1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,160 Hello everyone, welcome back to the PianoPod, I'm Clara Zhang. 2 00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:05,720 I'm Yukimi Sang. 3 00:00:05,720 --> 00:00:10,160 For anyone listening or watching our show for the first time, welcome! 4 00:00:10,160 --> 00:00:15,140 Yukimi and I are both classical pianists and piano teachers from New York City, and this 5 00:00:15,140 --> 00:00:20,400 podcast is for anyone who plays the piano for fun, loves listening to piano music, or 6 00:00:20,400 --> 00:00:27,340 for someone who is currently pursuing a career in piano or works in industry professionally, 7 00:00:27,340 --> 00:00:31,720 or anyone who is simply curious about the world of piano music. 8 00:00:31,720 --> 00:00:36,840 In each episode, we interview a guest speaker who has been breaking exciting new ground 9 00:00:36,840 --> 00:00:38,720 in the music industry. 10 00:00:38,720 --> 00:00:42,640 Before getting started, we want to thank our listeners for tuning in. 11 00:00:42,640 --> 00:00:49,120 Please rate our show and review on Apple Podcasts because every rating review will help people 12 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:50,680 find our show. 13 00:00:50,680 --> 00:00:55,240 Today I want to start this episode with a fun game with our audience. 14 00:00:55,240 --> 00:00:56,880 Yukimi, what do you think? 15 00:00:56,880 --> 00:00:57,880 Okay, sure. 16 00:00:57,880 --> 00:01:06,320 Alright, so audience, and dear listeners and viewers, when you hear someone who is studying 17 00:01:06,320 --> 00:01:11,800 music intensively to become a professional musician, what is the name of the school that 18 00:01:11,800 --> 00:01:14,800 pops into your head first? 19 00:01:14,800 --> 00:01:21,960 I mean, I can think of a few, you know, but I know this answer. 20 00:01:21,960 --> 00:01:28,440 Okay, alright, let's say it, one, two, three, Julliard. 21 00:01:28,440 --> 00:01:36,800 Okay, well, yeah, ding ding ding, we are winning the urgent fire question already. 22 00:01:36,800 --> 00:01:42,320 We have had so many guests in our previous episodes that, you know, have talked about 23 00:01:42,320 --> 00:01:49,440 Julliard, either have studied there or have taught there, but well, we have today two 24 00:01:49,440 --> 00:01:55,400 very special guests, and they are faculty members at Julliard, also fabulous pianists. 25 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:58,000 But most importantly, guess what? 26 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:03,840 They are faculties of Julliard in my hometown in Tianjin, China. 27 00:02:03,840 --> 00:02:04,840 Wow. 28 00:02:04,840 --> 00:02:05,840 You know that? 29 00:02:05,840 --> 00:02:06,840 Wow, that's so cool. 30 00:02:06,840 --> 00:02:14,360 Yeah, I mean, I've heard there is a Julliard school open in Tianjin, but I have never met 31 00:02:14,360 --> 00:02:20,800 anyone who, you know, is affiliated to Tianjin Julliard school. 32 00:02:20,800 --> 00:02:22,360 So I can't wait. 33 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:26,400 So tell me, because I've never been to China, actually. 34 00:02:26,400 --> 00:02:29,000 So where is Tianjin? 35 00:02:29,000 --> 00:02:35,080 So Tianjin is the city near the coast, it's on the ocean, it's about two hours driving 36 00:02:35,080 --> 00:02:36,080 from Beijing. 37 00:02:36,080 --> 00:02:42,740 And, but with the bullet train right now, it's like a 21 or 23 minutes, it's very fast. 38 00:02:42,740 --> 00:02:44,960 It's considered like the door to Beijing. 39 00:02:44,960 --> 00:02:50,400 So even back in the days, people, you know, during the war or whatever time they come 40 00:02:50,400 --> 00:02:56,320 on the boat and they will come to my city and it's considered the cultural center, you 41 00:02:56,320 --> 00:03:02,280 know, it's a lot of people even in China, it's a, it's really the second biggest city, 42 00:03:02,280 --> 00:03:07,520 you know, near Shanghai and Tianjin, Beijing, but only if you're really into comedies or 43 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:09,520 food, you know, Tianjin. 44 00:03:09,520 --> 00:03:15,600 Yeah, and the music obviously also was, so I'm very proud that the Julliard came to my 45 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:17,400 hometown, you know. 46 00:03:17,400 --> 00:03:22,800 So for the purpose of this episode, why don't you tell us a bit about Julliard, the Julliard 47 00:03:22,800 --> 00:03:23,800 school? 48 00:03:23,800 --> 00:03:24,800 Absolutely. 49 00:03:24,800 --> 00:03:25,800 Yes. 50 00:03:25,800 --> 00:03:30,600 So Julliard school is a private performing art conservatory established in 1905 in New 51 00:03:30,600 --> 00:03:31,600 York City. 52 00:03:31,600 --> 00:03:37,920 It is widely regarded as one of the world's leading drama, music and dance schools. 53 00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:44,640 In 2015, the Julliard school announced a major expansion into Tianjin during a visit by China's 54 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:47,040 first lady Peng Liyuan. 55 00:03:47,040 --> 00:03:50,960 Since then the Tianjin Julliard school TJS is growing. 56 00:03:50,960 --> 00:03:57,200 It became the first performing art institute in China to confer a US accredited master 57 00:03:57,200 --> 00:04:00,920 of music degree in 2021. 58 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:06,800 They also have different components such as a Saturday pre-college program for students 59 00:04:06,800 --> 00:04:13,200 age 8 to 18, continued education programs for professionals and adult learners, and 60 00:04:13,200 --> 00:04:15,440 public performances and more. 61 00:04:15,440 --> 00:04:18,020 Wow, that is incredible. 62 00:04:18,020 --> 00:04:21,760 You must be so proud of your hometown and the expansion. 63 00:04:21,760 --> 00:04:22,760 It's quite amazing. 64 00:04:22,760 --> 00:04:28,760 I mean, it seems like the world seems to be coming together or coming closer or connected 65 00:04:28,760 --> 00:04:30,200 through music, right? 66 00:04:30,200 --> 00:04:31,720 That is very true. 67 00:04:31,720 --> 00:04:39,200 Yes, and that's why we are so excited to welcome our today's guest, Dr. Qi Wenxiao and Dr. 68 00:04:39,200 --> 00:04:46,400 Konstantinos Valianados, both graduates of the Julliard school and now they are both 69 00:04:46,400 --> 00:04:49,040 faculty members at Julliard Tianjin. 70 00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:52,960 I cannot wait to hear about their stories and experiences. 71 00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:58,740 And for those young musicians, students watching or listening to this episode who dream of 72 00:04:58,740 --> 00:05:03,120 attending Julliard one day, we want to dedicate this episode to you. 73 00:05:03,120 --> 00:05:08,560 We hope this interview will inspire you to practice more and create beautiful music every 74 00:05:08,560 --> 00:05:09,560 single day. 75 00:05:09,560 --> 00:05:13,160 So, Yukimi, let's get the show started, shall we? 76 00:05:13,160 --> 00:05:14,160 Yes. 77 00:05:14,160 --> 00:05:23,040 You are listening to the PianoPod, where we talk to the brightest minds in the industry 78 00:05:23,040 --> 00:05:27,240 about how they are bringing the piano into the 21st century. 79 00:05:27,240 --> 00:05:34,680 So, we are very excited to introduce our guests of episode number nine, Dr. Qi Wenxiao and 80 00:05:34,680 --> 00:05:44,040 Dr. Konstantinos Valianados or Mrs. and Mr. Valentinos Xiao Piano Duo, a talented piano 81 00:05:44,040 --> 00:05:48,440 duo as well as wonderful solo pianist and teachers. 82 00:05:48,440 --> 00:05:50,040 So welcome to our show. 83 00:05:50,040 --> 00:05:51,040 Welcome. 84 00:05:51,040 --> 00:05:52,040 Thank you so much for coming. 85 00:05:52,040 --> 00:05:53,040 Thank you for having us. 86 00:05:53,040 --> 00:05:54,040 Thank you, Clara, Yukimi. 87 00:05:54,040 --> 00:05:55,040 Thank you. 88 00:05:55,040 --> 00:05:56,040 Of course. 89 00:05:56,040 --> 00:05:58,840 How is Qianjin? 90 00:05:58,840 --> 00:05:59,840 Everything's good. 91 00:05:59,840 --> 00:06:02,120 It's getting warmer and sunny today. 92 00:06:02,120 --> 00:06:03,120 Right. 93 00:06:03,120 --> 00:06:05,920 I'm sure everybody's preparing for Chinese New Year. 94 00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:08,800 It's coming up soon, right? 95 00:06:08,800 --> 00:06:10,280 Everybody's preparing for Chinese New Year. 96 00:06:10,280 --> 00:06:13,960 Everybody's preparing for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. 97 00:06:13,960 --> 00:06:14,960 That's right. 98 00:06:14,960 --> 00:06:15,960 That's very exciting. 99 00:06:15,960 --> 00:06:16,960 Yeah. 100 00:06:16,960 --> 00:06:21,200 We hope to attend, but we will see this. 101 00:06:21,200 --> 00:06:23,360 Oh, you might. 102 00:06:23,360 --> 00:06:30,600 So for our audience, let me start by introducing Dr. Qi Wenxiao, a Taiwanese American pianist, 103 00:06:30,600 --> 00:06:31,640 standby artist. 104 00:06:31,640 --> 00:06:37,120 She has performed extensively as soloist and chamber musician throughout the United States, 105 00:06:37,120 --> 00:06:42,720 Europe and Asia in venues such as Carnegie Hall, the Recital Hall, David Griffin Hall 106 00:06:42,720 --> 00:06:48,480 at Lincoln Center, Rubenstein Hall at the Munich and Taiwan Concert Hall. 107 00:06:48,480 --> 00:06:54,040 She has made her concerto debut at the age of 16 with Soybo Youth Symphony in the Philippines 108 00:06:54,040 --> 00:06:58,120 with performance of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1. 109 00:06:58,120 --> 00:07:04,280 Dr. Xiao served as assistant professor of piano at West Virginia University and Southwest 110 00:07:04,280 --> 00:07:09,080 Eastern University, and she currently teaches at the Juilliard School. 111 00:07:09,080 --> 00:07:13,120 Now let me introduce Dr. Konstantinos Valianatos. 112 00:07:13,120 --> 00:07:18,760 He is a native of Athens, Greece, founding member of the award-winning Olympus Piano 113 00:07:18,760 --> 00:07:19,760 Trio. 114 00:07:19,760 --> 00:07:23,560 As an advocate for new music, he works with living composers and has premiered their work 115 00:07:23,560 --> 00:07:26,880 such as Christos Hattis' piano work Face to Face. 116 00:07:26,880 --> 00:07:33,840 Dr. Valianatos recorded works by Mendelssohn, Ravel, Hattis and Dmitri Smirnov for LP classics 117 00:07:33,840 --> 00:07:35,200 and naxos. 118 00:07:35,200 --> 00:07:40,200 He has also collaborated with numerous orchestras and performed in venues such as the White 119 00:07:40,200 --> 00:07:46,680 House, Sal Corteau in Paris, Carnegie Halls, Benedict Music Tent and Harris Concert Hall 120 00:07:46,680 --> 00:07:47,920 in Aspen. 121 00:07:47,920 --> 00:07:53,880 He was honored by the President of Greece, Kostas Stephanopoulos, with the highest accolade 122 00:07:53,880 --> 00:07:59,120 from the Academy of Athens in Greece for his work and artistic integrity. 123 00:07:59,120 --> 00:08:01,320 Oh, so great. 124 00:08:01,320 --> 00:08:02,320 Thank you so much. 125 00:08:02,320 --> 00:08:04,480 It's such an honor to have you guys on. 126 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:10,880 So again, we've been in contact since the summer and we've been waiting for forever. 127 00:08:10,880 --> 00:08:16,480 You know, actually for me, I wanted to introduce you guys around the Chinese New Year time. 128 00:08:16,480 --> 00:08:18,880 So it all worked out perfectly. 