Students Reminisce on their Program Experiences
Pauline Yang from New Jersey and Maria Daroch
from Lodz, Poland at San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge
Joy Reeder, Tokyo, Chicago, IL, USA
Winner of 2004 Gold Country Piano Institute Competition
and 2004 participant of the Warsaw Piano Workshop
"Gold Country Piano Institute, 2004 was an amazing
experience that I will never forget. I have so many fond memories of
people. The people at Gold Country made me feel very welcome. My host
family was great, and I was able to have access to a piano in the home
whenever I needed to practice. The people of Gold Country worked hard
to transport everyone to lessons, master classes and performances. I
was able to establish great relationships with the other performers of
the institute, with some of whom I am still in contact. I was also able
to know the three professors, not only from lessons but also from the
lunches and dinners in which the students and professors ate together
daily. I was able to have a lesson almost every day, listen to other
lessons, and perform in some of the many concerts that were given.
These were great opportunities to grow as a musician during the two
weeks at Gold Country. We were also able to visit San Francisco and
Lake Tahoe. Both of the trips to these must-see places were fun and
memorable. It was wonderful to experience being in California and
having so much fun with my new friends from the institute.
Every
day was very busy, with lessons and concerts in the evenings. If there
wasn't a concert in the evenings, we were able to find a way to go to
movies, recitals, or friends' houses. Cafes and the ice cream shop in
Nevada City were regular hangout places during the day. We also walked
to many stores in the town. One day we had a water balloon fight in the
parking lot. There is also a river nearby where many participants liked
to go swimming.
I made many good friends at Gold Country. All
of us shared the love of piano, regardless of different cultures and
backgrounds. I made friends with people from all over the world. The
two weeks spent in California with all of these amazing pianists was
unforgettable."
Maki Noyama, Tokyo, Japan
Participant of 2004 Gold Country Piano Institute
"It was my first time to trip to the states and I had a really good time.
Talking
about GCPI,I really loved it because teachers, participants, and staffs
were very friendly and they always had a wonderful smile! And I thought
that all participants were very talented!
It was also very
first time staying with host family for me and they were very nice* Mom
gave me lovely lavenders before I left for Japan and I still kept it in
my room in Tokyo* The smell reminds me the all memory from the city.
I
practiced at Glenn's house everyday and it was really fun as well. I
sometime talked to Glenn or Yvonne (his wife) or Mr. Lee (he was
staying there) and sometime I was watching birds and squirrls( They
sometime comes!) at his house.
Lots of wonderful memories from this trip.
I would like to say "Thank you very much" and "See you again" to all of them."
Aleksandra Bobrowska, Gdansk, Poland
Participant of 2004 Gold Country Piano Institute
"I have so many good memories, I don't know exactly
how I should start. I really like workshops, because it is a great
opportunity to learn something new and of course to meet very
interesting people (both teachers and students). I must admit that the
workshop in Nevada City was the best in my life!!! I had a hunch that
it would be nice, but I didn't expect it would be so wonderful! I'm
happy that I had a chance to meet such great teachers. I could learn
many interesting and useful things from each of our professors. And
they were so nice!
I'm sure that most of participants will
remember our trips for a very long time. We saw many really beautiful
places. It was my first time in the USA and I was really impressed! I
went into raptures each time when I was walking through Nevada City. It
is really original and beautiful place. I hope that I'll come back
there some day.
Of course there were so many great
participants! They are really nice and so friendly. I'm sure that I'll
keep in touch with most people. I hope that we will have an opportunity
to meet again.
Sum up - I really miss everybody and
everything! I'll remember this summer for very long time and I'm sure
that the rest of our group enjoyed this time as well as I."
Susan Boettger, Huntington Beach, CA, USA
Participant of 2004 Gold Country Piano Institute
"I think GCPI was "heaven for pianists"..."bootcamp
for pianists." I was blown away by the high caliber of students and the
incredible teaching. I learned so much from the teaching that I made a
spontaneous decision to go to Poland! All 3 teachers were top notch,
and it was inspiring to meet other pianists from around the world. I
have been telling everyone I know what a wonderful program you have.
Thank you so much for the opportunity! I hope to see you next year...."
Miriam Drace, Nevada City, CA, USA
Winner of 2003 Gold Country Piano Institute Competition
and 2003 participant of the Warsaw Piano Workshop
"Warsaw is beautiful and very surreal. I spent all of my time in the old
town, which was almost utterly demolished during World War II. They’ve
rebuilt it as it was before the war so, although the buildings are brand new,
they look medieval. It was a time warp for me.
As a participant in the Warsaw Piano Workshop, I had two two-hour increments
of assigned practice time and a 45 minute lesson every day. I enjoyed my lessons
with Professors Stańczyk, Pawel Skrzypek (of course, I know him from the Piano
Institute at Nevada City), and Artykiewicz, who are excellent teachers, very
accomplished and inspiring. But I wish I could have had more time with them
because Zosia Antes, Pawel Skrzypek’s wife, had to translate everything
Professors Stańczyk and Artykiewicz said for me.
