Aloha International Piano Fest attracts musicians to Hawaii

Aloha International Piano Fest attracts musicians to Hawaii

Jon Nakamatsu will both teach and perform at the Aloha International Piano Festival. –Courtesy photo

The Aloha International Piano Festival has been a boon to many of Hawaii’s young pianists, who benefit from the competition and instruction from concert pros.

This year a few adults are getting in on the fun as well, in the festival’s amateur competition on June 21. These pianists have found fulfillment in careers off the concert stage, but they also have a need to tickle their artistic fancies by tickling the ivories.

Hideya and Kotomi Suzuki are coming from Japan to participate. Hideya, a researcher in fluorochemicals, studied piano off and on as a child until taking it up seriously at age 15. His wife, Kotomi, works in finance and has studied flute, koto and guitar.

They met at a piano competition in 2001 — his performance of Debussy’s “Submerged Cathedral” captivated her — and have competed together ever since. They’ve performed in contests in Paris, Vienna, Chicago and Colorado as well as at home in Tokyo.

“We had our wedding ceremony at Hawaii just 10 years ago, 2003! So we want go to Hawaii for our anniversary,” Kotomi Suzuki said in an email. “I found ‘Aloha festival’ by Internet. … That’s great!! It suitable for us!”

Having two competitive pianists in the same home requires some logistics. They have two pianos — his is more suited to the “nuance” that she enjoys in his playing, while hers responds to what he calls her “powerful” playing. They divide their practice time, with Hideya going at 5 a.m. and Kotomi late at night.

“We think we are not rivals, we always support each other,” Kotomi Suzuki said. “Sometimes I’m very nervous while he is playing. … We pray ‘good luck’ to each other.”

Hawaii is contributing two participants: Honolulu’s Aaron Miller and Peggy King from Maui. King taught piano on Maui for 12 years, then worked as a fitness trainer for 25 years. She resurrected her piano-playing at mainland piano camps the last few years.

“It’s basically for participation and goal-setting,” she said of her interest in the Aloha Festival.

Preparing for a competition requires consideration of repertoire and some honest self-evaluation, King said. She comes to Oahu regularly to work with University of Hawaii-Manoa piano professor Thomas Yee and also studied with the late Ellen Masaki years ago.

“I have to choose music that I can handle musically and technically. I know I don’t have the biggest technique on the block,” she said. “My goal is to play well and not embarrass my teacher, and to meet other people.”

Miller performed in many competitions as a young pianist growing up in the Bay Area. He was accepted at Juilliard but decided to go to Harvard University, where he studied Korean history. He came to Hawaii to get his master’s degree at UH, and this is his local debut.

He said he is particularly excited to work with the professionals who teach and perform at the festival.

“I really like Jon Nakamatsu’s playing, so I wanted to have the chance to work with him,” Miller said, referring to the island favorite who returns to the festival this year.

“I find that if I have a specific competition or performance to motivate me to practice, that’s actually the most effective thing,” Miller said. “I love to play for fun as well, but it’s good to have some concrete goal to get you to the practice room.”

That has been a concern, since he started a new job at the College of Social Sciences at UH in late May and doesn’t have his own piano.

“The new job has definitely thrown a twist into the plan, and I don’t have an instrument myself, so I have to go the UH,” he said. “I’m doing the best I can.”

The festival also features visiting professionals in two concerts. On Tuesday, Nakamatsu plays the Schumann piano quartet, while Thomas Sauer, founder of the Mannes Beethoven Institute, performs Schubert’s piano trio. Hawai’i Symphony Orchestra violinist Iggy Jang and others join them.

Saturday features a hana hou of “Tango Extravaganza,” Jang’s presentation of tango that sold out the Doris Duke Theatre in 2011. Acclaimed tango pianist Alfredo Minetti will appear.

Schedule:

» 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday: Piano competition, school divisions. Lili’u Theater and Room 321-A

» 6:30 p.m.-10 p.m. Saturday: Piano competition, young artist division. Lili’u Theater

» 2 p.m. Sunday: Father’s Day celebration — festival winners’ concert. Lili’u Theater

» 9:30 a.m. Monday: John Bayless master class. Bayless is a prolific arranger whose recordings have topped the Billboard charts. Room 321-A

» 9:30 a.m. Tuesday: Haewon Song master class. Song is an Oberlin Conservatory professor. Room 321-A

» 7:30 p.m. Tuesday: Chamber music concert with Jon Nakamatsu, Thomas Sauer, Iggy Jang and others. Lili’u Theater

» 10 a.m. Wednesday: Workshop on Beethoven piano sonatas with Thomas Sauer. Room 321-A

» 9:30 a.m. Thursday: Jon Nakamatsu master class. Room 321-A

» 10 a.m June 21: New England Conservatory of Music piano chairman Bruce Brubaker discusses the future of music. Room 321-A

» 6 p.m. June 21: Amateur competition. Lili’u Theater

» 7:30 p.m. June 22: Tango Extravaganza! Lili’u Theater