129 00:08:18,880 --> 00:08:24,920 And let me just tell our audience a little bit how I met Dr. Xiao. 130 00:08:24,920 --> 00:08:29,880 Several years ago, I think when I first opened the studio and I was putting on some piano 131 00:08:29,880 --> 00:08:35,200 recitals in the Stanley Hall in New York City, and I remember one of my friends was working 132 00:08:35,200 --> 00:08:41,520 with you and I went in one day and, you know, this lovely associate came to greet me and 133 00:08:41,520 --> 00:08:42,960 we kept in touch. 134 00:08:42,960 --> 00:08:48,600 A little before I knew, you know, a few years later, you've moved to my hometown Tianjin 135 00:08:48,600 --> 00:08:49,600 to teach for Juilliard. 136 00:08:49,600 --> 00:08:50,600 Oh my goodness. 137 00:08:50,600 --> 00:08:53,080 And I'm so glad we kept in touch. 138 00:08:53,080 --> 00:08:58,000 And I've been so inspired by both of your work and I've watched all of your videos and 139 00:08:58,000 --> 00:09:00,160 trying to tell my parents to come to your show. 140 00:09:00,160 --> 00:09:04,880 I mean, COVID has changed everything, but they said they are going to go and drive over 141 00:09:04,880 --> 00:09:05,880 there. 142 00:09:05,880 --> 00:09:09,360 Actually, you're in Tanggu District, right? 143 00:09:09,360 --> 00:09:10,360 Near Tanggu. 144 00:09:10,360 --> 00:09:11,360 Near Tanggu, in Binghai. 145 00:09:11,360 --> 00:09:12,360 Binghai, Xinxu. 146 00:09:12,360 --> 00:09:13,360 Binghai, right. 147 00:09:13,360 --> 00:09:17,840 That's where I spent a lot of my summers in the past. 148 00:09:17,840 --> 00:09:21,400 My grandma, grandparents had a house in Tanggu. 149 00:09:21,400 --> 00:09:27,320 So when I was a child, I would, you know, sometimes spend summers there. 150 00:09:27,320 --> 00:09:31,480 It's a really nice area for the Tianjin Juilliard School to be located at. 151 00:09:31,480 --> 00:09:38,320 I think it was a very smart and just the perfect place for the new school, for the new satellite 152 00:09:38,320 --> 00:09:40,880 school, the Juilliard School. 153 00:09:40,880 --> 00:09:43,600 If you want to leave, you just get on a boat, right? 154 00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:44,600 I went to Japan. 155 00:09:44,600 --> 00:09:45,600 We could swim back to our boat. 156 00:09:45,600 --> 00:09:46,600 All the way back. 157 00:09:46,600 --> 00:09:58,920 We are in front of a river that if you take it by its all the way through, you can arrive 158 00:09:58,920 --> 00:10:00,440 right in front of the Juilliard School. 159 00:10:00,440 --> 00:10:01,440 Oh my goodness. 160 00:10:01,440 --> 00:10:07,240 Well, I can't wait to come to visit you guys one day when I'm finally allowed to come back 161 00:10:07,240 --> 00:10:09,800 into China again. 162 00:10:09,800 --> 00:10:15,000 So yeah, so before, when we, you know, as we're starting, we just, we have some questions. 163 00:10:15,000 --> 00:10:20,080 We have a lot of questions, but in the beginning, I would like to know what was your childhood 164 00:10:20,080 --> 00:10:21,560 like as a musician? 165 00:10:21,560 --> 00:10:23,960 Like, you know, were you from musical families? 166 00:10:23,960 --> 00:10:28,640 Were you exposed to music or literature very early on? 167 00:10:28,640 --> 00:10:32,480 And most importantly, how did you guys meet? 168 00:10:32,480 --> 00:10:33,480 The juicy questions. 169 00:10:33,480 --> 00:10:34,480 That's right. 170 00:10:34,480 --> 00:10:35,480 So, 171 00:10:35,480 --> 00:10:36,480 Okay, sure. 172 00:10:36,480 --> 00:10:37,480 Yeah. 173 00:10:37,480 --> 00:10:43,920 Well, I grew up in Athens, Greece, and I started playing the piano probably around 174 00:10:43,920 --> 00:10:45,680 the age of seven. 175 00:10:45,680 --> 00:10:50,160 And my parents just loved music in general. 176 00:10:50,160 --> 00:10:51,960 Not only classical music, actually. 177 00:10:51,960 --> 00:10:56,120 I didn't grow up with classical music listening at home. 178 00:10:56,120 --> 00:11:02,400 Greek, you know, traditional music or art music, rock music. 179 00:11:02,400 --> 00:11:07,840 Classical music was something I was playing a lot of, but I was listening to a different 180 00:11:07,840 --> 00:11:10,360 kind of music when I was growing up. 181 00:11:10,360 --> 00:11:12,520 And my sister had started, this is a year older. 182 00:11:12,520 --> 00:11:16,920 She had started playing the piano before I did, about one year before I did. 183 00:11:16,920 --> 00:11:18,640 And so that's kind of how it all started. 184 00:11:18,640 --> 00:11:19,640 So you were jealous. 185 00:11:19,640 --> 00:11:21,840 You were like, let me practice. 186 00:11:21,840 --> 00:11:25,400 I think I really, really liked the sound of the piano. 187 00:11:25,400 --> 00:11:28,040 So then my parents gave it a shot. 188 00:11:28,040 --> 00:11:30,280 We had the instrument at home. 189 00:11:30,280 --> 00:11:32,920 And one thing led to another, and here we are. 190 00:11:32,920 --> 00:11:34,520 Oh my goodness. 191 00:11:34,520 --> 00:11:35,520 That's amazing. 192 00:11:35,520 --> 00:11:37,720 What about you, Dr. Xiao? 193 00:11:37,720 --> 00:11:44,480 Well, so my mom was a dance and art teacher and she loved music. 194 00:11:44,480 --> 00:11:47,400 So she bought a piano before I was born. 195 00:11:47,400 --> 00:11:49,240 And she was teaching at home. 196 00:11:49,240 --> 00:11:50,480 She had a dance studio. 197 00:11:50,480 --> 00:11:51,920 So I grew up dancing. 198 00:11:51,920 --> 00:11:56,280 And then later on at age four, started piano. 199 00:11:56,280 --> 00:11:58,440 Then just really loved it. 200 00:11:58,440 --> 00:12:01,200 You know, still danced throughout high school. 201 00:12:01,200 --> 00:12:08,200 And then probably at age 12, decided that music is what I want to do for life. 202 00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:10,640 And I focus on music. 203 00:12:10,640 --> 00:12:15,480 And I also went to specialized music school since age six and all the way until I left 204 00:12:15,480 --> 00:12:16,720 for the States. 205 00:12:16,720 --> 00:12:21,200 So it's sort of being immersed in art from a young age. 206 00:12:21,200 --> 00:12:23,360 And the most important questions. 207 00:12:23,360 --> 00:12:26,800 Oh, how do you mean? 208 00:12:26,800 --> 00:12:28,200 Who's going to tell the story? 209 00:12:28,200 --> 00:12:31,120 You tell it better than I do. 210 00:12:31,120 --> 00:12:34,040 I mean, it is so rare really. 211 00:12:34,040 --> 00:12:41,000 But we were going to actually interview another couple that also they both teach at Julliard 212 00:12:41,000 --> 00:12:44,800 and we haven't worked out the time yet, but it's amazing. 213 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:49,000 But sometimes I also think about this as a musician, we spend so much time in the practice 214 00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:50,520 rooms, right? 215 00:12:50,520 --> 00:12:54,680 Sometimes we have to meet our colleague. 216 00:12:54,680 --> 00:12:56,680 So tell us what was it like? 217 00:12:56,680 --> 00:12:58,360 So we met in a practice room? 218 00:12:58,360 --> 00:12:59,360 No, we didn't. 219 00:12:59,360 --> 00:13:00,360 No, you didn't? 220 00:13:00,360 --> 00:13:03,840 We were just fighting for practice rooms. 221 00:13:03,840 --> 00:13:06,880 No, we actually met at the Aspen Music Festival. 222 00:13:06,880 --> 00:13:11,040 We were both at Julliard at the time, but we didn't meet there. 223 00:13:11,040 --> 00:13:17,120 We met at the festival and I was my teacher, Vada Kemplinski's teaching assistant. 224 00:13:17,120 --> 00:13:20,240 And he was there as a student. 225 00:13:20,240 --> 00:13:22,280 And he somehow we met at the airport. 226 00:13:22,280 --> 00:13:26,240 Just all really nice coincident. 227 00:13:26,240 --> 00:13:27,640 One thing led to the other. 228 00:13:27,640 --> 00:13:28,640 And here we are. 229 00:13:28,640 --> 00:13:31,360 Wow, two years later. 230 00:13:31,360 --> 00:13:32,360 Why it's been that long? 231 00:13:32,360 --> 00:13:33,360 Oh my goodness. 232 00:13:33,360 --> 00:13:34,360 2010. 233 00:13:34,360 --> 00:13:38,240 I saw some lovely photos of your wedding. 234 00:13:38,240 --> 00:13:42,480 I know you guys. 235 00:13:42,480 --> 00:13:43,800 That was a fun evening. 236 00:13:43,800 --> 00:13:44,800 Yes. 237 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:46,800 Well, Greek wedding, right? 238 00:13:46,800 --> 00:13:50,760 It's like the movie, my Greek wedding. 239 00:13:50,760 --> 00:13:58,400 Lots of people, lots of good food and friendship. 240 00:13:58,400 --> 00:13:59,400 Lots of dancing. 241 00:13:59,400 --> 00:14:00,400 Dancing until 5 a.m. 242 00:14:00,400 --> 00:14:01,400 Oh my goodness. 243 00:14:01,400 --> 00:14:02,400 That's the one. 244 00:14:02,400 --> 00:14:03,400 That's how you do it. 245 00:14:03,400 --> 00:14:04,400 Oh my goodness. 246 00:14:04,400 --> 00:14:05,400 I still have the blisters in my feet to prove the fact that we have the wedding. 247 00:14:05,400 --> 00:14:06,400 You have to today, right? 248 00:14:06,400 --> 00:14:07,400 Wonderful. 249 00:14:07,400 --> 00:14:24,320 So then from there, I just have to turn the clock a little backward, but I am also curious 250 00:14:24,320 --> 00:14:28,240 to know about your Julliard experiences. 251 00:14:28,240 --> 00:14:34,240 Also you went through Julliard from undergraduate till doctorate degree. 252 00:14:34,240 --> 00:14:36,320 That's a big achievement. 253 00:14:36,320 --> 00:14:45,240 We actually interviewed quite a few Julliard graduate artists such as Jeffrey Beagle, Frederick 254 00:14:45,240 --> 00:14:50,480 Chu, Vera Anselmo. 255 00:14:50,480 --> 00:14:54,720 Last night we just released an episode with Lowell Lieberman. 256 00:14:54,720 --> 00:14:55,720 Yes, we saw. 257 00:14:55,720 --> 00:14:56,720 Oh, you did? 258 00:14:56,720 --> 00:15:00,320 Very well done. 259 00:15:00,320 --> 00:15:01,320 Thank you. 260 00:15:01,320 --> 00:15:02,320 Yeah. 261 00:15:02,320 --> 00:15:07,000 But he so in the conversations, like, you know, he was saying there's a Julliard that 262 00:15:07,000 --> 00:15:10,920 he was in back in those days and then now. 263 00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:18,720 So I'm just curious to know, you know, about your experiences as a student at Julliard. 264 00:15:18,720 --> 00:15:26,000 Well, yeah, so I was there for essentially 10 years, for years, for years of actually 265 00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:30,560 11 years, I think four years of my bachelor, two years of my master's and then five years 266 00:15:30,560 --> 00:15:32,680 of my doctoral studies. 267 00:15:32,680 --> 00:15:40,760 So it was a long time at the school and it has been a transformative experience for me. 268 00:15:40,760 --> 00:15:46,000 Of course, when I first came to Julliard, you know, I came straight from Greece. 269 00:15:46,000 --> 00:15:49,200 It was the first time out of the country officially. 270 00:15:49,200 --> 00:15:53,640 I studied in Paris, I studied in other places, but I never truly lived. 271 00:15:53,640 --> 00:15:55,920 I was more, you know, traveling back and forth. 272 00:15:55,920 --> 00:16:02,320 So going abroad to study is just such a it's an experience that you can't really put into 273 00:16:02,320 --> 00:16:09,080 words that, you know, everything about it is new and fresh and challenging and rewarding. 274 00:16:09,080 --> 00:16:11,440 And it's just an incredible experience. 275 00:16:11,440 --> 00:16:19,800 Of course, at Julliard, you know, we had absolutely top notch education, wonderful faculty members, 276 00:16:19,800 --> 00:16:26,160 you know, all of our piano teachers, Jerome Lowenthal, Julia Martin, Veda Kaplinsky. 