At first, I had trouble practicing for that long every day but, with enough
comments on what to work on, four hours of practice wasn't as tedious as it
sounds. I'm ashamed to say I could barely fit it forty-five minutes of practice
time every day during the school year except during competition time. Even then
I would practice only an hour-and-a-half to two hours. I always knew that this
wasn't enough to get really good, but I just didn't have time or as much
inspiration to work that hard.
I suspect that there is a different work ethic in Poland. Polish people
appear rather serious compared with Americans. In fact, I’ve noticed, while
being in Europe, that Europeans in general have a more traditional way of life
than we do. I think that Polish people have to work really hard to live well,
especially in the music world because it is so popular, and competition is so
great. Many of the students were so talented and devoted that if they were to
come to the US, I think they would have a better chance of success.
I was disappointed because although the Polish students were friendly, they
weren't outgoing or welcoming. I think they were not very interested to meet
American students. I'm not really sure. It was niceto have Julie (Lipson) there
so that we could do things together.
One day, four of us…two students from Croatia, Julie, and I went to Zela
Zowawola...Chopin's house. It’s in the middle of nowhere with beautiful gardens:
it was fascinating to see the place where Chopin spent so much of his time!!!
I found this course not quite as much of a workshop as the Piano Institute in
Nevada City because there weren't little concerts or get-togethers like we have
there, other than the final concert in Warsaw. But all around, Warsaw was an
incredible experience, and I count myself lucky to have received the brilliant
instruction that I did. I became much more inspired in my piano studies and have
a much better sense of my talents and my weaknesses."
Marysia Daroch, Poland
Winner of the 2000
Warsaw Piano
Workshop Competition
and 2001 participant of the Gold Country Piano Institute
"When I go back to my memories from GCPI I feel always wonderful for so many
fantastic moments and impressions.
From the very beginning it was so exciting. My first flight in my life, the
first contact with LIVE English speakers, the first visit to USA... everything
was so new. Because I've never had contact with American mentality before. The
WELCOME at the San Francisco airport was surprising and great Mr. Kirby with his
wife were very nice to me, they picked me up and took me to Nevada City.
My host family (ALAN AND BOBBY) was incredibly wonderful! I'm so grateful for
their hospitality. I shared a very nice room with their daughter and I also had
the possibility to practice the piano on my own instrument which was standing in
the living room.
Lessons with Prof. LEE and Prof. SKRZYPEK were so inspiring. The work with
Prof. LEE was very original and unforgettable. I've learnt so much. He was very
witty so the atmosphere was very relaxed and calm. He is a huge authority to me.
During the concerts the atmosphere was very pleasant, the audience was so
friendly and their opinion about my playing was nice. So I've received lots of
congratulations. Definitely these two weeks were the best time in my life.
And I hope that one day I'll be back there again. I wish I would go to Nevada
this summer. But I wish all the best to everyone who will be participating in
this wonderful event. The best greetings to everybody I know from Poland."
"This is the seminar for serious piano students of all ages! I have been to
Poland twice and once to the Gold Country. There are many inspiring camps for
outstanding music students to go to such as Aspen or Brevard but unfortunately
none of this provides the kind of intensive study focused only on the piano and
the opportunity for daily lessons, to sit in on any other student's lessons,
direct daily contact with the teachers over lunch, dinner or just some free easy
time. Professors Pawel and lee are world class artists and teachers of the first
order. One can get more done here than months of study with only weekly lessons.
I plan on going to both seminars again this year (2002)."
Pauline Yang, New Jersey, USA
Winner of the 2001 Gold Country Piano Institute Competition
"Students at the Gold Country Piano Institute work one-on-one with two of the
top piano professors in the world, one piece with one professor one day and a
different piece with the other professor the next day. That way no one was bored
by playing the same pieces for the same teacher day after day.
It was wonderful to sit in the historic Miners' Foundry listening to
Professor Lee's amazing insights on each variation of Mendelssohn's Variations
Serieuses or to study Professor Skrzypek's inspiring example performances of
Chopin's works. Each in his own way transformed the pieces for me and I was able
bring them to a new level in just a fortnight! With lots of time to practice
during the Institute, I accomplished a lot after every lesson.
People in Nevada City were so welcoming and easy to talk to. My hostess
during my stay in California was fun to be with. She even helped me sew a
project for school! I’ll never forget practicing in a beautifully decorated room
with a view of miles and miles of forested mountains.
All the professors and students gathered at a local restaurant named Kirby’s
Creekside for good lunches and dinners. We shared hilarious and embarrassing
stories of our music-making. We had free days for sightseeing. We searched for
gold in the beautiful Yuba river where some of the forty-niners (not the
football team!) found nuggets of gold during the California Gold Rush. My
American history class happened to be studying this event at that time (we
didn’t find any nuggets).
