Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Pianist Corner Cliburn Amateur 2020 Announced!

But I'd estimate more than 99.9% of those taking lessons or practicing on their own don't enter amateur competitions, and I don't think their improvement is, in general, very flat.

I am also reminded that many "pro" pianists have a day job as well: teaching piano all day. They only get to practice between students or early in the morning.

I am a bit envious of those who are retired!

Well it beats working 50-to-60-hour weeks, which was the norm for me, but honestly, you'd be surprised how little free time I have for practicing. I do pretty much all the household and kid-related stuff, shopping, bills, financial management, insurance claims, and I try to work out every day. The most I ever get to practice is about 2 hours or so. Usually it's 60-90 minutes or less, sometimes not at all. So yeah, certainly easier than when I was working full-time and only managed to touch a piano on weekends for a few minutes here and there. But even if I quit eating and stopped watching TV in the evening, I could still never find time enough to get anywhere close to Oleg's technical level. "Retirement" is not what I expected it to be!

If only I'd done more when I had the opportunity, though I think you already covered that issue pretty comprehensively!

I resemble that - all of it - except you're managing to get in lots more practice time.

The idea of excluding former prodigies strikes me as petty. Some people have amazing talent, and it shows early on.

So, even though O.V. worked for a few years as a professional artist, he was then tied up in an ordinary job for many, many years. Perhaps he has entered the Cliburn because the level of playing has now gotten so high that he doesn't feel like he would be "beating up" on the other entrants (I forget how someone phrased it in a post way back, but it was something like that.)

Coaster, that is not the impression I got from the Wiki article. It would appear that he has been involved in "professional" activities, either as a performer or teacher, the entire time. But then, I'm guessing you know something that I don't. Still, given the extent of his early professional performing activity, I'd hardly call the gentleman an amateur, even if he is a little rusty..

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oleg_Volkov

Kudos to your husband for stepping up to help you pursue your dreams when you started competing again. Seems like a great partnership.

No, I don't know any more than what was in the article. I guess I'm trying to be positive and give him the benefit of the doubt. Besides, it's hard to know exactly where to draw the line. There are many different opinions on that matter.

If real amateur people do not take lesson, and just practice themselves...

That's a very accurate description of me!

I guess I'd like to clarify that I didn't think any retired person is spending all day at the piano. I just envy your ability to decide how to divide up your time. I can only compare it to my own experiences as a stay-at-home mother, a part-time working mother, and now a full-time working mother. I know just how much needs to be done to run a household... it's a never-ending job. However, I remember how I used to have flexibility with my time management back then. That's something that people employed full time don't have. At least 40 of our daylight hours are not in our control. My own personal example... I get up, get ready for work, and leave the house. I'm gone from 8-4 (at best) or, more commonly, 8-6:00+. When I come home, I immediately start dinner, and after dinner, there are all those things I have to get done that I used to be able to do throughout the daylight hours of the week. My husband was a big help taking those chores over for me in the past two years while I was working full time and competing at piano, at the expense of other things around the house that need his specific attention.

So, even though O.V. worked for a few years as a professional artist, he was then tied up in an ordinary job for many, many years. Perhaps he has entered the Cliburn because the level of playing has now gotten so high that he doesn't feel like he would be "beating up" on the other entrants (I forget how someone phrased it in a post way back, but it was something like that.)

It sounds like Ronald would like to exclude all ex-prodigies from these competitions. Remember that not all ex-prodigies have music degrees. Chris Shih has been brought up on this thread. He does not have a music degree. His undergraduate degree (from Harvard) was in Biochemistry. He took a year off from medical school to practice for the "real" Cliburn just to see what would happen if he entered. He didn't get out of the prelims and that was that. He went back to medical school. You can't call him professional, just for trying one competition.

Being able to play better than many professionals doesn't mean you are a professional. Chris Shih is an amateur, in every sense of the word.

People like him should not be excluded from amateur competition just because they are ex-prodigies. My younger sister's story is just like Chris Shih. In fact, they are the same age and competed against each other in their youth. We all studied with the same teacher in the D.C. area (Suzanne Guy). My sister graduated high school, went to Virginia Tech, majored in Civil Engineering, and has worked all her life in that field. However, as some might be relieved to hear, she (another ex-prodigy) has not touched the piano since college and has no interest in returning to piano competition at this point in her life.

Once a person took the decision to study music for their career, that is it. The intention to make money from music was there, and was pursued seriously at one time.

So if someone decides to pursue music seriously, gets accepted into a conservatory, takes lessons from an excellent professor for a few months, but flunks their first jury and is forced out of the program......are they still considered a professional? Seems to me, no matter how good their intentions, if they don't "have the goods" in the first place there's no way they can be considered anything but amateur.

Sorry, you do not fall into this category. You are considered ex-prodigy. You had acquired the skill before you were an adult. But you are still amateur since you never studied music to make money.

POSTPONED! Until Spring 2022. Everyone accepted this year will have first right of refusal in 2022.

Definitely the right decision IMO.

...A wise decision - which will give you and others a lot more time to prepare.