Amabile — a Sweet Place to Start
The Italian word amabile has a few different but similar meanings. Musically, it’s amiable or pleasant. With wine, it’s sweet, and when discussing people or animals it means lovable. All of those definitions fit founder and director Teresa Yu, and her San Francisco, Amabile Music School. Yu was born in Taiwan and was educated there until she moved to the U.S. at the age of 14. Upon graduating as a formidable pianist from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in 2007, her vision was “to create a positive environment for young beginners or music lovers to receive high quality musical education in the local community and to help students develop their passion and love for music,” she says. Since the foundation in 2008, the school has tripled in enrollment, offering instruction in piano, cello, violin, drums, and voice.
Says Yu, “Starting my own business was not easy, especially coming from a musician's background, but it's the most rewarding experience I have encountered so far in life. I was lucky because I grew up in a family with many business people around, so I observed and learned over the years.” Another plus: She’s adept at communicating with parents from a multicultural perspective. And while she takes students of all ages, early childhood education seems to have become something of a specialty of the school, feeding off of Yu’s nurturing and fun energy. “Young beginners can be easily engaged or totally turned off by their first introduction to music. I make sure all students have a song or two that puts a big smile on their faces, and when you build up a student's confidence in this way, they are more open and interested to receiving other materials.”
Yu keeps up her own performing skills and recently gave nine concerts in France with her piano trio, the Aleron Trio. In addition to returning to France this summer, Aleron will perform Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with Southeast Iowa Symphony in the spring of 2012. More information at www.alerontrio.
Pacific Boychoir Hosts International Friends
Boys from the Pacific Boychoir Academy in Oakland have formed musical friendships around the world by touring and sharing their music both here and abroad, most recently in China. Their counterparts in the Drakensberg Boys Choir of South Africa are likely friends — both choirs are trained within excellent choir academies in their home countries. PBA will host the Drakies’ Bay Area debut in joint concerts, singing a thrilling mix of Baroque music, American spirituals and colorful South African folk music. The first is a free performance for East Bay schools on May 26, followed by a public performance on May 29. Special guests, the renown a cappella Whiffenpoofs of Yale, will make an appearance as well.
PBA is perhaps an unknown gem in Oakland, a strongly academic middle school intertwined with a vocal education program, as well as an afterschool choir program. Last year, they shared the Grammy award for Best Classical Album and Best Choral Performance for their performance in Mahler's 8th Symphony with Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony. Says artistic director Kevin Fox: “When we visited South Africa in 2009, the Drakensberg choir kindly hosted us and now we're able to return the favor, reinforcing what we have in common, and celebrating our differences." Drakensberg is internationally acclaimed for its unique African repertoire, which includes accompaniment, by authentic African instruments and body percussion.
Klein Competition Brings out the Best
The stakes are high on June 4 and 5, as some of the world’s most brilliant young string players compete for prize money and a chance to launch their careers as well.
San Francisco State University hosts the 26th annual Irving M. Klein String Competition for young artists ages 15-23; performing are nine semifinalists selected from some 90 entrants from three continents.
The musicians come from all over the world to compete, and as the leading competition of its kind, it has launched the career of many young musicians.
Winners receive up to $12,000 and appearances with the Santa Cruz and Peninsula Symphonies, Music in the Vineyards, and Noontime Concerts.
A distinguished panel of judges includes members of the Cypress and St. Lawrence String Quartets and others.
Come Hear these phenomenal young performers in the Creative Arts Building on campus.