Piano Forte Magazine (Korea)

Up and Coming

Up and coming artists in their 20s and 30s nowadays are different. They are more realistic in terms of understanding the concepts of music and performance and why they want to pursue a musical career. In other words, they have got their own philosophy. Tristan Lauber is no exception.

His visit to Korea is a part of his Asian tour-he also performed in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo. He performed in Pusan on January 21st, in Kwangju on Jan 23 at the main hall of the Cultural Centre and in Seoul on February 6th at the Swiss Embassy.

“I first learned about classical music through my mother. Because she would play it all the time, I felt comfortable with this music since childhood. I express myself through the piano for it is such a grand instrument. It is orchestral and the only instrument that can express my feelings so well.”

Of Vietnamese-Swiss origin, Lauber was born in Canada. He attended McGill University and the Montreal University where he obtained his Masters degree and PhD. He is in no hurry to accelerate his career, preferring to prepare himself step by step.

His preferred repertoire is that of the great romantic composers. He speaks German and is fond of German culture. Although he has completed all his degrees, Lauber believes that “a performer should never stop learning”. The word that best describes music is “power”. He says, “music has an enormous power; more than any other art. Music can touch one’s soul and is the most immediate medium for expressing one’s emotions.”

Having been brought up in a multicultural family (his father being Asian and his mother a Westerner), he was at one point very fascinated by Buddhism.Being a product of a combination of East and West, he could relate to the philosophy of the harmony of yin and yang. He says this unique personal background helped him as a musician.