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Lucy Tan, director of keyboard studies, speaks to a group of children seated in front of a grand piano in a concert hall. Everyone gathered for a piano session held inside the White Concert Hall.
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Kristi Baker-Lampe, adjunct instructor of applied piano, talks to a group of children about musical notes and rhythms during the first session. All the students listened and learned about basic piano concepts in the hall.
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Young musicians observe as one of their peers practices a piece on a grand piano during the group learning segment. The all-day festival featured divided sessions for grades 1-5 in the morning and grades 6-12 in the afternoon.
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Tan appreciates the participant while standing near a piano as children sit and watch in a concert hall. The students participated one by one in a piano learning session.
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Baker-Lampe teaches a group of children how hand movements are used while playing the piano. The group practiced piano techniques together, focusing on timing, rhythm and coordination.
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All the students participate in master-classes, yoga‐and‐wellness sessions designed for pianists and informal performance opportunities.The recital took place at 5 p.m. following the student sessions.
On Nov. 1, Washburn Piano and Organ society (WPOS) hosted a day-long Piano Fest at White Concert Hall featuring separate sessions for kids, adults and a special guest pianist recital.
Piano Fest is a festival of group learning through engaging workshops and clinics. It is open to piano students from grades 1-12 where the festival offers a chance to learn and grow without the pressure to perform as participation in masterclasses.
Throughout the event, students of all ages worked closely with Lucy Tan, director of keyboard studies, Junyi Nie, adjunct instructor, Kristi Baker-Lampe, adjunct instructor of applied piano and Carolyn Jones, yoga instructor.
The Piano Fest kicked off at 10 a.m., welcoming school students for a morning filled with music and learning. Each participant had the opportunity to collaborate and learn directly fromTan and Baker-Lampe.
“Everyone gets a chance to play their piece,” Tan said. We have two master classes. The first one is a little more informal. They get to play all or some of their pieces and they get feedback from me. And then in the second one, we try to put classical literature for our guest artist.”
Piano Fest takes place every fall semester. Tan’s words and suggestion reflected the event’s goal of nurturing young musicians by giving them meaningful performance experiences and personalized guidance from experts.
“As long as students are getting involved, our job is to teach them to love it and as long as it looks like they are loving it, I feel like I’ve done my job, they’re learning something,” Baker-Lampe said. “And I had a lot of fun with them this morning, they were kind of bouncing all over everywhere. Overall, I’m very encouraged to see this many kids at this young age who are starting out and still very bright eyed about it. And my hope is that they keep it up.”
The festival served as a reminder of how early encouragement and hands-on experiences can inspire lasting dedication to music.
“I always think of my performances when my students perform,” said Kristen Wurtz, attendee and piano teacher at Mac studios. “I remember nailing some and being so proud and then some doing awful and learning from that. You just have to keep going. And I always tell the kids that story about the worst one I had, just keep going. Take a breath. If you have to start over, just start over. I love how the teachers in Washburn do an activity with students then the private little master lesson. I just love getting tips from them.”
The message stated by everyone echoed through the festival reminding students that growth comes from both success and mistakes. Piano Fest stood as a representation of the idea by giving young performers a stage to learn, stumble and rise with confidence.
Washburn Piano Day will take place next year on Feb.14 in the spring. Unlike Piano Fest, this event lets students perform individually, receive ratings and feedback and compete for the chance to play in the concert hall.
Edited by Anushma Dahal and Stuti Khadka
