The Final Three R's: #2-Resilience

Practice Challenge Update | Week 19 of 20

Brillante Studio Musicians

Top L to R | Ariana, Derrick, Jasmine, Lindsey, Priyanka, Steven

2nd Row | Audrey, Elle, Keira, Rachael, Thomas

3rd Row | Ayannah, Ellis, La'Naya, Lucy, Riley, Willa

4th Row | Barrett, Evelyn, Liam, Macy, Robert, Zach

5th Row | Becky, Lillyana, Neela, Simrick, Zeke, Bryce

(Not pictured: Zoe, Ethan, Jack, Nicklas, Rayne, Riley P.)

Resilience. This is the word that comes to mind when I think of my students this year. At the beginning of 2021, I challenged them to practice for 100 minutes every week for 20 weeks. (Award winners will be recognized in next week's blog!) They look like perfectly normal people in this photo, but roaring lions definitely live within each one of them. Here is a snapshot of their year:

Ariana | Dedicated her semester to improving her voice and overall confidence. It paid off when she auditioned and landed a spot in her high school's top choral program.

Derrick | Undeterred by technology problems and reading from printed music, he committed to learning his new piece completely by ear and successfully did so.

Jasmine | Always looking for a challenge, Jasmine composed multiple songs this year and performed a soaring rendition of Mozart's "Queen of the Night" for our studio's Halloween concert.

Lindsey | Although a busy wife to her husband and mom to two little boys, Lindsey decided to rekindle her passion for the piano and has progressed mightily in note reading, sight-reading and ear training.

Priyanka | Competitive and committed, Priyanka completed a piano lesson level as well as mastering 14+ new scales and composing her own music.

Steven | Amidst technology issues and new challenges in piano, Steven never gave up and is reaping the benefits of his commitment as he plays some of the world's most recognizable pieces.

Audrey | Moving her piano from the basement to the common area of her home created a new environment of community and accountability. She began singing and playing together in earnest and has had her strongest year of growth yet.

Elle | Tackling high school classes, a musical, new jobs and new pets, Elle was determined to elevate her music expression skills this year. Her daily commitments to this end have significantly brought her to a new level of ability on the keyboard and connection with the music.

Keira | Never one to shy away from challenges, Keira embraced her quarantine and not only advanced through a piano level book, but brought marked improvement to her sight-reading and performing skills.

Adalyn | This young woman's passion for music could not be quelled by quarantine. Adalyn's daily practice deposits have made her a musician specifically rich in technique and expression.

Rachael | Starting with an end goal in mind, Rachael entered the arena of the brave to start something new and unexplored. Her persistent drive to improve each week have found her going toe to toe with demanding music and accompanying for herself.

Thomas | With no lack of creativity and talent, Thomas' follow through skills saw an album release to Spotify and a continued commitment to his art.

Ayannah | This fun-loving spirit started new this year and started strong. She developed a rhythm for her daily practice and has seen tremendous progress in pitch matching and diction.

Ellis | Another new musician off the blocks, Ellis began her piano journey with eagerness and curiosity. Despite the learning curve every new musician encounters and despite the challenges of virtual lessons, Ellis is sight-reading independently and playing music that she loves.

La'Naya | Though naturally musical, La'Naya worked through difficult new concepts vocally and on the piano, excitedly sharing them with her family. She also loved learning many new songs by ear this year.

Lucy | Navigating a new high school and virtual lessons only strengthened this young woman's confidence in her voice and story-telling abilities. Her vocal tone, flexibility and breathing skills have also gained momentum.

Riley L. | A skilled athlete, Riley is no stranger to hard work and proved through his attentiveness to practice time that he came to play this year. Riley's sight-reading skills and technique on the keyboard have seen a dramatic improvement.

Willa | Willa's focus and love of music are evident as she has developed her voice and music knowledge. Virtual concerts have seen her expressing her investment in the story of the songs in fun and engaging ways.

Barrett | This young man never allowed the pandemic to rock his established daily practice goals. His tenacity and resolution to his art has been unwavering and deeply inspiring.

Evelyn | Although the musical in which she had the lead role only got to perform twice before shutting down, Evelyn managed to not only stay positive, but kept connected to the music in meaningful ways by experimenting with new repertoire and fine-tuning her skills through auditions.

Liam | A true explorer, Liam discovered YouTube piano tutorials during quarantine. Using his skills from lessons, he began teaching himself to play music that he loves and hasn't slowed down since.

Macy | This young musician found her sight-reading skills and musical ear strengthened due to virtual lessons. Macy's level of preparedness for performances decreased her nerves, giving her confidence before and during recitals and has even translated to her other activity areas.

​Robert | Delving into the Hanon Finger Technique exercises with fervor this year, Robert has enjoyed the benefits of increased hand and finger coordination. His obvious note reading growth has him always on the hunt for more musical challenges.

Zach | A competitive spirit has served Zach well as his practice habits sky rocketed bringing his overall skill to a new level this year. His imaginative approach to music has allowed him to pursue many new endeavors.

Becky | A college flutist, Becky jumped into piano lessons this year determined to dust off her musical chops. Her daily dedication on the ivories have polished her note identification, technique and expression. Already completing a book level, Becky's time in quarantine has been anything but dull.

Lillyana | A naturally hard worker, Lillyana's skills as a musician have continued climbing. Having formerly eschewed performing, this courageous spirit took a leap and played with brilliance in not just one, but multiple recitals this year.

Neela | Discovery of the range of skills that can benefit a faithful musician buoyed Neela's belief in her own musical capabilities. Neela's ability to work with and lead others musically have been expressed in fun and creative new ways.

Simrik | A bold musician, Simrik adapted quickly to virtual lessons and never stopped pushing herself and actively seeking motivation and accountability. Her pursuit toward these endeavors has delivered an overall musical competency consistent during each week's lesson time.

Zeke | Zeke's perpetual positivity has influenced his approach to music which continues to be fueled by curiosity and creativity. His independence at the piano strengthened his technique and Zeke mastered the challenging skill of playing full octave scales with both right and left hands.

Zoe | A strong ear for melodies and a new chording prowess emerged for Zoe this school year. She has continued to define music in her own creative ways and bring her expressive abilities to each new challenge.

Ethan | Ethan's ability to game-ify every new task defined his success in music this year. An impressive new level of sight-reading gave him successful completion of the technique exercises known as A Dozen a Day.

Jack | An active comprehension of the musical language was evident for this devoted musician as he not only recognized, but can define the qualities of the music composed for video games and multi-media.

Nicklas | While still a budding musician, daily practice and exposure to overcoming hard things have seen Nick growing in a confident, creative pioneer at the keyboard.

Rayne | With quiet resilience, Rayne pressed through his lessons and his daily practices with an unflappable determination. His note-reading skills markedly improved as he also showed off some new expressive playing.

Riley P. | A significant boost in note-reading abilities allowed Riley to advance his recognition of the notes above and below the staff this year. His weekly time at the piano brought him new levels of musicianship.

Bryce | This talented guitarist and established musician took the step to continuing shaping his music by discovering his unique vocal sound. Courageously exploring his range, tone and breathing, Bryce's only direction is forward.