277 00:16:26,160 --> 00:16:34,200 They all have contributed so much to our growth as musicians, as artists, as persons. 278 00:16:34,200 --> 00:16:35,840 They're more like mentors. 279 00:16:35,840 --> 00:16:39,240 I think I talk about both of ourselves. 280 00:16:39,240 --> 00:16:44,000 They're both more like mentors than just, you know, piano teachers. 281 00:16:44,000 --> 00:16:49,400 And of course, everything else about the Julliard experience, you know, living in New York 282 00:16:49,400 --> 00:16:54,600 and everything that comes with that, you know, you live there. 283 00:16:54,600 --> 00:17:01,120 The cosmopolitan aspects of, you know, meeting everyone from all places around the world, 284 00:17:01,120 --> 00:17:08,640 trying food and cuisines and arts and, you know, being at Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan 285 00:17:08,640 --> 00:17:13,320 Opera is there, the New York Ballet. 286 00:17:13,320 --> 00:17:16,680 It's cataclysmic in a way. 287 00:17:16,680 --> 00:17:24,640 You're just so much and you're bombarded from all sides at all times with information and 288 00:17:24,640 --> 00:17:26,880 with, you know. 289 00:17:26,880 --> 00:17:33,560 So it's hard to explain exactly what all of these years meant for me. 290 00:17:33,560 --> 00:17:38,120 But I think I wouldn't be the same if I hadn't gone there and if I hadn't met the people 291 00:17:38,120 --> 00:17:40,080 that I did. 292 00:17:40,080 --> 00:17:45,560 As much of their, you know, we can't deny their struggles to, you know, living in that 293 00:17:45,560 --> 00:17:49,880 tough big city is hard in New York, a place especially like New York. 294 00:17:49,880 --> 00:17:52,880 And it's not always the cleanest place. 295 00:17:52,880 --> 00:17:55,720 You know, sometimes it's like, oh my gosh. 296 00:17:55,720 --> 00:18:01,240 But then there are so many things that are amazing, as you say, there's the really community 297 00:18:01,240 --> 00:18:04,360 of artists and their surrounding. 298 00:18:04,360 --> 00:18:08,560 And also there are, let's see, stimulation, right? 299 00:18:08,560 --> 00:18:12,360 There's always this inspiration and stimulation everywhere. 300 00:18:12,360 --> 00:18:13,360 It's like endless. 301 00:18:13,360 --> 00:18:14,360 Yeah. 302 00:18:14,360 --> 00:18:15,640 That's wonderful. 303 00:18:15,640 --> 00:18:16,640 How about you? 304 00:18:16,640 --> 00:18:17,640 Oh yeah. 305 00:18:17,640 --> 00:18:23,760 I have very, in a way, very similar experience and I love every minute of it at Juilliard. 306 00:18:23,760 --> 00:18:25,520 I really did. 307 00:18:25,520 --> 00:18:32,360 I saw, I know a lot of people describe Juilliard as a very competitive place, negatively. 308 00:18:32,360 --> 00:18:34,920 But I had a complete opposite experience. 309 00:18:34,920 --> 00:18:40,840 I felt being able to be in that environment, being together with extremely talented group 310 00:18:40,840 --> 00:18:47,040 of people, you actually learn and you better yourself because you learn from your colleagues. 311 00:18:47,040 --> 00:18:49,800 You learn from hearing them play. 312 00:18:49,800 --> 00:18:50,800 And it's just interesting. 313 00:18:50,800 --> 00:18:55,600 I remember as freshmen, everybody's like so careful in the piano performance class. 314 00:18:55,600 --> 00:18:57,280 You want to be well prepared. 315 00:18:57,280 --> 00:19:00,120 The second and third year, everybody gets a little relaxed. 316 00:19:00,120 --> 00:19:02,180 People started, you know, stop practicing. 317 00:19:02,180 --> 00:19:08,040 And then the fourth year, your senior year, everyone just, the level of playing just jump 318 00:19:08,040 --> 00:19:09,600 a whole notch. 319 00:19:09,600 --> 00:19:14,680 And because of the auditions are coming up and it was really comforting for me to see 320 00:19:14,680 --> 00:19:17,360 that we all improved together. 321 00:19:17,360 --> 00:19:20,480 Everybody sounded, you know, at a different level. 322 00:19:20,480 --> 00:19:27,120 So I feel in addition to, you know, what my teachers have taught me, Vedaka, Kupinski, 323 00:19:27,120 --> 00:19:33,000 Jerome, Luentho, which were, I'm forever grateful and indebted to them that I learned so much 324 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:36,040 from my colleagues and friends. 325 00:19:36,040 --> 00:19:41,280 And I was really lucky to have a group of very close friends, my childhood friends from 326 00:19:41,280 --> 00:19:45,400 Taiwan who all entered Juilliard, four of us at the same year. 327 00:19:45,400 --> 00:19:50,160 So I had a strong bond and community of that group of friends. 328 00:19:50,160 --> 00:19:53,840 And we all sort of experienced everything together. 329 00:19:53,840 --> 00:19:58,040 So New York to me is a really special place. 330 00:19:58,040 --> 00:20:03,920 And I really hope to go back one day to, I did live over visit. 331 00:20:03,920 --> 00:20:07,480 So right now you're in Juilliard, Tianjin, right? 332 00:20:07,480 --> 00:20:08,920 The Tianjin Juilliard School. 333 00:20:08,920 --> 00:20:09,920 Yes. 334 00:20:09,920 --> 00:20:10,920 Yeah. 335 00:20:10,920 --> 00:20:11,920 Tianjin Juilliard School. 336 00:20:11,920 --> 00:20:17,000 And so are the students all from China that's from the region or from, well, maybe not from 337 00:20:17,000 --> 00:20:21,840 that region only, but from the continent of Asia, China? 338 00:20:21,840 --> 00:20:22,840 Asia. 339 00:20:22,840 --> 00:20:28,080 So we have two programs where the pre-college program as well as the grad program. 340 00:20:28,080 --> 00:20:31,160 For pre-college is mostly students from within China. 341 00:20:31,160 --> 00:20:32,160 Yeah. 342 00:20:32,160 --> 00:20:33,160 Okay. 343 00:20:33,160 --> 00:20:38,560 So from Tianjin or Shandong nearby province to as far as Guangdong or Tibet. 344 00:20:38,560 --> 00:20:39,560 Oh, wow. 345 00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:40,560 Yes. 346 00:20:40,560 --> 00:20:42,760 We have students from Tibet. 347 00:20:42,760 --> 00:20:48,600 And for the grad program, I say some of them are from China, but a lot of them are from 348 00:20:48,600 --> 00:20:49,600 abroad. 349 00:20:49,600 --> 00:20:50,600 International. 350 00:20:50,600 --> 00:20:51,600 International students. 351 00:20:51,600 --> 00:20:55,360 From America, from Europe, from Hungary, Canada. 352 00:20:55,360 --> 00:20:57,320 So it's a good mix of... 353 00:20:57,320 --> 00:20:58,320 Wow. 354 00:20:58,320 --> 00:21:02,040 That's very nice to know. 355 00:21:02,040 --> 00:21:06,760 So what's like overall culture on campus? 356 00:21:06,760 --> 00:21:08,920 Because we just talked about New York. 357 00:21:08,920 --> 00:21:12,020 So New York, it's an origin, right? 358 00:21:12,020 --> 00:21:13,760 It's the original Juilliard. 359 00:21:13,760 --> 00:21:21,400 Now it's the new campus in Tianjin and with the new people, new campus, and probably you're 360 00:21:21,400 --> 00:21:26,920 experiencing something different from what you've experienced. 361 00:21:26,920 --> 00:21:32,400 Basically the Tianjin Juilliard School as an institution, the way I think it has been 362 00:21:32,400 --> 00:21:39,360 conceived and the way it operates is not meant to be either competitive with the Juilliard 363 00:21:39,360 --> 00:21:44,920 School in New York or really other maybe universities around the world. 364 00:21:44,920 --> 00:21:45,920 It's sort of... 365 00:21:45,920 --> 00:21:50,600 It has created its own community and its own culture. 366 00:21:50,600 --> 00:21:56,400 And the kind of programs that we have, even for the graduate program, it's chamber music 367 00:21:56,400 --> 00:22:01,120 and orchestral studies and collaborative piano. 368 00:22:01,120 --> 00:22:03,760 It all focuses on collaboration. 369 00:22:03,760 --> 00:22:09,280 So even within China, it is not meant to be competitive with all of the other conservatories, 370 00:22:09,280 --> 00:22:13,020 like Central Conservatory or Shanghai Conservatory. 371 00:22:13,020 --> 00:22:20,960 It's meant to be something in addition or a different path, a different experience. 372 00:22:20,960 --> 00:22:28,880 There's this whole system, the fuzhong system here in China, where students can go to one 373 00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:34,480 of the conservatories around China and also be involved in schooling at the same time. 374 00:22:34,480 --> 00:22:36,560 Oh, I see. 375 00:22:36,560 --> 00:22:40,160 This is a different system that we have here. 376 00:22:40,160 --> 00:22:46,400 A pre-college program conceived in the style of pre-college programs in the United States. 377 00:22:46,400 --> 00:22:48,640 So it is a Saturday program. 378 00:22:48,640 --> 00:22:50,360 It doesn't have anything else. 379 00:22:50,360 --> 00:22:52,720 It's not a school Monday through Friday. 380 00:22:52,720 --> 00:22:58,920 Students can still go to regular school, public schools, and have professional music studies 381 00:22:58,920 --> 00:23:00,920 on a Saturday. 382 00:23:00,920 --> 00:23:03,760 I remember reading this article. 383 00:23:03,760 --> 00:23:05,520 I think it was a Forbes. 384 00:23:05,520 --> 00:23:10,620 My friend Sophie, also you guys's colleague, I'm sure she shares some articles. 385 00:23:10,620 --> 00:23:14,920 And then these students were flying in every weekend to study at Tianjin Junior. 386 00:23:14,920 --> 00:23:17,920 Is that how they do it? 387 00:23:17,920 --> 00:23:21,360 It's similar actually in the pre-college in New York. 388 00:23:21,360 --> 00:23:25,560 People from all around the states are flying, even from Canada, if I remember correctly, 389 00:23:25,560 --> 00:23:30,720 were flying for a Saturday lesson, you know, full week of classes and then went back. 390 00:23:30,720 --> 00:23:37,740 The students are very committed to improving themselves and really learning through education. 391 00:23:37,740 --> 00:23:42,320 And I think Tianjin Junior School really tries to bring the essence of Western education 392 00:23:42,320 --> 00:23:43,320 into China. 393 00:23:43,320 --> 00:23:45,280 We teach in English. 394 00:23:45,280 --> 00:23:46,280 Okay. 395 00:23:46,280 --> 00:23:49,160 So they have to learn English. 396 00:23:49,160 --> 00:23:53,240 They have English classes, English for musical purpose. 397 00:23:53,240 --> 00:23:54,920 We focus on collaboration. 398 00:23:54,920 --> 00:23:58,060 So all the students have to take chamber music. 399 00:23:58,060 --> 00:24:02,280 So it's a different concept of education. 400 00:24:02,280 --> 00:24:05,800 And I think it's a quite healthy one for our students. 401 00:24:05,800 --> 00:24:09,720 Yeah, quite progressive in so many ways. 402 00:24:09,720 --> 00:24:10,720 Yeah. 403 00:24:10,720 --> 00:24:14,480 Although, of course, classical music training itself is traditional. 404 00:24:14,480 --> 00:24:16,920 Yeah, that's very exciting. 405 00:24:16,920 --> 00:24:17,920 Yeah, absolutely. 406 00:24:17,920 --> 00:24:18,920 Yeah. 407 00:24:18,920 --> 00:24:25,840 There's a lot to be said about the Tianjin Junior School and the way it handles education 408 00:24:25,840 --> 00:24:26,840 in China. 409 00:24:26,840 --> 00:24:32,960 And so I think a lot of our students and our families are starting to see the merit of 410 00:24:32,960 --> 00:24:37,040 being enrolled in a program like this, as opposed to, let's say, the Fujian system or 411 00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:39,600 the other conservatories around China. 