Sara Daneshpour | Sunday, June 12, 2022 · 4:00pm | Salon Piano Series | Masterclass in Madison, WI
Sara Daneshpour
Masterclass: Sunday, June 12, 2022 · 4:00pm
Program
Beethoven Piano Sonata in Eb Major Op 81, I: Das Lebewohl (The Farewell): Adagio - Allegro
Chris Wu is a recent graduate of Madison West High School, and a student of Shu-Ching Chuang. Chris won 1st Place at the 2021 WMTA State Badger Keyboard Competition, and
Honorable Mention at the Madison Symphony Orchestra Youth Concerto Competition. Chris is
also a National Merit Scholar. Hobbies include Cross Country and Track, and competing/coaching for the Science Olympiad Team. Chris will be attending Duke University this fall and
plans to continue his piano studies, alongside mechanical engineering, environmental sciences, and physics.
Debussy Arabesque, No. 1. Andantino con moto
Alex Seaborg is a recent graduate of Middleton High School and a student of Jess Salek. Alex is excited to go on a Rotary Youth Exchange Gap Year to Thailand and plans to follow his
studies at the UW-Madison to pursue a major in Zoology. Hobbies include theater, choir, ski team, Boy Scouts, and Alex especially enjoys his time with family and friends.
Chopin Etudes, Op 10 #1 - C Major
Michael Wu graduated from the Sun Prairie High School and is now a sophomore at the University of WI Madison, pursuing a double major in Piano Performance and Neurobiology.
Michael currently studies piano with Christopher Taylor. Michael won First Prize in the 2020 Bolz Young Artist Competition and was winner of the 2021 Irving Shain Beethoven Competition. He is currently sponsored by Dr. Kato Perlman as pianist for the prestigious Perlman Trio. Outside of music, Michael enjoys good food and long walks.
Masterclass Review
Attending a Masterclass is as much for teachers and music lovers as it is for the student performer. Much like learning to discern a fine glass of red wine, listeners discover what distinguishes an artistic performance from something other.
The Salon Piano Series and Farley’s House of Pianos held a wonderful masterclass directed by Ms. Sara Daneshpour on Sunday, June 12th at 4:00. 3 local students participated and performed Beethoven, Debussy, and Chopin. Student performers and listeners left musically satiated, having learned much in terms of the necessary nuances that deem a
performance, exceptional.
For a compelling and exciting rendition of a masterwork, music demands many subtleties in addition to the more talked of attributes, but most importantly, music demands the ear of the performer. Ms. Daneshpour spoke of opening our ears to clean pedaling, articulate and directional phrasing, projecting and speaking, playing horizontally and not vertically,
thinking/hearing/planning ahead of time for surprise and contrast, creating more suspense with physical choreography of not moving during the rests, acting as a conductor, envisioning larger and singular gestures, and the list
goes on…
All of the above points should be addressed weekly with students from the start of lessons. There is no such thing as waiting for your child to advance before you work on “advanced skills”. Listening is not an advanced skill.
It’s a skill you start from the inception of lessons and a skill that you keep improving upon. Ms. Daneshpour not only offered her expertise in what to listen for, she also offered much advice on how to effectively practice to achieve that
what we aspire to hear. She expounded on the idea that to get to this level of soul elevating sound, one must practice on these issues for hours. Patience, diligence, and time go hand in hand. To produce art with expression, you must put in the due diligence with practice.
Bravo to Ms. Sara Daneshpour for not only a fine performance the previous night, but also for a very fine masterclass with many helpful ideas for effective practice and how to insert the above mentioned nuances to
make for an even better musical and artistic experience.
A special thank-you to Farley’s House of Pianos and the Salon Piano Series for making these opportunities available to help advance our musical youth.