Piano research at East Carolina University’s music schools can sometimes drop everything people know hear, such as award-winning students, new piano academy, and piano festival guest artists such as world-class pianist Richard Goode.
ECU sophomore Holden Burroughs practices the piano during weekly lessons with Associate Professor Kwan Yi.
Kwan Yi, an associate professor of piano, calls student success a collaboration and makes a lot of effort into student lessons each week, but students spend countless hours in the practice room to hone their skills.
All current piano faculty members are active performers, and Sekiko, an associate professor of piano and chair of keyboard research, said these activities inform their education.
“We help our students find their way into music,” she said. “It’s really special to work with the talented students who participate in our program. This is a great place for people to come together.”
This dedication paid off by alumni who became a teacher, performer, or many others, and many other people, and became many current students.
ECU sophomore Holden Burroughs won the grand prize at the Hampton Roads Philharmonic Young Artist Competition last November. He performed Beethoven’s third piano concerto, the competitive work, at the HRP Young Artist Competition Showcase, held in Hampton, Virginia on March 9th.
“Before I started at the ECU, I dreamed of being able to play it in an orchestra,” said Burrows, 19, of Greenville. “Beethoven is one of my favourite composers because his music is deep in emotions and passion. I’m not the type of person who explicitly shows emotions, but I can express what I really feel through music.
“This concerto reflects a variety of emotions.”
Senior Richie Vuy won the HRP Youth Competition in 2021, C, K. I played Mozart’s Piano Concerto at 415.
“The piano program here provided me with the experience of shaping me the musicians today,” Bui said. “Compared to my freshman year, I have grown a lot not only as a musician, but as a person.”
Burrows shared similar feelings about the ECU, focusing on the large caliber of faculty and how it translates to students.
“Every professor wants students to succeed and is always willing to help,” he said. “It’s great that ECU can bring together this collection of piano knowledge and work with each of our professors.
“The smaller the program size allows you to connect at a deeper level. This is important because things aren’t always easy, but you can always know that there are people who will support you.”
Burrows started at the ECU in the summer before their first semester at the East Carolina Piano Festival. The annual festival offers an intensive educational experience for young pianists to collaborate with ECU faculty and guest artists. After that, participants will perform a festival concert for everyone to enjoy.
“My experience was amazing,” he said. “By playing for different people, I learned different approaches to different issues. As a result of the festival, I now have friends in the world of music that I know I will see in the future.”
This year’s festival, June 21st to 29th, welcomes a new group of guest artists and shares their experiences. Sofia Griak of Indiana University. Meng-Chieh Liu of Curtis Institute of Music and the New England Conservatory. Sekicoe Island, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the New England Conservatory Preparatory School. Alan Woo from the University of Georgia.
Sekino said Goode’s insight and depth of performance make him his presence this year.
“Certain artists become legendary in their own time, and I think he is one of them,” she said. “The opportunity to play masterclasses for Mr Good is extremely rare and it’s difficult to observe such classes. All of these are truly extraordinary opportunities.”
Additionally, ECU teachers Yi, Sekino and Samuel Gingher (skilled and award-winning pianists) will perform and participate.
This semester, Gingher pilots one of the latest works in the piano program, the Ecu Piano Academy, offering private weekly piano lessons to K-12 students and adults in the community. Graduate students have instructed a small number of students so far.
Ginger says the academy is heading for a “good start” and hopes that more students will sign up in the fall.
Sekino hopes that the various resources offered by ECU piano programs will continue to reach the community and the region further, finding people interested in both hearing and measuring pianos.
“We want to expand our invitations for everyone in our community to attend concerts and other events that are often free and open to the public,” she said. “We especially hope that it will be a resource for young pianists coming in our area.”
