Piano Forte Magazine (Korea)

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.

Filipino Mirror

In the Filipino Mirror

Events: The Music of Tristan Lauber

by Rose Raguindin.

Tristan Lauber
Photo by Bill Young
The Canadian pianist serenaded Manila recently with his remarkable interpretation of Mozart, Schumann and Moussorgsky.For 30-year old Canadian pianist Tristan Lauber, music is a mission and one thing he cannot live without.”Music becomes almost a therapy that you can’t live without,” said Tristan Lauber, who recently serenaded the Filipinos with Mozart, Schumann and Moussorgsky classics at the university Theater of the university of the Philippines, Diliman.He was introduced to the world of classical music during the summers he spent in Switzerland. His maternal grandfather would take him to a festival by the lakefront where groups from different countries performed. It made such a huge impact on him that he asked his parents to buy him his first records of classical music, which were those of Mozarts’. But his father was an accomplished amateur rock guitarist who also had an influence on him. For this reason as a boy his unlikely heroes were Beethoven as well as Elvis Presley.Tristan holds a doctorate degree in piano performance from the University of Montreal and has won prizes in various competitions. He won the “Grand Prix” at the Concours de Musique du Québec in 1984. The Prix d’expression Intercollegial in 1987, and the first prize at the Concours de l’Orchestre symphonique de Trois-Rivières in 1988. He founded the Allegro quintet of Montreal which won the first prize at the chamber music category of the CIBC National Festival in Newfoundland in 1989. He has also received grants and prizes from the Conseil des Art et des Lettres du Québec and La foundation les Amis de l’Art.

As years went by, his interests have broadened: “I dabble a little bit with jazz, but not professionally, although I promised myself that hopefully in three or four years time when I’ve covered more classical repertoire and I have more time on my hands, I would definitely like to attempt to play jazz.”He finds jazz fascinating, but he also emphasized that it’s a very different language, so that very few pianists can play both classical and jazz at a professional level.

Asked what influences his music, he quickly replied, “Definitely a passion for the romantic repertoire, the one that I feel closest to , and among my favorite pianists are the great Russians Richter and Gilels. ” He also expressed great admiration for Anton Kuerti, whom he described as a phenomenal Beethoven specialist , as well as André Laplante and his first teacher Marc Durand.

Tristan observed that Filipinos aren’t entirely fond of classical music. He noted though that the Philharmonic Orchestra, which is entirely made up of Filipinos, is something out of the ordinary, since Asian nations usually include foreign musicians in their orchestras.

For a man who regularly practices five to six hours daily, he hardly has time to think of anything else.

Piano-playing could be mentally and physically exhausting, and that is where passion comes in for Tristan,who believes that passion and dedication is important if one wants to see a clear path to a career.

Tristan’s recent concert was sponsored by the Canadian Embassy, in celebration of the golden anniversary of Canada-Philippines bilateral relations.

Philippines Business World magazine: Arts and Leisure

Philippines Business World magazine: Arts and Leisure

Music : The key to pianist Tristan Lauber’s life

Edited by Alicia A. Herrera

If chasing villains, building space laboratories on Mars, and saving the earth from evil intergalactic space monsters are a typical little boy’s dream profession, then that alone makes Canadian concert pianist Tristan Lauber something out of the ordinary.

“I’ve never imagined myself doing anything but playing the piano,” Mr.Lauber admitted. “Of course , when I was a kid, I read comic books. I watched action movies. I loved cops and astronauts. But, myself, I never wanted to work in any of those professions.”

Today, included in his growing list of awards are three first prizes: one in the provincial finals of the Canadian Music Competition, another in the national finals of the CIBC Music Festival (chamber music), and the third at the Trois-Rivieres Smphony Orchestra competition. He also won the Grand Prize at the Quebec Music Competition.

“My father, who is trained as an engineer, of course, like many fathers, would have preferred if I had become something other than a musician, ” Mr. Lauber confided. “the nice thing, of course, is that now that he sees I’m doing well, he’s very proud and he has no regrets about letting me do what it is I wanted to do.”

He started relatively late for a pianist; at the age of nine and without a teacher. His mother bought him a piano after seeing how strong his interest in the instrument was. For a year, he was content with practice pieces. Formal instruction came at the age of 10 with his first public performance following shortly after a year at the Pollack Hall of McGill University. The concert was in celebration of Canadian composer Otto Joachim’s 70th anniversary. The show was subsequently aired on the CBC network and led to Mr. Lauber’s first recording of the composer’s “Twelve Tone Pieces”.

“My mother is a composer – a very well-known Canadian composer. She was, of course, a very important influence. She did not teach me because she is not a pianist or a piano teacher, but she played for me when I was a child. She used to play my favorite classical pieces and that’s one of the main reasons why I developed an interest in classical music.

“I also credit my father for a different reason. He is not a professional musician. But he is Vietnamese and he, like many Vietnamese, is very musically inclined. So he and all his brothers play the electric guitar and they play it very well. In fact, that’s how he met my mother. She met him when he was playing rock guitar with a band in Switzerland. This was the ’60s, of course, so he had long hair and he played Beatles.