412 00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:41,000 Again, it's not meant to be competitive. 413 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:44,400 It's just a different experience, a different way. 414 00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:48,760 And this system, this pre-college system might not work for everybody because the kids have 415 00:24:48,760 --> 00:24:51,240 a very intense and packed day. 416 00:24:51,240 --> 00:24:56,000 Their day starts at 8.30 in the morning and often ends at 6.30 p.m. 417 00:24:56,000 --> 00:25:01,680 And in fact, during the travel time, they work very hard. 418 00:25:01,680 --> 00:25:06,280 And factoring on top of that, that Monday through Friday, the schooling in China is 419 00:25:06,280 --> 00:25:08,560 absolutely insane. 420 00:25:08,560 --> 00:25:13,640 They start from very early and sometimes they finish at 6, 7, 8 p.m. 421 00:25:13,640 --> 00:25:15,320 They come back from school. 422 00:25:15,320 --> 00:25:16,640 That's when they practice. 423 00:25:16,640 --> 00:25:19,740 That's when they start practicing a lot of our students. 424 00:25:19,740 --> 00:25:24,060 And then after they're done with all of this on a Friday, they start traveling either Friday 425 00:25:24,060 --> 00:25:30,080 night or in the dawn of Saturday just to get to school, have a full day of classes, travel 426 00:25:30,080 --> 00:25:32,320 back to where they come from. 427 00:25:32,320 --> 00:25:39,640 These students, I just can't praise them enough for their commitment and for their perseverance. 428 00:25:39,640 --> 00:25:44,880 I saw some videos of some of these students from your school. 429 00:25:44,880 --> 00:25:45,880 They play so beautifully. 430 00:25:45,880 --> 00:25:50,920 They play so professionally, especially the age group that we teach here in New York. 431 00:25:50,920 --> 00:25:52,560 I mean, it's different. 432 00:25:52,560 --> 00:25:55,880 We don't teach students that are going to professional schools right now. 433 00:25:55,880 --> 00:26:01,560 But sometimes I guilt my students, be like, see, you can be playing like that. 434 00:26:01,560 --> 00:26:07,880 But I'm quite proud for, because actually the Central Music Conservatory in Beijing 435 00:26:07,880 --> 00:26:09,680 also started off in Tianjin. 436 00:26:09,680 --> 00:26:13,280 So I went to the pre-college division in Tianjin. 437 00:26:13,280 --> 00:26:16,480 I'm from there, but I did not fully grew up there. 438 00:26:16,480 --> 00:26:19,400 I actually lived in a different city for a while as well. 439 00:26:19,400 --> 00:26:23,160 And the music training is always, I started as three. 440 00:26:23,160 --> 00:26:25,400 You have to go where your teacher is. 441 00:26:25,400 --> 00:26:32,880 But I remember my friend, she was attending in Tianjin Conservatory and her dad is a policeman 442 00:26:32,880 --> 00:26:40,200 who drives her, this police car, the siren, to Beijing to take a lesson on Sundays. 443 00:26:40,200 --> 00:26:42,880 You guys really remind me of those years. 444 00:26:42,880 --> 00:26:47,320 Now we want to segue to in your performing life. 445 00:26:47,320 --> 00:26:51,360 We know you are such wonderful musicians and performers. 446 00:26:51,360 --> 00:26:54,680 I've watched a lot of your videos. 447 00:26:54,680 --> 00:27:02,720 Well first of all, were you guys, how long have you guys been playing together as a duo? 448 00:27:02,720 --> 00:27:09,560 Did you become husband and wife first or did you start playing first, I assume? 449 00:27:09,560 --> 00:27:14,000 Well maybe five, six years that we've been together, playing together. 450 00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:15,000 Playing together, got it. 451 00:27:15,000 --> 00:27:20,880 We were always, you know, reading stuff together by playing for five, six years. 452 00:27:20,880 --> 00:27:27,840 We get to play more here because we have this Tianjin Julia Ensemble and we all play two 453 00:27:27,840 --> 00:27:30,920 piano or beforehand works. 454 00:27:30,920 --> 00:27:33,760 I saw even Shanghai Quartet was there recently. 455 00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:34,760 Was it recently? 456 00:27:34,760 --> 00:27:36,640 Yes, they are resident quartet here. 457 00:27:36,640 --> 00:27:40,840 They are actually permanently living and working at the Tianjin Julia School at the moment. 458 00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:44,280 Everybody is moving to Tianjin, oh my gosh! 459 00:27:44,280 --> 00:27:46,560 Come visit us! 460 00:27:46,560 --> 00:27:50,560 Now how can it be that the Shanghai string quartet is in Tianjin? 461 00:27:50,560 --> 00:27:51,560 Nobody knows. 462 00:27:51,560 --> 00:27:56,680 Well, you know, they won't say anything. 463 00:27:56,680 --> 00:27:58,400 So how is your experience? 464 00:27:58,400 --> 00:28:05,400 You know, I know you taught in West Virginia and also in Texas, right? 465 00:28:05,400 --> 00:28:13,040 And you know, compared that to Taiwan and obviously to New York, what do you feel from 466 00:28:13,040 --> 00:28:15,440 the audience perspective and from colleagues? 467 00:28:15,440 --> 00:28:21,440 I mean, obviously you have colleagues of top notch from all around the world. 468 00:28:21,440 --> 00:28:26,680 Or even teaching these students that they are Chinese, right? 469 00:28:26,680 --> 00:28:29,800 Most of them are the pre-college students. 470 00:28:29,800 --> 00:28:32,560 I assume they have not been abroad before. 471 00:28:32,560 --> 00:28:38,560 Do they expect you to speak any Chinese sometimes or are they all pretty good with English? 472 00:28:38,560 --> 00:28:40,520 I think very. 473 00:28:40,520 --> 00:28:46,520 Some of them are excellent in English, some of them need to speak in Chinese. 474 00:28:46,520 --> 00:28:48,320 And I'm trying to push them to learn English. 475 00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:51,120 It's such a universal language and it's good for them. 476 00:28:51,120 --> 00:28:57,400 So I'm hoping those who need lessons in Chinese will soon convert to completely English. 477 00:28:57,400 --> 00:29:03,000 But your question of how does it feel to go from higher ed to teaching in pre-college 478 00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:05,680 and in China? 479 00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:08,520 I think in a way it's different. 480 00:29:08,520 --> 00:29:11,080 But on the other hand, it's the same. 481 00:29:11,080 --> 00:29:13,120 It's education. 482 00:29:13,120 --> 00:29:20,520 You know, you're teaching kids or college students to play better and also at the same 483 00:29:20,520 --> 00:29:24,840 time to be their guide and be their mentor in a way. 484 00:29:24,840 --> 00:29:27,560 So to express themselves. 485 00:29:27,560 --> 00:29:28,720 Yes. 486 00:29:28,720 --> 00:29:33,320 And I think in terms of just purely teaching, I don't think it differs that much. 487 00:29:33,320 --> 00:29:40,200 I mean, teaching highly depends on how talented the student is, no matter what age group and 488 00:29:40,200 --> 00:29:42,680 how hard they are willing to work. 489 00:29:42,680 --> 00:29:45,520 Then of course their relationship with the teacher. 490 00:29:45,520 --> 00:29:50,400 So I think any age group, perhaps not adults, because that's a little bit late and they 491 00:29:50,400 --> 00:29:56,200 usually learn for fun, but any other age group, they have good relationship in those three 492 00:29:56,200 --> 00:29:57,200 areas. 493 00:29:57,200 --> 00:30:02,400 I just mentioned, I feel they could advance very far in the higher ed. 494 00:30:02,400 --> 00:30:06,720 You see more students that are interested in other things. 495 00:30:06,720 --> 00:30:11,240 For example, it might be music education, music therapy, music industry. 496 00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:15,460 So their focus is different from the kids we are teaching right now. 497 00:30:15,460 --> 00:30:19,320 The kids we're teaching right now, they want to go into music professionally. 498 00:30:19,320 --> 00:30:23,040 So I think as a teacher, you have to adjust and adapt. 499 00:30:23,040 --> 00:30:25,440 There's no one student that's the same. 500 00:30:25,440 --> 00:30:26,440 And I'm learning. 501 00:30:26,440 --> 00:30:31,840 I always feel I'm learning so much from my student how to be a better teacher and better 502 00:30:31,840 --> 00:30:38,280 player because after so many years of teaching, I still run into teaching questions and teaching 503 00:30:38,280 --> 00:30:41,480 problems and you learn from it. 504 00:30:41,480 --> 00:30:46,880 So I'm growing as a teacher and my students are growing as well. 505 00:30:46,880 --> 00:30:54,320 But I feel no matter where you teach, either privately or in an institution, in a pre-college 506 00:30:54,320 --> 00:31:00,480 or in conservatories, I feel it's important to show them good examples as a person, how 507 00:31:00,480 --> 00:31:03,600 to behave well, how to be a good person. 508 00:31:03,600 --> 00:31:09,240 And I do believe to be a good musician starts being a good person. 509 00:31:09,240 --> 00:31:12,200 That's what I try to instill in my studio. 510 00:31:12,200 --> 00:31:17,520 And I think the biggest challenge about teaching these college students is to convince them 511 00:31:17,520 --> 00:31:24,720 to practice a little bit less and to do other things besides piano. 512 00:31:24,720 --> 00:31:30,640 We ran into an opposite problem from what we had in the United States. 513 00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:37,920 Over practicing and over singular, there's a singular focus. 514 00:31:37,920 --> 00:31:43,760 And I think for a lot of the students, it will be more rewarding if they could broaden 515 00:31:43,760 --> 00:31:50,120 their horizons a bit and further than their piano bands and their piano keys. 516 00:31:50,120 --> 00:31:58,080 But isn't that maybe one of the major cultural differences per se? 517 00:31:58,080 --> 00:32:06,680 So the Chinese, I don't want to stereotype them, but there's a cultural background of 518 00:32:06,680 --> 00:32:10,920 once they determine, they just go all the way sort of thing. 519 00:32:10,920 --> 00:32:12,600 I'm Asian, obviously. 520 00:32:12,600 --> 00:32:16,080 I'm from Japan originally, but I'm Korean. 521 00:32:16,080 --> 00:32:20,800 So we have this sort of determination. 522 00:32:20,800 --> 00:32:23,640 That's how we were taught as a young child. 523 00:32:23,640 --> 00:32:29,920 So as opposed to here in the United States, kids have more choices. 524 00:32:29,920 --> 00:32:31,520 You can take it easy. 525 00:32:31,520 --> 00:32:38,160 If you really like this, then you have the choice of drive yourself and work hard. 526 00:32:38,160 --> 00:32:40,200 But there's a difference. 527 00:32:40,200 --> 00:32:43,160 And do you feel that in teaching? 528 00:32:43,160 --> 00:32:44,160 Yeah. 529 00:32:44,160 --> 00:32:45,160 Sure. 530 00:32:45,160 --> 00:32:46,160 Yes, sure. 531 00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:49,880 The ancient Greeks, I'm going to look back into my heritage. 532 00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:52,560 The ancient Greek said, pan metron ariston. 533 00:32:52,560 --> 00:32:53,560 That's in Greek. 534 00:32:53,560 --> 00:33:01,240 Basically, you have to find the right balance for things, nothing in excess. 535 00:33:01,240 --> 00:33:07,840 In order to lead a healthy life, you have to find the balance between your work, your 536 00:33:07,840 --> 00:33:13,520 study, your friends, your family, or whatever it is, you have to strike the balance. 