It is easy to teach highly gifted students who are destined no matter what to become stars. Its another to actually take very good talents and get them to rise above their expected level of success. Kaplinsky is not such an amazing teacher but managed to be connected to the right people at the right time. It is also well know certain studios have cache and teachers that "have connections" will always tend to produce more stars. Its just the nature of this business. There are many talented undiscovered teachers who are not connected to academia. No one ever knows about them
Really? Easy? How many "gifted" students have you taught? And, we can all find our place on the giant piano family tree if we have any of the "sons or daughters" of the great pianists and pedagogies in our background, well-known or not.
As a teacher, John Perry certainly had success in producing contest-winners, but interesting to note that none of his pupils succeeded on the concert circuit. Mark Wescott and Dickran Atamian got the closest, but they faded before they reached age 30.
+Dan Leon - Please, you seem to ignore the obvious failing economic conditions of the industry. Besides, that has less to do with the teacher than it does the student, at this point.
Actually, Mark Westcott played internationally well in to his late 40's and early 50's. Around 2000, he got focal distonia (the same as Leon Fliesher and Gary Graffman) which ended his playing career. He can no longer use his right hand but he has been teaching for the past 15 years in Portand and he currently has a top quality studio of his own. You can check out his book entitled "playing with love" on amazon. He tells many stories about his career in it. He had as much of a career as any major artist in the cicuit. I thought you might like to hear that in case you weren't aware. As for John Perry, he is a capable teacher but you are right. There are not many famed people to his name.
I was taught by two of John Perry's students and attended Perry's Master Classes on occasion. The measure of a teacher is not solely based on his/her students becoming commercial or popular successes. That is the superficial commodification of "talent" by which a Capitalist system artificially measures musicians and, thus, dilutes greatness. What Perry has done is to have infused generations of players and teachers all over the world with a soundness and high standard of efficient, effective technique and depth of musicality and musical understanding that may have been equaled by a few, but has never been surpassed. His contribution is incalculable. So, maybe most if not all of his students see the higher purpose and meaning of music in what they learn from him and eschew the commercial spotlight that too often restricts further growth and participation on their own terms in the lifelong study of music and its wonders. This is why he is still sought after for study and judging and teaching by music centers, universities, competitions, and students all around the globe.
A great pianist and one of the finest teacher of our time
Wonderful playing. His intelligence and innate sense of the musical line are astonishing.
It is easy to teach highly gifted students who are destined no matter what to become stars. Its another to actually take very good talents and get them to rise above their expected level of success. Kaplinsky is not such an amazing teacher but managed to be connected to the right people at the right time. It is also well know certain studios have cache and teachers that "have connections" will always tend to produce more stars. Its just the nature of this business. There are many talented undiscovered teachers who are not connected to academia. No one ever knows about them
Really? Easy? How many "gifted" students have you taught? And, we can all find our place on the giant piano family tree if we have any of the "sons or daughters" of the great pianists and pedagogies in our background, well-known or not.
Thank you so much for posting this.
What a lovely idea of the piece.
im playing this piece for my audition for USC!!!
As a teacher, John Perry certainly had success in producing contest-winners, but interesting to note that none of his pupils succeeded on the concert circuit. Mark Wescott and Dickran Atamian got the closest, but they faded before they reached age 30.
+Dan Leon - Please, you seem to ignore the obvious failing economic conditions of the industry. Besides, that has less to do with the teacher than it does the student, at this point.
Actually, Mark Westcott played internationally well in to his late 40's and early 50's. Around 2000, he got focal distonia (the same as Leon Fliesher and Gary Graffman) which ended his playing career. He can no longer use his right hand but he has been teaching for the past 15 years in Portand and he currently has a top quality studio of his own.
You can check out his book entitled "playing with love" on amazon. He tells many stories about his career in it. He had as much of a career as any major artist in the cicuit. I thought you might like to hear that in case you weren't aware.
As for John Perry, he is a capable teacher but you are right. There are not many famed people to his name.
Congratulation, I was told that John Perry got a new son! On the other hand, this industry does not need more stars.
I was taught by two of John Perry's students and attended Perry's Master Classes on occasion. The measure of a teacher is not solely based on his/her students becoming commercial or popular successes. That is the superficial commodification of "talent" by which a Capitalist system artificially measures musicians and, thus, dilutes greatness. What Perry has done is to have infused generations of players and teachers all over the world with a soundness and high standard of efficient, effective technique and depth of musicality and musical understanding that may have been equaled by a few, but has never been surpassed. His contribution is incalculable. So, maybe most if not all of his students see the higher purpose and meaning of music in what they learn from him and eschew the commercial spotlight that too often restricts further growth and participation on their own terms in the lifelong study of music and its wonders. This is why he is still sought after for study and judging and teaching by music centers, universities, competitions, and students all around the globe.