She never thought practicing piano caused her to lose her childhood, because her happiness & life was piano
When yuja was born, her family had a piano
When her mother married, grandfather gave her an upright piano
Yuja used it as a toy, banged on it whenever she had time
After she learned piano, her teacher suggested getting a grand piano
This is hard for a salaried family
Our house had 1 room half a bedroom, then we added a kitchen, it's a small house
(Yuja's mother Zhai Jieming 翟杰明)
I still live there, she grew up in that environment
An upright piano, her teacher at school told her to buy a grand piano, change the piano
We could not afford it, teachers tried to help, so we bought it
We borrowed from friends, bought that piano
We had a small bed, big grand piano, we had to sleep beneath the piano
Yuja's father is a percussionist, mother is a ballerina
When she was four and a half, her mother found a teacher, started piano lessons
Half a year later she took piano first level exam, easily passed, no going back after that
(Yuja at piano exam)
Within 2 short years, Yuja quickly passed level 4, 5, level 8 exam
When Yuja was 6 years old, her teacher sent her to Professor Ling Yuan (凌远) at Central Conservatory of Music
Ling Yuan was a teacher at Conservatory's high school
Most people say Yuja started piano lessons at 6, that's when she first studied with Ling Yuan
Her initial teacher Luo Zheng Min (罗征敏) is my good friend
She thought this child was very good, very musical, likes music, talented
She said, I think she can be a professional
Because I was vocational school teacher
Because she was diligent, passionate
That's very rare, usually it's the mother forcing the child
Like I said, often she just slid onto the piano without my knowing
She may disturb people, late at night, but she climbed up there again
In Yuja's childhood, her mother gave her lessons in calligraphy, painting, dance, piano
Her mother never thought piano would be her career
Yuja in 5th grade, entered Conservatory's elementary school
Her mother hoped one day Yuja would return to original school to study normal curriculum
But it was Yuja's choice to go down piano's path
When she entered the Conservatory, we did not really like her entering special school so soon
She was good at literature, 3rd place at laboratory school honors class
Math teacher thought she should enter Tsinghua University
Literature teacher suggested Peking University
She entered music school so early, but she liked it so much
She entered the exam herself, at the music school
The ranking there is a big difference between 1st & 2nd place
So I respected her decision
For Yuja, playing piano was her childhood
She never thought she lost her childhood
She finished all her assignments at school, so she could spend all her time at home practicing piano
At every piano lesson, she asked the teacher for more practice pieces
Practicing them thoroughly, that's her goal and passion
Many people think this is the biggest difference between Yuja & other piano kids
I like practicing because if I want to play a piece well, I should practice well, then do other things
Sometimes my mother said to come eat, I said after I finish practice
They had to force me off the piano
Do you want to play yourself or did your parents force you? I want to play myself (7 years old)
Why? It's fun
What do you want to do when you grow up? Play piano, conduct, pianist
What grade? 1st grade
How is your practice, exam? Double 100
She kept a diary, a journal
If lesson did not go well, she drew a little frowny face
If lesson went well, a smiley face
If scolded, a crying face
(Beijing NCPA Concert Hall recital June 4, 2009)