537 00:33:13,520 --> 00:33:15,760 It's hard to find and it takes a lot of time. 538 00:33:15,760 --> 00:33:21,160 But I think as teachers, we have to guide the students towards finding that balance. 539 00:33:21,160 --> 00:33:26,180 I think there's just so many piano teachers nowadays. 540 00:33:26,180 --> 00:33:29,040 There's so many really great artists and pianists. 541 00:33:29,040 --> 00:33:35,600 And more or less everybody can teach for the piano, crescendo, dibbinoendo, all of this 542 00:33:35,600 --> 00:33:37,600 technical musical jargon. 543 00:33:37,600 --> 00:33:43,520 But I think it's more important that you guide your students towards leading a healthy life. 544 00:33:43,520 --> 00:33:46,920 That's what our teachers at Juilliard, I think, did for us. 545 00:33:46,920 --> 00:33:52,560 And also, without underestimating the importance of dedication. 546 00:33:52,560 --> 00:33:58,800 I think to excel in any field, you must work very hard and you must have passion, especially 547 00:33:58,800 --> 00:34:00,080 for music. 548 00:34:00,080 --> 00:34:03,080 So these kids, they have those already. 549 00:34:03,080 --> 00:34:06,320 And they came in having dedication and passion. 550 00:34:06,320 --> 00:34:08,200 So our job is slightly different. 551 00:34:08,200 --> 00:34:11,680 We have to make sure they're living well-balanced lives. 552 00:34:11,680 --> 00:34:14,040 Yeah, temper them. 553 00:34:14,040 --> 00:34:19,920 Well, especially they have to travel so much over the weekend to come to study, right? 554 00:34:19,920 --> 00:34:21,920 And they stay there the whole entire day. 555 00:34:21,920 --> 00:34:27,760 And because I went to a conservatory there, so I was already viewed as an odd kid because 556 00:34:27,760 --> 00:34:34,120 we had sort of a college level class set up since we were 11. 557 00:34:34,120 --> 00:34:39,320 So you can see me on the street after five o'clock where most other students, they have 558 00:34:39,320 --> 00:34:42,280 to study until like 10, 11, I don't know. 559 00:34:42,280 --> 00:34:49,560 I don't know how these students, especially if they are already, they're also in other 560 00:34:49,560 --> 00:34:54,240 middle school, high school, like general schools. 561 00:34:54,240 --> 00:34:56,160 How can they find the time to even? 562 00:34:56,160 --> 00:34:59,560 It's very hard. 563 00:34:59,560 --> 00:35:05,280 And according to many of our students, according to many sources, pre-college days, they're 564 00:35:05,280 --> 00:35:06,280 highlights. 565 00:35:06,280 --> 00:35:07,280 They're the highlight of their week. 566 00:35:07,280 --> 00:35:08,280 They love it. 567 00:35:08,280 --> 00:35:12,000 They don't want to go back to regular school. 568 00:35:12,000 --> 00:35:13,000 They just want to stay there. 569 00:35:13,000 --> 00:35:15,960 They love watching their friends and their community in there. 570 00:35:15,960 --> 00:35:18,680 It's just, yeah, it's a great day. 571 00:35:18,680 --> 00:35:22,320 It's action packed. 572 00:35:22,320 --> 00:35:24,640 But I can understand the fatigue. 573 00:35:24,640 --> 00:35:29,280 It takes a toll on everybody's health. 574 00:35:29,280 --> 00:35:31,440 And it's a great exposure for them. 575 00:35:31,440 --> 00:35:34,960 But how is dealing with parents? 576 00:35:34,960 --> 00:35:40,000 Or do you get to deal with parents or they just drop the kids off and they go shopping? 577 00:35:40,000 --> 00:35:43,520 Actually, all the parents are very dedicated too. 578 00:35:43,520 --> 00:35:45,600 They are there the whole day together. 579 00:35:45,600 --> 00:35:46,600 Oh my gosh. 580 00:35:46,600 --> 00:35:47,600 Yes. 581 00:35:47,600 --> 00:35:48,600 Yeah. 582 00:35:48,600 --> 00:35:49,600 They are. 583 00:35:49,600 --> 00:35:52,440 I have to say most of the parents in my studio are just wonderful. 584 00:35:52,440 --> 00:35:53,440 Yeah. 585 00:35:53,440 --> 00:35:54,840 Most of them were fantastic. 586 00:35:54,840 --> 00:36:00,440 And of course, there are one or two here and there that are a little bit harder to deal 587 00:36:00,440 --> 00:36:01,440 with, but that's normal. 588 00:36:01,440 --> 00:36:03,360 I think that's normal everywhere. 589 00:36:03,360 --> 00:36:11,400 But I think these parents, I think they have a different goal for their children by sending 590 00:36:11,400 --> 00:36:14,320 them to the Tianjin Junior School. 591 00:36:14,320 --> 00:36:20,120 I think they do want them to be exposed to Western culture, to Western style of teaching, 592 00:36:20,120 --> 00:36:23,400 potentially sending their kids abroad. 593 00:36:23,400 --> 00:36:26,480 And so I think they came in with a different mentality already. 594 00:36:26,480 --> 00:36:27,480 Wow. 595 00:36:27,480 --> 00:36:29,720 That's a different perspective. 596 00:36:29,720 --> 00:36:30,900 I didn't realize that. 597 00:36:30,900 --> 00:36:36,600 I was really thinking of just music school and because it's Juilliard, so the parents 598 00:36:36,600 --> 00:36:40,280 would send those kids to Tianjin Juilliard School. 599 00:36:40,280 --> 00:36:42,720 But yeah, there's that aspect of it too. 600 00:36:42,720 --> 00:36:46,720 And especially on campus, you guys are speaking in English mainly, right? 601 00:36:46,720 --> 00:36:47,720 Yes. 602 00:36:47,720 --> 00:36:48,720 Makes sense. 603 00:36:48,720 --> 00:36:49,720 Makes sense. 604 00:36:49,720 --> 00:36:50,720 Professionalism is there. 605 00:36:50,720 --> 00:36:51,720 Don't get us wrong. 606 00:36:51,720 --> 00:36:52,720 Definitely. 607 00:36:52,720 --> 00:36:53,720 Of course. 608 00:36:53,720 --> 00:36:54,720 We ask for excellence. 609 00:36:54,720 --> 00:37:00,400 We ask for a super quality of playing. 610 00:37:00,400 --> 00:37:05,760 But we're talking about the other area that's not usually addressed in a regular school. 611 00:37:05,760 --> 00:37:11,840 No, the level of the students is very, very high and the dedication and the passion and 612 00:37:11,840 --> 00:37:15,280 the excitement about doing music and playing the piano is there. 613 00:37:15,280 --> 00:37:22,880 And I think there is this idea that everybody wants to become a superstar. 614 00:37:22,880 --> 00:37:27,320 I think that's why they also work so hard. 615 00:37:27,320 --> 00:37:36,720 I think Lang Lang as a personality, he has been a prodigious and he has changed everything 616 00:37:36,720 --> 00:37:40,720 about classical music in the world and certainly in China. 617 00:37:40,720 --> 00:37:46,560 So he's a role model for a lot of the students, the piano students. 618 00:37:46,560 --> 00:37:52,360 And there's nothing inherently wrong with that, with wanting to be a star and wanting to, 619 00:37:52,360 --> 00:37:53,360 nothing wrong with that. 620 00:37:53,360 --> 00:37:57,160 But it's not the only way. 621 00:37:57,160 --> 00:38:00,280 And I think that's important also to get across. 622 00:38:00,280 --> 00:38:01,520 Yeah, makes sense. 623 00:38:01,520 --> 00:38:02,520 Makes sense. 624 00:38:02,520 --> 00:38:06,920 That's something also as an educator, it's important, right? 625 00:38:06,920 --> 00:38:10,440 Because music is not about becoming a famous person. 626 00:38:10,440 --> 00:38:12,000 Music is about passion. 627 00:38:12,000 --> 00:38:14,840 Music lives within us. 628 00:38:14,840 --> 00:38:16,520 And so it's free of that. 629 00:38:16,520 --> 00:38:18,880 What do you think of some sort of myth? 630 00:38:18,880 --> 00:38:24,440 It's a completely different, I mean, it just goes off the rail a little bit, but I'm thinking 631 00:38:24,440 --> 00:38:29,680 because you mentioned something about, okay, the music is for anyone to express, right? 632 00:38:29,680 --> 00:38:35,780 But then there's the notion of, especially I hear this among people that I sometimes 633 00:38:35,780 --> 00:38:43,000 deal with, then classical musicians are so trained to become this one thing. 634 00:38:43,000 --> 00:38:47,920 And so are you guys even be creative? 635 00:38:47,920 --> 00:38:50,440 So how do you answer that? 636 00:38:50,440 --> 00:38:52,440 If we can be creative. 637 00:38:52,440 --> 00:38:53,440 Yeah. 638 00:38:53,440 --> 00:38:59,600 Or are we even be creative on using music? 639 00:38:59,600 --> 00:39:05,800 And I always answer, well, actually playing classical music by Chopin or Beethoven, we 640 00:39:05,800 --> 00:39:13,580 are actually be creative of interpreting the phrase, for example, right? 641 00:39:13,580 --> 00:39:17,740 Or expressing, because yes, there is the phrase that we follow. 642 00:39:17,740 --> 00:39:22,640 There's a marking, crescendo, minimendo, piano, all these things, forzando, we follow. 643 00:39:22,640 --> 00:39:25,040 However, there is of course me. 644 00:39:25,040 --> 00:39:26,820 I am playing. 645 00:39:26,820 --> 00:39:34,640 I'm not a machine, so I'm not this machine where you press the button and then robot, 646 00:39:34,640 --> 00:39:37,720 but I'm a person and then there's my interpretation. 647 00:39:37,720 --> 00:39:43,680 So that's my way of being expressive and that's my way of being creative. 648 00:39:43,680 --> 00:39:51,040 I mean, not to erase the piano forte on the score, but what do you think of that notion? 649 00:39:51,040 --> 00:39:58,520 Well, I think musicians, artists in general are inherently creative. 650 00:39:58,520 --> 00:40:06,200 I cannot imagine a person that is not creative that can be a good musician. 651 00:40:06,200 --> 00:40:09,840 Maybe there's a lot of bad musicians that are not creative. 652 00:40:09,840 --> 00:40:17,000 I think anybody half-decent, anybody committed, anybody with a smidge of a talent and the 653 00:40:17,000 --> 00:40:21,880 passion for music, I think it's impossible to say that they are not creative. 654 00:40:21,880 --> 00:40:27,720 I think we find creativity in all aspects of our lives, in fact. 655 00:40:27,720 --> 00:40:32,880 The industry and the job itself is one creative, working with students. 656 00:40:32,880 --> 00:40:37,280 You have to be creative about how to solve problems. 657 00:40:37,280 --> 00:40:42,760 I'm not even talking just about musical problems. 658 00:40:42,760 --> 00:40:47,760 Everybody has their own set of problems about life too. 659 00:40:47,760 --> 00:40:52,120 The way you're going to handle some of these questions and the way you're going to guide 660 00:40:52,120 --> 00:40:59,080 them, the way you're going to resolve technical problems on the piano, moving around the keyboard 661 00:40:59,080 --> 00:41:05,080 is highly, it requires top-notch coordination and reflexes. 662 00:41:05,080 --> 00:41:10,120 How do you build a solid technical foundation so that you can be more creative while you 663 00:41:10,120 --> 00:41:11,120 perform? 664 00:41:11,120 --> 00:41:14,200 That in and of itself is a challenge. 665 00:41:14,200 --> 00:41:18,120 I think educators, I'm going to take it a step further, I think educators in general 666 00:41:18,120 --> 00:41:24,480 are the most creative people that are out there because there are so many challenges 667 00:41:24,480 --> 00:41:30,200 that they have to face every day in the classroom or dealing with a range of students and parents 668 00:41:30,200 --> 00:41:37,160 and colleagues and administration and school and their own art and their own. 669 00:41:37,160 --> 00:41:39,120 I don't know if this answers the question. 670 00:41:39,120 --> 00:41:40,120 Yeah, it does. 671 00:41:40,120 --> 00:41:42,320 Yes, do you need to add anything, Ching-Wen? 672 00:41:42,320 --> 00:41:44,680 No, I think it's very well said. 673 00:41:44,680 --> 00:41:46,600 I absolutely agree. 