“I credit him with giving me the desire to perform on stage. Although he does not play professionally, he has put on impressive shows for the Vietnamese New year in Montreal. He used to practice for hours and hours with his rock band in our basement. It was so loud that the glasses would shake on the table!”

Admittedly, with the advances in technology, the music world is shifting at a speed that artists before never had to contend with. A peek at the record stores would reveal how music alone is no longer enough to grab the listener’s attention. Undoubtedly, it is still the bottom line but the music must also be marketed in a visual sense to convince the audience to listen. And these factors, Mr. Lauber agrees, add to further complications.

“The music world is changing dramatically. It is becoming more and more difficult for classical artists to survive because the market suffers from various things. One of the main problems, of course , is expenses.”

The foremost consideration is always the audience. You have to know your market. It is necessary to be flexible and versatile. But it is more important to be true to yourself, to find your own niche-a repertoire that suits your personality.

For his visit to the Philippines, Mr. Lauber researched a bit and settled for a program that he felt would be accessible to a greater number of audience of a mix of cultures.

“I have always been very impressed at how musical the Filipino people are. I have spent just a few days at the campus of UP (University of the Philippines, Diliman) but I’ve already heard through the walls some of their choirs practicing. It’s scary! They are good. They are very good and they have a lot of choirs, too. Just yesterday, we went to an Italian restaurant and I was blown away by the fact that there were two people who were having their birthday yesterday and they had an instrumental recording of ‘Happy Birthday’ and all the waiters-about 10 to 15 of them-sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to the patrons. It’s hilarious but it’s wonderful! It just shows how all Filipinos are musically inclined. They sing a lot which is very welcoming and touching to hear.”

Eventually, he hopes to learn Filipino compositions to add to his repertoire. This was his second visit in Asia but only his first in the Philippines.

La Muse Affiliée

La Muse Affiliée:

Tristan Lauber : A Passion for Music
by Gayle Colebrook

Tristan Lauber“Music is the most powerful of the arts: it reaches deep in to the heart of the human soul. It is the art that best expresses and conveys the tremendous spectrum of human emotion.” Tristan Lauber’s passion for music was clearly evident as he enthusiastically talked about his career in piano performance and pedagogy. Seated in the corner booth of an Outremont café, he stopped stirring his cappuccino and gestured emphatically. “It’s a total dedication that stops just short of obsessiveness,” he said, describing the commitment required to make a success of a concert career. “I’ve seen obsessiveness lead to nervous breakdown. One must completely refuse to compromise musical integrity and be able to sustain the quality of performance and love for music through concert after concert.” This integrity carries over into his pedagogical approach.

A Passion in Training

Mr. Lauber’s passion for his art was recognized later than one would expect, but it has remained his lifelong focus. His musical education had an unconventional start: at age nine, he started playing on his own. His mother, the composer Anne Lauber, would encourage him, offering the odd hint without actively directing or teaching him. He then attended the Le Plateau Elementary School, which offered a combined musical and academic education. By grade 4 he was playing relatively advanced pieces for his age. Formal training began when he auditioned and was accepted into the Conservatoire de Montréal at age ten. He studied there for a few years but by his own admission was a “difficult student” whose desire to play increasingly difficult works was more developed than his technique.

The key role that a teacher may play in the pedagogical and intellectual development of their student should never be underestimated. His or her influence may go beyond the subject taught to affect the student’s outlook on life. Contrasting the career of pedagogue with that of the concert pianist, Mr. Lauber stated that “the requirements are completely different than those demanded of the performer, and there are few who can do both equally well. ” According to him, a good teacher is an “extraordinarily patient person with boundless reserves of energy, compassion and empathy for young people. It’s someone with a high degree of emotional intelligence, the ability to read people,s emotions as to better relate. This is important, as 60% of human interaction is non-verbal.”

Looking back, he can see these qualities in his own teachers. At about age 14, he began to work with Louis Lortie, who was only nine years older. Lortie became not only a teacher, but also a mentor and a friend with whom to go out for pizza after a lesson. Mr. Lauber recalls Lortie’s exceptional ability to sit down an play anything.

Later, at University, Mr. Lauber worked with Marc Durand. Of Durand he acknowledges, “He was an exceptional guide who was very patient with me. His strongest quality was his open-mindedness with regard to approaches in pedagogy and performance. He had a wonderful sense of style, but nevertheless frequently encouraged us to work with other teachers, seeking out and listening to different musical interpretations.”

Mr. Lauber was also a pupil of Monique Deschausées, the well-known author and pedagogue, whose phenomenal encyclopedic knowledge inspired him to broaden his cultural and artistic horizons and to adopt a global view of the arts, coming to an understanding of the correlation between music, literature and fine arts.

With André Laplante, he developed sound projection and discovered a love for the interpretation of Romantic music and a desire to make this music his own as well, in line with his own passionate nature. He considers Laplante’s recordings of Romantic music among the best he’s heard. As for Anton Kuerti with whom he also worked, he admired not only the tremendous energy in his phenomenal interpretation of Beethoven and Brahms, but also his great humility in the face of music.