We spent a day in San Francisco, where we just relaxed, chatted non-stop,
toured the city, and took pictures wherever we went. Perhaps the most memorable
trip was the driving past Lake Tahoe on the way to the "Biggest Little City in
the World" where we were greeted by the blinding lights of Reno, Nevada. That
trip through the snow-capped mountains, past Lake Tahoe and into the Nevada
desert was the first time I had been at a lake, desert, and in snow on top of a
mountain all in one day!
Professor Lee and Professor Skrzypek worked us hard during lessons and
practices, but they never let us forget to have fun!"
Pauline Yang, New Jersey, USA
As winner of the Gold Country Piano Institute Competition,
Pauline was awarded a concert with the Tacoma Youth Symphony Orchestra
"The concert in Tacoma went very well. The symphony was one of the best youth
symphonies I have ever performed with. The conductor, Dr. Paul-Elliot Cobbs, is
a great leader and a father figure to the Tacoma Youth Symphony, and he is loved
by all.
Besides "my" Beethoven Second Piano Concerto, the pieces on the program were
Tschaikowsky's Romeo and Juliet Overture and Sixth Symphony. The Tacoma Youth
Symphony has a different theme each year, and this year it is Russian music,
hence the Tschaikowsky masterpieces.
The staff-members of the Tacoma Youth Symphony Association were kind and
thoughtful. We (my mom went to Washington with me) were especially impressed by
how organized they were - we received an itinerary, clearly stating the places
we would be any particular time and the names of the people who would take us
from one location to the next.
We were guests in a host family's guest cottage, waking up to the sound of
chirping birds and a view of green trees everywhere (in the winter!!). I
practiced on a rare and beautiful-sounding 8-foot Steinway from the early 19th
Century, situated so that the pianist could see incredible Mount Rainier and
Puget Sound."
Pauline Yang, New Jersey, USA
Gold Country Piano Institute also awarded Pauline
a scholarship to study in Warsaw, Poland
"The Warsaw Piano Workshop holds so many special memories for me. It was my
first visit to Poland, and I learned so much and had a lot of fun! I was truly
amazed at how well the people restored their country, even after several mass
destructions - Poland is really beautiful and definitely worth visiting! The
piano course was held right in the heart of Warsaw's Old Town, where I had the
chance to experience all aspects of the Polish culture: traditional markets in
the town squares, real Polish food at outdoor cafes, and seeing Chopin's face
and name everywhere I went.
To be setting foot on land that Chopin once stepped in is unbelievable. He
remains my favorite composer, and it was amazing to visit his birthplace and the
streets and towns where he once passed through. I strongly believe that my stay
in Poland changed how I interpret and play Chopin's music now. It is really
inspirational to be in a composer's native land, to see the buildings and places
he spent time at, to listen to the 'sounds of Poland' which he grew up listening
to, and even to taste what he once ate, for a composer incorporates everything
into his music.
Composers use memories and familiar sights and sounds from childhood on in
their music. For instance, in Chopin's first Scherzo, there is a section where
he was clearly trying to create a scene in the pianist's mind, which is of calm
and empty streets in Poland around Christmas time, and faint bells are sounding
from a distance.
It was interesting to see the monasteries in Poland, where Chopin spent some
time. Supposedly, he wrote the "Raindrop" Prelude (No. 15) on a depressing,
rainy day spent inside a monastery. It is so much easier to picture that when
you play, once you have actually been there.
Professors Skrzypek, Stanczyk, and Artykiewicz were so helpful, funny, and
full of compliments. They each had something special to offer, and I learned so
much in each piece that I played for them. The pieces I played for Professor
Skrzypek came alive after a lesson or two - they sounded like whole new pieces!
Also, I enjoyed their different styles of teaching - Professor Artykiewicz was
very energetic and full of wonderful ideas, while Professor Stanczyk was very
insightful and demanding, and Professor Skrzypek was exciting and fun to work
with. We, the students, practiced at the Chopin State School of Music each day
before and after our lessons and put all the professors' wise words to good use
right away.
Instead of staying with host families, as we did in California, we stayed at
a dormitory. The Polish students were eager to teach me the Polish language. We
all had great fun listening to each other's funny stories, teaching games we
play in our home countries, and we even found time to stop at the movies once in
awhile. Even after the course was over, students who had also attended the
workshop and lived in nearby cities invited me to their homes. I was very
fortunate to spend a few days with my friend, Joasia Pociej, this year's
scholarship exchange winner (she will participate in the Gold Country Piano
Institute this May), in Krakow as well as with other friends in Gdansk. We
visited Westerplatte where World War II began! I gained so much on my trip to
Poland - I played my pieces with newly found ideas and also learned about the
history and traditions of many Polish cities. This piano course enriched not
only my music, but my knowledge and appreciation of another country's culture
and people."
Contact Gold Country Piano Institute
Address: P.O. Box 1321, Nevada City, CA 95959-1321
Telephone: (530) 265-8648 or (530) 432-3451, Fax: (530) 478-9485
URL: ./piano_student_reviews.htm
Last modified: February 03, 2006
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