674 00:41:46,600 --> 00:41:55,720 And I do think musicians are one of the most adaptable people to situations and to life 675 00:41:55,720 --> 00:41:57,360 changes. 676 00:41:57,360 --> 00:42:03,640 I feel they're so focused in a way and that's where the creativity comes in. 677 00:42:03,640 --> 00:42:07,120 They're so focused, they're very skilled and they're creative. 678 00:42:07,120 --> 00:42:11,480 So they usually are excellent in many different areas. 679 00:42:11,480 --> 00:42:17,880 You see many of our colleagues that went into law, went into medicine, went into cooking, 680 00:42:17,880 --> 00:42:20,360 excel in all areas. 681 00:42:20,360 --> 00:42:26,160 And I think that's a proven fact that it's important to learn music and it's good to 682 00:42:26,160 --> 00:42:29,720 be a musician because you have even more options. 683 00:42:29,720 --> 00:42:35,840 Even if you don't want to become a pianist or performer in the future, you can do many, 684 00:42:35,840 --> 00:42:37,200 many things and you'll do well. 685 00:42:37,200 --> 00:42:40,200 You'll excel in life. 686 00:42:40,200 --> 00:42:48,280 In fact, I don't quite think that the pre-college here in Tange and Julia School is exactly 687 00:42:48,280 --> 00:42:52,040 the same as the pre-college in New York. 688 00:42:52,040 --> 00:42:56,320 But I would say that a lot of the students, pre-college students in New York, they are 689 00:42:56,320 --> 00:43:02,880 very, very driven and they have so many different interests. 690 00:43:02,880 --> 00:43:08,120 And they do everything on high level. 691 00:43:08,120 --> 00:43:14,800 And so it is not uncommon for some of the pre-college in New York to go into a different 692 00:43:14,800 --> 00:43:16,320 path when they graduate. 693 00:43:16,320 --> 00:43:21,720 A lot of the students really don't necessarily want to become professional musicians. 694 00:43:21,720 --> 00:43:27,160 And yet they spend all the time that we know, we know how the time commitment that you need 695 00:43:27,160 --> 00:43:30,080 to have to do well, right? 696 00:43:30,080 --> 00:43:36,640 At such a competitive field and that requires so much attention. 697 00:43:36,640 --> 00:43:38,080 And they do it at the highest level. 698 00:43:38,080 --> 00:43:40,680 And that's just one of their interests. 699 00:43:40,680 --> 00:43:44,760 And then they become, they succeed in all these other fields. 700 00:43:44,760 --> 00:43:53,240 Pre-college, I would say specifically, is not necessarily about building the next generations 701 00:43:53,240 --> 00:43:57,520 of musicians, but it's about building the next generation of humans. 702 00:43:57,520 --> 00:43:58,520 Wow. 703 00:43:58,520 --> 00:43:59,520 I think so. 704 00:43:59,520 --> 00:44:00,520 Wow. 705 00:44:00,520 --> 00:44:05,680 But you know, all the musical training will teach anyone to be disciplined about things 706 00:44:05,680 --> 00:44:08,720 and teaches you how to practice, right? 707 00:44:08,720 --> 00:44:09,720 Yeah. 708 00:44:09,720 --> 00:44:10,720 Practicing. 709 00:44:10,720 --> 00:44:11,720 Anything. 710 00:44:11,720 --> 00:44:12,720 Anything. 711 00:44:12,720 --> 00:44:13,720 Exactly. 712 00:44:13,720 --> 00:44:16,300 You can apply that, but you can start by doing musical training. 713 00:44:16,300 --> 00:44:22,020 You can start from really young about discipline and what practice does to your mind and does 714 00:44:22,020 --> 00:44:23,020 to your life. 715 00:44:23,020 --> 00:44:28,400 I think that's one of the very important lessons of playing the piano and then playing the 716 00:44:28,400 --> 00:44:33,280 piano to the point of really in a much higher level. 717 00:44:33,280 --> 00:44:38,320 And if music is really the child's calling, wonderful, go for it. 718 00:44:38,320 --> 00:44:39,320 Yeah. 719 00:44:39,320 --> 00:44:40,320 Yeah. 720 00:44:40,320 --> 00:44:45,120 It's about encouraging the students to find their voice. 721 00:44:45,120 --> 00:44:46,120 Wow. 722 00:44:46,120 --> 00:44:48,320 Your students are very fortunate to have you. 723 00:44:48,320 --> 00:44:51,280 I mean, yeah, sure. 724 00:44:51,280 --> 00:44:55,920 Then my last, I may ask more, but for now, this would be my last one. 725 00:44:55,920 --> 00:45:03,960 So then right now, well, especially in the United States, I think culture is changing. 726 00:45:03,960 --> 00:45:08,560 And as a classical musician, I'm not sure if you agree or not, but I'm getting this 727 00:45:08,560 --> 00:45:15,520 sort of ideas or sort of opinions a lot because we do obviously podcasting. 728 00:45:15,520 --> 00:45:17,600 So we get some comments. 729 00:45:17,600 --> 00:45:22,240 Do you think we need a little bit more tools in our toolbox? 730 00:45:22,240 --> 00:45:27,560 Twenty-first century musicians are required to be a little bit more than just pianists. 731 00:45:27,560 --> 00:45:34,600 Let's say I have my own piano studio, so somewhat I'm considered entrepreneur. 732 00:45:34,600 --> 00:45:41,240 I have to study a little bit about marketing or business or finance part of, I mean, anybody 733 00:45:41,240 --> 00:45:43,000 should learn about finance. 734 00:45:43,000 --> 00:45:50,560 But what do you think of that, about this notion of, let's say, as a musician, should 735 00:45:50,560 --> 00:45:53,040 we have many different skills? 736 00:45:53,040 --> 00:45:59,600 I think it is what you're describing is, you know, we are musicians and we always think 737 00:45:59,600 --> 00:46:04,880 everything in line of music. 738 00:46:04,880 --> 00:46:13,520 But I think what you're describing is a 21st century problem in anything you do. 739 00:46:13,520 --> 00:46:19,640 If you're a dentist, you still have to market yourself because there's so many other dentists 740 00:46:19,640 --> 00:46:20,640 out there. 741 00:46:20,640 --> 00:46:29,240 You know, we live in an era where there's just so much over-specialization and everybody's 742 00:46:29,240 --> 00:46:34,920 educated, everybody goes to college, everybody has degrees, everybody. 743 00:46:34,920 --> 00:46:43,160 It is pretty much impossible to find students nowadays, graduates of conservatories or universities 744 00:46:43,160 --> 00:46:49,080 that don't have at least a master's, most of them even a PhD. 745 00:46:49,080 --> 00:46:52,280 You know, that didn't used to be the case. 746 00:46:52,280 --> 00:46:55,320 But now we live in this era of over-specialization. 747 00:46:55,320 --> 00:47:01,460 You need to have A and B and C and maybe D and then you can start thinking about building 748 00:47:01,460 --> 00:47:03,120 your career and your life. 749 00:47:03,120 --> 00:47:05,600 And so it's just very, very competitive. 750 00:47:05,600 --> 00:47:13,160 There's too many people in all fields and it's a matter of, you know, demand and it's 751 00:47:13,160 --> 00:47:15,640 a matter of, you know. 752 00:47:15,640 --> 00:47:20,840 So I think, is it maybe more for music? 753 00:47:20,840 --> 00:47:22,840 Does it pertain a little bit more to music? 754 00:47:22,840 --> 00:47:23,840 Possibly. 755 00:47:23,840 --> 00:47:28,400 Possibly I don't have the necessary data to say for sure. 756 00:47:28,400 --> 00:47:31,040 Possibly it is maybe a little bit more challenging for music. 757 00:47:31,040 --> 00:47:41,200 So does it hurt to be invested in different things and to know a thing or two about finances 758 00:47:41,200 --> 00:47:42,200 and business? 759 00:47:42,200 --> 00:47:43,360 And of course not. 760 00:47:43,360 --> 00:47:46,680 I think it's a healthy thing to do. 761 00:47:46,680 --> 00:47:49,000 It's not necessary always though. 762 00:47:49,000 --> 00:47:50,960 Not everybody has to be an entrepreneur. 763 00:47:50,960 --> 00:47:56,360 You see, I am against the idea that it is absolutely necessary. 764 00:47:56,360 --> 00:48:01,440 If somebody does not want to be an entrepreneur and just wants to play the piano and teach 765 00:48:01,440 --> 00:48:05,640 the piano, I think that's okay. 766 00:48:05,640 --> 00:48:12,920 If you want to create something of your own, a festival, a podcast, a competition, great. 767 00:48:12,920 --> 00:48:13,920 Go ahead and do it. 768 00:48:13,920 --> 00:48:18,520 You live in a time where you can do this fairly comfortably and easily. 769 00:48:18,520 --> 00:48:22,000 But I don't think, I don't want to pass on to my students that if they don't want to 770 00:48:22,000 --> 00:48:28,280 do something, they have to do it in order to succeed, you know, just to get there. 771 00:48:28,280 --> 00:48:30,000 More flexible in that way. 772 00:48:30,000 --> 00:48:36,000 And just to add, I think it has always been this case, but even more so now in the 21st 773 00:48:36,000 --> 00:48:39,640 century, that it's important for artists to be well-rounded. 774 00:48:39,640 --> 00:48:42,800 It's not enough just to play the piano well. 775 00:48:42,800 --> 00:48:47,360 The golden age of winning one competition and you get a lifetime concert career, it's 776 00:48:47,360 --> 00:48:48,360 done already. 777 00:48:48,360 --> 00:48:49,360 It's long gone. 778 00:48:49,360 --> 00:48:52,880 There are so many more competitions out there, amazing players. 779 00:48:52,880 --> 00:49:00,840 So that forces the current musicians to think outside of the box and to equip themselves 780 00:49:00,840 --> 00:49:07,760 with more tools, more skills, people skill, marketing skill, business, all sorts of things 781 00:49:07,760 --> 00:49:13,200 that you think of that could further advance your career. 782 00:49:13,200 --> 00:49:18,040 I think it has become more so now in the current era. 783 00:49:18,040 --> 00:49:23,360 And I think that's what we're trying to instill in our kids here at pre-college. 784 00:49:23,360 --> 00:49:26,600 Do not just sit in the practice room for 12 hours a day. 785 00:49:26,600 --> 00:49:28,600 That's not how you become successful. 786 00:49:28,600 --> 00:49:29,600 Not now. 787 00:49:29,600 --> 00:49:30,600 Yeah. 788 00:49:30,600 --> 00:49:35,440 And maybe we go through a cycle, you know, history always cycle itself. 789 00:49:35,440 --> 00:49:40,280 Maybe in 10, 20 years, you know, the golden era of winning competition and have a career 790 00:49:40,280 --> 00:49:41,280 will come back. 791 00:49:41,280 --> 00:49:43,800 But for now, they need to think outside the box. 792 00:49:43,800 --> 00:49:45,600 They need to be well-rounded. 793 00:49:45,600 --> 00:49:48,240 And that ties to the previous question about creativity. 794 00:49:48,240 --> 00:49:54,600 You have to be creative about how you're going to present yourself. 795 00:49:54,600 --> 00:49:58,500 The bottom line is you have to be excellent in what you do. 796 00:49:58,500 --> 00:50:03,320 You have to be an excellent player in order to be successful. 797 00:50:03,320 --> 00:50:05,480 Everything is built on top of that. 798 00:50:05,480 --> 00:50:09,200 Yeah, it's important to strive for excellence in everything you do. 799 00:50:09,200 --> 00:50:14,160 And it's important that you're genuine about what you want to do and what you do and that 800 00:50:14,160 --> 00:50:17,800 you wake up every day and you do the things that you want to do. 801 00:50:17,800 --> 00:50:21,880 You know, that's what's going to make you a successful person in what you do. 802 00:50:21,880 --> 00:50:25,680 If you enjoy to the maximum, you know, what you do. 803 00:50:25,680 --> 00:50:28,840 Well, so now I want to bring the elephant in. 804 00:50:28,840 --> 00:50:37,200 How was the pandemic affecting you guys or maybe I don't know how it's like in Tianjin. 805 00:50:37,200 --> 00:50:40,320 I became an American citizen right before the lockdown. 