Karen Quinton: Studio News

Congratulations to students Isidora Vidojevic, Naoko Sakata, and Charlotte Chase who each did very well in festivals this year. Charlotte received a third place in the Davenport (grade 5 study); Isidora a second and a third in Kiwanis, and also second and third in Davenport (grade 7 and concert groups). Naoko Sakata was awarded two second places in Kiwanis (Grade 6 and concert group).

Also felicitations to Carol Xiong, who placed second in the Toronto Kiwanis 13 and under concert group (91%), and second in List D (grade 10) with 88. Carol was awarded the Kiwanis Club of Riverdale scholarship. She also recently was named a winner of the annual Barwell Scholarship (for pianists who wish to commence organ lessons. This will cover a year of lessons.)

In the Kitchener-Waterloo Kiwanis festival, Sharon Kim was awarded three third places - in each of the ARCT Lists B, C and D.

In the Davenport Festival, Nancy Yu placed second in her grade 10 List D (impressionist) class with 91%; and Stephanie Iwasa won third place in the grade 9 Chopin class. William Bellehumeur was named first in the grade 10 concert group (93%) and senior Bach class (91%), and won the R. S. Brown Senior Bach Trophy and a scholarship.

Bronwyn Vrabel-Turner has been accepted into both the music program at York University, and McMaster and plans to be a music therapist.

Most students are working very hard now toward exams, RCM evaluations or the studio concert on June 2nd.

Thank you for your dedication this year; you have all made great strides in your piano playing!

Stephen Satory

Stephen Satory holds an M.A. and Ph.D. in Musicology from the University of Toronto. He has taught piano, history and theory at the Royal Conservatory since 1980. He is Chair of the Theory Department in the Community School of the RCM.

He has published articles on the music of J. S. Bach, Bartok, Kodaly and Ligeti in music journals, as well as two textbooks, First-Year Harmony (2002) and Piano Miniatures (twentieth-century analysis, 2005).

Dr. Satory has given solo piano recitals at the Concert Hall, RCM, at Walter Hall and Scarborough College, University of Toronto, at Bishop's University and at the University of Western Ontario. His next recital takes place on Friday, April 20 at 8 p.m. in the Heliconian Hall, 35 Hazelton Avenue in Yorkville. On the programme are the Sonata in F Minor, Op. 57 ("Appassionata") by Beethoven, 24 Preludes, Op. 28 by Chopin and Romanian Christmas Carols, Series One by Bartok. In the editing stage is a CD of piano works by Beethoven, including Op. 28 and Op. 31, No. 3.