life into your music not just through what you play but how you play it, like controlling dynamics and rubato, is something that comes with experience and practice. I’ve learned perseverance and patience in learning the pieces I want to learn.
In the past few months, I was able to learn many beautiful and interesting pieces and revisit one of my favorite pieces of Chopin, a waltz that starts off in B minor with an elegant and beautiful rhythm before modulating to B major. I’ve rediscovered the joy of bringing about a masterpiece through my fingertips and the fascinating intricacies of the sound of the piano and how it weaves itself into music. And I’m thankful for my instructors who were there every step of the way to help me through my confusions, questions, and curiosities.