806 00:50:40,320 --> 00:50:43,960 So now I cannot even go back to visit my parents. 807 00:50:43,960 --> 00:50:47,600 But I see obviously what they are doing every day. 808 00:50:47,600 --> 00:50:53,840 And it seems like my mother is very involved in the local community that she is a model 809 00:50:53,840 --> 00:50:55,480 at 62 years old. 810 00:50:55,480 --> 00:50:59,600 So she does all these concerts and my dad is very musical as well. 811 00:50:59,600 --> 00:51:00,600 They are not musicians. 812 00:51:00,600 --> 00:51:06,200 So I see it's almost like they're not even that affected until this recent time. 813 00:51:06,200 --> 00:51:08,760 So I want to hear from you guys. 814 00:51:08,760 --> 00:51:13,280 What was it like for you guys being foreigners in China? 815 00:51:13,280 --> 00:51:17,880 Well, we moved here in September 2020. 816 00:51:17,880 --> 00:51:21,480 You know, it's basically right at the peak of pandemic in the state. 817 00:51:21,480 --> 00:51:27,000 So we felt really, really lucky to be coming to China at this time. 818 00:51:27,000 --> 00:51:31,360 We have lots of concerts we were able to teach in person. 819 00:51:31,360 --> 00:51:36,680 So we have fairly normal musical life last year. 820 00:51:36,680 --> 00:51:41,720 This year, I feel due to the Olympics that they're trying to make sure the country is 821 00:51:41,720 --> 00:51:42,720 in good shape. 822 00:51:42,720 --> 00:51:45,720 They're even more stringent this year. 823 00:51:45,720 --> 00:51:51,360 So currently we're teaching online and we hope the Chinese New Year you opened up again. 824 00:51:51,360 --> 00:51:56,640 And overall, you know, if you compare the number of cases in China with other countries, 825 00:51:56,640 --> 00:51:59,040 this is day and night. 826 00:51:59,040 --> 00:52:03,680 You know, just recently they found two cases in Tianjin and they locked the whole city 827 00:52:03,680 --> 00:52:06,500 down and that's how effective they are. 828 00:52:06,500 --> 00:52:11,280 So we're really in awe with the efficiency of the government. 829 00:52:11,280 --> 00:52:17,920 The mechanisms in place to ensure the health, you know, the public health. 830 00:52:17,920 --> 00:52:23,760 It is just I don't think it's conceivable by a lot of the Western countries. 831 00:52:23,760 --> 00:52:28,960 The idea that, you know, you find a couple of cases and immediately you lock down. 832 00:52:28,960 --> 00:52:36,680 Well, it's not lockdown, but immediately, you know, city-wide testing. 833 00:52:36,680 --> 00:52:39,520 We're talking about the city of 14 million people. 834 00:52:39,520 --> 00:52:45,480 14 million people and they were all tested within a weekend and then they were tested 835 00:52:45,480 --> 00:52:46,480 another three times. 836 00:52:46,480 --> 00:52:48,440 Eight, nine times, right? 837 00:52:48,440 --> 00:52:53,640 Some of them were tested from the certain districts that were in close proximity with 838 00:52:53,640 --> 00:52:54,640 the cases. 839 00:52:54,640 --> 00:52:57,200 They had 10 tests. 840 00:52:57,200 --> 00:52:59,640 I mean, this is inconceivable. 841 00:52:59,640 --> 00:53:04,360 Nobody can fathom something like this happening anywhere else. 842 00:53:04,360 --> 00:53:10,520 To that fast, that efficiently and, you know, with the results. 843 00:53:10,520 --> 00:53:18,880 So I think it's that kind of urgency that has allowed us to live fairly normal lives 844 00:53:18,880 --> 00:53:22,520 during the past two years. 845 00:53:22,520 --> 00:53:27,320 We walk out and, you know, we wear our masks when, you know, especially when, you know, 846 00:53:27,320 --> 00:53:31,560 when you go into malls or, you know, the train station or some public spaces. 847 00:53:31,560 --> 00:53:33,540 But overall, you can walk out freely. 848 00:53:33,540 --> 00:53:34,540 You can go shopping. 849 00:53:34,540 --> 00:53:35,540 You can eat. 850 00:53:35,540 --> 00:53:36,780 It hasn't, nothing has been closed. 851 00:53:36,780 --> 00:53:41,240 We can travel fairly okay even within the country, you know. 852 00:53:41,240 --> 00:53:46,160 A lot of our colleagues travel to Sanya or, you know, some other places all around. 853 00:53:46,160 --> 00:53:51,760 We went to Shanghai for, you know, for, you know, New Year's and, you know, Christmas. 854 00:53:51,760 --> 00:53:59,040 So it's, you know, it has been normal and we, you know, in Greece it has been challenging. 855 00:53:59,040 --> 00:54:00,720 We have many cases. 856 00:54:00,720 --> 00:54:05,200 Pretty much by now all of my family has caught COVID at one time. 857 00:54:05,200 --> 00:54:06,200 Oh really? 858 00:54:06,200 --> 00:54:07,200 Yeah. 859 00:54:07,200 --> 00:54:13,920 Even right now my nephew and my sister and here my brother-in-law, they all had COVID. 860 00:54:13,920 --> 00:54:19,800 And it's impossible to avoid because it's just 10,000 cases every day, you know. 861 00:54:19,800 --> 00:54:22,840 But they had lockdown, severe lockdowns for a long time. 862 00:54:22,840 --> 00:54:26,080 So they were very desperate to reopen the country. 863 00:54:26,080 --> 00:54:28,920 Well here it's so far. 864 00:54:28,920 --> 00:54:35,280 I mean the funny thing is that I see, you know, sometimes, you know, I'm a little westernized, 865 00:54:35,280 --> 00:54:39,680 but when it comes to this, you know, situation, I kind of juggle my, you know, good thing 866 00:54:39,680 --> 00:54:44,280 is I work for myself and I, all of my students are online so I don't really have to. 867 00:54:44,280 --> 00:54:48,480 But you know, most of my friends up to this new year have caught it. 868 00:54:48,480 --> 00:54:53,640 And you know, luckily nobody is super, super sick and, you know, most of us have had the 869 00:54:53,640 --> 00:54:54,640 three shots. 870 00:54:54,640 --> 00:54:59,840 But you know, when I'm seeing what China is doing, where my parents, my relatives, 871 00:54:59,840 --> 00:55:04,360 my friends, even my 11 year old niece, she's not even complaining, you know. 872 00:55:04,360 --> 00:55:09,840 It's kind of shocking to me how everybody just kind of, you know, okay, this is it. 873 00:55:09,840 --> 00:55:11,120 Let's all go downstairs. 874 00:55:11,120 --> 00:55:14,120 And you know, they were doing some testing like three or four o'clock in the morning 875 00:55:14,120 --> 00:55:16,040 and it's fine. 876 00:55:16,040 --> 00:55:18,480 Nobody is like, so that's the shocking part. 877 00:55:18,480 --> 00:55:25,160 I wonder, you know, is that a discipline of, you know, these people where maybe they just 878 00:55:25,160 --> 00:55:26,600 cannot complain? 879 00:55:26,600 --> 00:55:27,600 I don't know. 880 00:55:27,600 --> 00:55:32,960 You know, it's something I guess we will find out years, you know, in the future. 881 00:55:32,960 --> 00:55:33,960 Right. 882 00:55:33,960 --> 00:55:40,720 There is a willingness, I think, from the community to take care of one another in that 883 00:55:40,720 --> 00:55:42,640 regard, in that regard. 884 00:55:42,640 --> 00:55:46,120 To cooperate willingly, not, you know, in any... 885 00:55:46,120 --> 00:55:47,560 Especially in Tianjin, right? 886 00:55:47,560 --> 00:55:51,800 Sophie sent me quite a few videos of like all these kui ban, you know, people are playing 887 00:55:51,800 --> 00:55:57,440 kui ban to the Chinese rap music to get people tested. 888 00:55:57,440 --> 00:56:02,960 So you know, you can be as you know, Vesity is like a famous for comedian, like comedies 889 00:56:02,960 --> 00:56:05,600 and you know, so it's quite interesting. 890 00:56:05,600 --> 00:56:12,000 Well, we are, you know, getting to the last bit of the show, you know, we really enjoy 891 00:56:12,000 --> 00:56:16,000 talking with you guys and this is just such a wonderful episode. 892 00:56:16,000 --> 00:56:19,560 But you know, we have a couple more questions before we go to the fun part. 893 00:56:19,560 --> 00:56:26,880 And for me, I'm curious, like, are you guys thinking of staying in China indefinitely? 894 00:56:26,880 --> 00:56:30,620 Are you planning to move back anytime or? 895 00:56:30,620 --> 00:56:32,320 We have no plans so far. 896 00:56:32,320 --> 00:56:34,160 We are happy here. 897 00:56:34,160 --> 00:56:35,160 Yeah. 898 00:56:35,160 --> 00:56:41,360 As long as we're living happy lives, joyful lives here, there's no plan to go back. 899 00:56:41,360 --> 00:56:42,360 But yeah. 900 00:56:42,360 --> 00:56:45,120 But we will be visiting this summer for sure. 901 00:56:45,120 --> 00:56:46,120 We'll be visiting. 902 00:56:46,120 --> 00:56:47,120 Okay. 903 00:56:47,120 --> 00:56:48,120 Let us know. 904 00:56:48,120 --> 00:56:49,120 Yeah, for sure. 905 00:56:49,120 --> 00:56:50,120 We will definitely visit New York. 906 00:56:50,120 --> 00:56:51,120 Yes, definitely. 907 00:56:51,120 --> 00:56:52,120 Come back to New York. 908 00:56:52,120 --> 00:56:53,120 Yes. 909 00:56:53,120 --> 00:56:54,120 Friends and family there. 910 00:56:54,120 --> 00:56:56,160 My brother is still there. 911 00:56:56,160 --> 00:56:57,160 So we'll be back. 912 00:56:57,160 --> 00:56:58,160 Okay. 913 00:56:58,160 --> 00:57:01,440 How is it living in like Tianjin feels like? 914 00:57:01,440 --> 00:57:06,040 Do you feel comfortable, you know, in the city or, you know, it's been so many years 915 00:57:06,040 --> 00:57:07,040 for me. 916 00:57:07,040 --> 00:57:09,160 So I don't even really remember. 917 00:57:09,160 --> 00:57:10,160 Very comfortable. 918 00:57:10,160 --> 00:57:15,280 And it's so advanced, you know, the high speed railroad and the subway system. 919 00:57:15,280 --> 00:57:16,520 The things are so clean. 920 00:57:16,520 --> 00:57:21,080 And when I first landed and came to Tianjin, I said, this is like Chicago. 921 00:57:21,080 --> 00:57:27,160 To me, you have the river, you have high rise building and but still very open. 922 00:57:27,160 --> 00:57:29,160 So it's a beautiful city. 923 00:57:29,160 --> 00:57:31,680 Tianjin is a very nice city. 924 00:57:31,680 --> 00:57:32,680 It's not Shanghai. 925 00:57:32,680 --> 00:57:33,680 Right. 926 00:57:33,680 --> 00:57:34,680 A little bit different. 927 00:57:34,680 --> 00:57:35,680 Right. 928 00:57:35,680 --> 00:57:38,840 Shanghai is my top destination in the world so far. 929 00:57:38,840 --> 00:57:40,920 I just really love it. 930 00:57:40,920 --> 00:57:43,480 It's as cosmopolitan as New York. 931 00:57:43,480 --> 00:57:47,160 You know, I'm a fan of culinary experiences. 932 00:57:47,160 --> 00:57:49,960 I love going to restaurants and trying, you know, different things. 933 00:57:49,960 --> 00:57:52,960 And Shanghai is top. 934 00:57:52,960 --> 00:57:53,960 You love Shanghai. 935 00:57:53,960 --> 00:57:54,960 I love Shanghai. 936 00:57:54,960 --> 00:57:55,960 I love Shanghai. 937 00:57:55,960 --> 00:57:56,960 Yes. 938 00:57:56,960 --> 00:57:59,720 It's a great place. 939 00:57:59,720 --> 00:58:02,520 It's a lot of fun. 940 00:58:02,520 --> 00:58:06,720 But compared to New York, it's clean and quiet. 941 00:58:06,720 --> 00:58:09,400 Ours are not allowed to honk. 942 00:58:09,400 --> 00:58:10,600 It's part of the rules. 943 00:58:10,600 --> 00:58:15,280 And then, you know, you walk in the streets and you don't see garbage or, you know, New 944 00:58:15,280 --> 00:58:20,160 York, you started with this, has that distinct New York smell. 945 00:58:20,160 --> 00:58:21,160 Which I love. 946 00:58:21,160 --> 00:58:24,160 Well, it's a true New Yorker. 947 00:58:24,160 --> 00:58:26,920 Well, not during the summer though. 948 00:58:26,920 --> 00:58:27,920 The summer. 949 00:58:27,920 --> 00:58:29,920 The New York perfume. 950 00:58:29,920 --> 00:58:30,920 That's true. 951 00:58:30,920 --> 00:58:34,360 Well, especially the subway, you know, lately. 952 00:58:34,360 --> 00:58:35,880 That's been such a nightmare. 953 00:58:35,880 --> 00:58:38,040 And so that's, you know, but. 954 00:58:38,040 --> 00:58:39,040 All right. 955 00:58:39,040 --> 00:58:44,040 Well, maybe we will end with this last question we always ask everybody. 956 00:58:44,040 --> 00:58:46,880 What is your advice for young musicians? 957 00:58:46,880 --> 00:58:49,360 You may have already answered some, but yeah, we have. 958 00:58:49,360 --> 00:58:51,000 Yes, yes, yes, yes. 959 00:58:51,000 --> 00:58:53,880 But any last advice? 960 00:58:53,880 --> 00:58:59,160 I would say keep doing what you love and work hard. 961 00:58:59,160 --> 00:59:04,000 And, but, you know, expand your horizon at the same time. 962 00:59:04,000 --> 00:59:05,000 Expand your horizons. 963 00:59:05,000 --> 00:59:09,440 I think, I think that's very, very important for the students. 964 00:59:09,440 --> 00:59:10,760 Don't feel competitive. 965 00:59:10,760 --> 00:59:11,760 Just do what you love. 966 00:59:11,760 --> 00:59:13,760 That is really beautiful. 967 00:59:13,760 --> 00:59:16,120 Constantino, are you learning Chinese now? 968 00:59:16,120 --> 00:59:19,080 Especially, are you learning Tianjin Chinese now? 969 00:59:19,080 --> 00:59:20,080 A little bit. 970 00:59:20,080 --> 00:59:21,080 Oh, very good. 971 00:59:21,080 --> 00:59:22,080 Very good. 972 00:59:22,080 --> 00:59:23,080 Very good. 973 00:59:23,080 --> 00:59:28,280 Next time when I come back, you guys have to be my tour guide. 974 00:59:28,280 --> 00:59:30,280 Clueless, clueless, clueless here. 975 00:59:30,280 --> 00:59:36,320 As a matter of fact, as soon as we're finished with the podcast, I have my Chinese lesson. 976 00:59:36,320 --> 00:59:37,800 Oh, very important. 977 00:59:37,800 --> 00:59:39,800 I'm getting ready mentally. 978 00:59:39,800 --> 00:59:40,800 I'm preparing. 979 00:59:40,800 --> 00:59:41,800 Great. 980 00:59:41,800 --> 00:59:48,080 Well, we're going to end with some fun stuff so you can go into your lesson, you know, 981 00:59:48,080 --> 00:59:49,080 high energy. 982 00:59:49,080 --> 00:59:51,920 So are we all ready? 983 00:59:51,920 --> 00:59:53,880 The rapid fire question. 984 00:59:53,880 --> 00:59:54,880 All right. 985 00:59:54,880 --> 00:59:56,960 I will go to start. 986 00:59:56,960 --> 00:59:58,960 What is your comfort food? 987 00:59:58,960 --> 01:00:01,960 Burger, pizza, both. 988 01:00:01,960 --> 01:00:02,960 All right. 989 01:00:02,960 --> 01:00:03,960 Pizza burger. 990 01:00:03,960 --> 01:00:04,960 Cheese. 991 01:00:04,960 --> 01:00:05,960 Cheese. 992 01:00:05,960 --> 01:00:06,960 That's kind of true. 993 01:00:06,960 --> 01:00:07,960 It is a block of cheese. 994 01:00:07,960 --> 01:00:12,960 Now you're in Tianjin, you have to have some mahua, right? 995 01:00:12,960 --> 01:00:17,960 Or goblibao, which I have never had. 996 01:00:17,960 --> 01:00:18,960 Nice. 997 01:00:18,960 --> 01:00:21,960 Oh, bubble tea. 998 01:00:21,960 --> 01:00:22,960 Tianjinites. 999 01:00:22,960 --> 01:00:25,960 Oh, that's right. 1000 01:00:25,960 --> 01:00:26,960 All right. 1001 01:00:26,960 --> 01:00:27,960 My question. 1002 01:00:27,960 --> 01:00:33,960 I may already know this answer, but cats or dogs, cats or dogs? 1003 01:00:33,960 --> 01:00:34,960 Dogs. 1004 01:00:34,960 --> 01:00:35,960 All right. 1005 01:00:35,960 --> 01:00:36,960 I'm going to bring tofu. 1006 01:00:36,960 --> 01:00:37,960 OK, great. 1007 01:00:37,960 --> 01:00:38,960 Yes. 1008 01:00:38,960 --> 01:00:39,960 All right. 1009 01:00:39,960 --> 01:00:40,960 Chivin, you can continue. 1010 01:00:40,960 --> 01:00:44,920 What is your word or words to live by? 1011 01:00:44,920 --> 01:00:48,560 Be happy. 1012 01:00:48,560 --> 01:00:50,560 And you can be happy with this. 1013 01:00:50,560 --> 01:00:53,560 Oh, hi, tofu. 1014 01:00:53,560 --> 01:00:54,560 So cute. 1015 01:00:54,560 --> 01:00:57,560 This tofu is seven months old. 1016 01:00:57,560 --> 01:00:58,560 Oh, my God. 1017 01:00:58,560 --> 01:00:59,560 It's a baby. 1018 01:00:59,560 --> 01:01:00,560 Oh, my gosh. 1019 01:01:00,560 --> 01:01:01,560 I have to take some photos. 1020 01:01:01,560 --> 01:01:02,560 It's super sweet. 1021 01:01:02,560 --> 01:01:03,560 Tofu, say, Tianjin. 1022 01:01:03,560 --> 01:01:04,560 He just woke up. 1023 01:01:04,560 --> 01:01:05,560 He just woke up. 1024 01:01:05,560 --> 01:01:06,560 So cute. 1025 01:01:06,560 --> 01:01:07,560 Yes, super sweet. 1026 01:01:07,560 --> 01:01:08,560 OK. 1027 01:01:08,560 --> 01:01:09,560 So my question. 1028 01:01:09,560 --> 01:01:10,560 All right. 1029 01:01:10,560 --> 01:01:19,560 What is the most important quality you look for in other people? 1030 01:01:19,560 --> 01:01:20,560 Honesty. 1031 01:01:20,560 --> 01:01:21,560 Honesty. 1032 01:01:21,560 --> 01:01:22,560 Sincerity. 1033 01:01:22,560 --> 01:01:28,560 What is the worst quality you stay away from people? 1034 01:01:28,560 --> 01:01:29,560 Gossiping. 1035 01:01:29,560 --> 01:01:30,560 Bad mouthing. 1036 01:01:30,560 --> 01:01:31,560 Fake. 1037 01:01:31,560 --> 01:01:32,560 Fake. 1038 01:01:32,560 --> 01:01:33,560 Fakeness. 1039 01:01:33,560 --> 01:01:34,560 Dishonesty. 1040 01:01:34,560 --> 01:01:43,520 All right. 1041 01:01:43,520 --> 01:01:44,880 My question. 1042 01:01:44,880 --> 01:01:49,840 Name one composer, living or dead, whom you want to hang out at the bar. 1043 01:01:49,840 --> 01:01:50,840 Brahms. 1044 01:01:50,840 --> 01:01:51,840 Oh, Brahms. 1045 01:01:51,840 --> 01:01:52,840 Rachmaninoff. 1046 01:01:52,840 --> 01:01:53,840 Rachmaninoff. 1047 01:01:53,840 --> 01:01:54,840 Rachmaninoff. 1048 01:01:54,840 --> 01:01:55,840 Great. 1049 01:01:55,840 --> 01:01:58,880 He was on the Upper West Side before, right? 1050 01:01:58,880 --> 01:02:00,880 How many floors? 1051 01:02:00,880 --> 01:02:02,360 That's right. 1052 01:02:02,360 --> 01:02:03,520 That's right. 1053 01:02:03,520 --> 01:02:06,040 Name someone who truly inspires you. 1054 01:02:06,040 --> 01:02:07,040 There's many. 1055 01:02:07,040 --> 01:02:08,040 So many. 1056 01:02:08,040 --> 01:02:09,040 It's so hard. 1057 01:02:09,040 --> 01:02:10,040 I know. 1058 01:02:10,040 --> 01:02:11,040 Hard to choose. 1059 01:02:11,040 --> 01:02:13,040 I have to say my teacher, Veda Koplinski. 1060 01:02:13,040 --> 01:02:14,040 Somebody. 1061 01:02:14,040 --> 01:02:17,280 Julia Martin, my teacher in New York. 1062 01:02:17,280 --> 01:02:18,280 You guess. 1063 01:02:18,280 --> 01:02:19,280 I mean, all of my teachers. 1064 01:02:19,280 --> 01:02:21,760 I don't want to put one name in my head all the time. 1065 01:02:21,760 --> 01:02:22,760 It's hard. 1066 01:02:22,760 --> 01:02:24,760 My family is Julia in New York. 1067 01:02:24,760 --> 01:02:25,760 OK. 1068 01:02:25,760 --> 01:02:26,760 Sounds good. 1069 01:02:26,760 --> 01:02:27,760 Sounds good. 1070 01:02:27,760 --> 01:02:28,760 All right. 1071 01:02:28,760 --> 01:02:31,000 What is your desert island piece? 1072 01:02:31,000 --> 01:02:32,000 Oh, man. 1073 01:02:32,000 --> 01:02:33,800 Name one. 1074 01:02:33,800 --> 01:02:34,800 OK. 1075 01:02:34,800 --> 01:02:35,800 Brahms Requiem. 1076 01:02:35,800 --> 01:02:36,800 Oh, beautiful. 1077 01:02:36,800 --> 01:02:37,800 Beautiful. 1078 01:02:37,800 --> 01:02:41,800 I would say Schubert's E-flat Trio. 1079 01:02:41,800 --> 01:02:42,800 Beautiful. 1080 01:02:42,800 --> 01:02:47,800 And name one book title in your library. 1081 01:02:47,800 --> 01:02:50,800 Oh, the Bible. 1082 01:02:50,800 --> 01:02:51,800 Great. 1083 01:02:51,800 --> 01:02:52,800 Beautiful. 1084 01:02:52,800 --> 01:02:55,800 All of the Harry Potter series. 1085 01:02:55,800 --> 01:02:58,800 I mean, Harry Potter. 1086 01:02:58,800 --> 01:03:03,800 All of the Harry Potter series. 1087 01:03:03,800 --> 01:03:06,800 Lord of the Rings. 1088 01:03:06,800 --> 01:03:07,800 We got it. 1089 01:03:07,800 --> 01:03:08,800 We got it. 1090 01:03:08,800 --> 01:03:09,800 The last one. 1091 01:03:09,800 --> 01:03:10,800 Last one. 1092 01:03:10,800 --> 01:03:11,800 Are you ready? 1093 01:03:11,800 --> 01:03:12,800 Fill in the blank. 1094 01:03:12,800 --> 01:03:14,800 Music is blank. 1095 01:03:14,800 --> 01:03:15,800 Peace. 1096 01:03:15,800 --> 01:03:18,800 Music is food for soul. 1097 01:03:18,800 --> 01:03:20,800 Food for soul. 1098 01:03:20,800 --> 01:03:21,800 Great answers. 1099 01:03:21,800 --> 01:03:22,800 Wow. 1100 01:03:22,800 --> 01:03:23,800 Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding. 1101 01:03:23,800 --> 01:03:24,800 Who won? 1102 01:03:24,800 --> 01:03:25,800 You guys have won. 1103 01:03:25,800 --> 01:03:26,800 Did I win? 1104 01:03:26,800 --> 01:03:27,800 Total. 1105 01:03:27,800 --> 01:03:28,800 Total won. 1106 01:03:28,800 --> 01:03:29,800 Of course. 1107 01:03:29,800 --> 01:03:30,800 OK. 1108 01:03:30,800 --> 01:03:33,800 Well, thank you so much for joining us. 1109 01:03:33,800 --> 01:03:36,800 And that concludes this episode of the PianoPod. 1110 01:03:36,800 --> 01:03:37,800 Thank you, Chi-wen. 1111 01:03:37,800 --> 01:03:38,800 And because the T knows. 1112 01:03:38,800 --> 01:03:39,800 Perfection. 1113 01:03:39,800 --> 01:03:40,800 Thank you for having us. 1114 01:03:40,800 --> 01:03:41,800 Share your stories. 1115 01:03:41,800 --> 01:03:42,800 It's been a pleasure. 1116 01:03:42,800 --> 01:03:47,800 Your insights and expertise and more information about them, we are going to link in the description 1117 01:03:47,800 --> 01:03:48,800 below. 1118 01:03:48,800 --> 01:03:53,800 And I would like to remind our viewers that you can also use the link in the description 1119 01:03:53,800 --> 01:03:54,800 below. 1120 01:03:54,800 --> 01:03:58,800 And I would like to remind our audience to check out there. 1121 01:03:58,800 --> 01:04:02,800 You have a double piano work in the making, right? 1122 01:04:02,800 --> 01:04:04,800 That you guys are working on. 1123 01:04:04,800 --> 01:04:06,800 It's called the stained glasses. 1124 01:04:06,800 --> 01:04:09,800 Again, we are ready to list everything below. 1125 01:04:09,800 --> 01:04:10,800 Great. 1126 01:04:10,800 --> 01:04:11,800 Fantastic. 1127 01:04:11,800 --> 01:04:12,800 Thank you. 1128 01:04:12,800 --> 01:04:13,800 Thank you. 1129 01:04:13,800 --> 01:04:15,800 And thank you to our audience and fans for tuning in. 1130 01:04:15,800 --> 01:04:19,800 If you enjoyed today's episode, please rate and review on whatever podcasting platform 1131 01:04:19,800 --> 01:04:20,800 you used. 1132 01:04:20,800 --> 01:04:24,800 If you are watching us on YouTube, remember to hit the thumbs up button. 1133 01:04:24,800 --> 01:04:26,800 Be sure to subscribe to our channel. 1134 01:04:26,800 --> 01:04:29,800 You can also find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. 1135 01:04:29,800 --> 01:04:32,800 The links are in the description below. 1136 01:04:32,800 --> 01:04:37,800 If you have feedback for us, please leave it in the comments or DM us via social media. 1137 01:04:37,800 --> 01:04:43,800 Or you can also email us at the pianopod.nyc at gmail.com. 1138 01:04:43,800 --> 01:04:46,800 We'll see you for the next episode of the PianoPod. 1139 01:04:46,800 --> 01:04:47,800 Thank you, everyone. 1140 01:04:47,800 --> 01:04:48,800 Thank you, Capsantino. 1141 01:04:48,800 --> 01:04:49,800 Thank you, Chi-wen. 1142 01:04:49,800 --> 01:04:50,800 Thank you, too. 1143 01:04:50,800 --> 01:04:51,800 Bye. 1144 01:04:51,800 --> 01:04:52,800 Bye. 1145 01:04:52,800 --> 01:04:53,800 Bye. 1146 01:04:53,800 --> 01:05:19,800 Bye.