This attitude of non-judgemental open-mindedness has become part of Mr. Lauber’s own musical philosophy; to listen to others and explore different approaches far enough to be able to discern their positives and negatives, either absorbing, adapting or rejecting them after careful consideration. He applies this attitude in his own pedagogical technique.

A Passion for Teaching.

Mr. Lauber currently teaches here in Montreal, but has toured extensively in the Far East, both performing and teaching. He has been a guest lecturer and has given masterclasses at the Universty Putra Malaysia, Sedaya college in Kuala Lumpur and the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto) in Seoul. He is going back in April to perform the Tchaikowsky concerto with the Malaysian National symphony Orchestra. I asked him what motivated his choice of venues. “Apart from the fact that I’m half Vietnamese, I’ve always been fascinated by asian culture, and Buddhist philosophy. I admire the Asian dedication and discipline. I believe that in the 21st century , the most important catalyst for human evolution will be the meeting of East and West, the sharing of philosophical , social and political ideologies of our respective cultures.”

For example, these differences can be noted in the emphasis placed upon practicing in our different cultures. “In Korea, for example, parental involvement is very intense, and their children must practice constantly, while in Canada, parents generally have a more laid-back attitude, consideration being given to a child’s wants and desires. I can see advantages and disadvantages to both methods. I feel that the best would be a mingling of the two cultures, as too much discipline can be as detrimental as too little.” On pedagogy, he notes that “Korean teachers emphasize technique very early on.: finger work in Czerny, followed by the Chopin Etudes, working to perfect accuracy and speed. In doing this, however, the student’s sense of style isn’t as developed as it could be. However, this is beginning to change with an increasing openness toward Western pedagogical approach.’

Mr. Lauber believes in teaching kids to love music by creating good memories. They should be encouraged to attend age-appropriate live performances to broaden their musical perspectives. While discipline is needed such as in the practicing of technique, students should come to relate music with enjoyment , relaxation and happiness, not stress. In this respect, the teacher must stay balanced “Always remember that there’s only so much that one can do” he says, “If a student isn’t responding, be patient ; perhaps the time isn’t right for that student to believe in your solutions.”

This is particularly evident in the masterclass setting, where the teacher must pay attention to the student’s self-esteem. “I don’t believe in public humiliation. The masterclass experience should leave a student encouraged and proud, feeling a difference between his first and last performance.” He recalls a rewarding experience in the Philippines: “During a masterclass session, I taught a young girl who was playing Chopin’s 2nd Scherzo. She was extremely tight and stiff, on the verge of tendonitis. We worked together for 90 minutes and at the end of the session, she played the Scherzo again. It was a totally different performance: she was free of tension and the sound was wonderful. I’ll never forget the look on that student’s face, as well as the expressions of those in the audience. It was truly memorable. Afterwards, she came back to thank me.”

Generally speaking, Mr. Lauber believes that teachers should emphasize the basics, among which a strong sense of pulse and a clear idea of phrasing are most important. They should also teach technique that will enable performance, so students can play anything without pain or fatigue. “Among the most common deficiencies in piano students are poor hand position, a lack of firmness in the fingers and bridge, with a corresponding lack of freedom in the arms, along with an underdeveloped sense of pulse,” states Mr. Lauber. “Teachers should never let students play anything without pulse.” A student should also always strive for a naturalness of sound that conveys an understanding of piano resonance and tonal color. When performing, the student should show enthusiasm, with the love of music shining through his interpretation.

Passion for Chopin.

The works of Chopin present particular challenges to both teacher and student. Mr. Lauber’s conference Teaching the Works of Chopin is designed to aid teachers and students to overcome these and better understand the works of this Romantic composer. When asked why he chose to lecture on this topic, he replied: “He is the one composer who wrote exclusively for the piano. From a technical point of view, he pushed the levels of piano technique to unsurpassed levels. He is one of the most important composers for learning how to make the piano sing. Chopin’s love of vocal music comes through in his works, making them among the most useful for helping students achieve a singing tone at the keyboard. Through this conference, I hope to guide teachers in overcoming technical difficulties to understand the stylistic nuances of his works.”

According to Mr. Lauber, the two most challenging aspects of Chopin’s works are 1: to overcome the technical difficulties so the music sounds as if it’s playing itself and 2: to develop a singing tone. Unlike Beethoven, where students should initially stay away from some of the later sonatas because of their intensely spiritual content, Chopin’s music comes from the heart, making it more accessible and appropriate for the younger student. However, a certain degree of care should be exercised as to whom and when Chopin’s works are assigned. The student must have the musical maturity needed to grasp the sensitivity of the music, as well as to enjoy it.

Mr. Lauber suggest starting with some of the preludes, nocturnes (c# minor, e minor, Bb minor) and waltzes, using the mazurkas to develop rhythm. ‘I would caution against giving the preludes to a musically weak student as a concert, exam or competition piece. However, I do believe that they are excellent therapy, and should be used to develop musicality. As for the etudes, the teacher should be careful not to assign them too early on, and to prepare them with the study of the Czerny etudes.”

To aid the teacher and student in the interpretation of Chopin’s works, Mr. Lauber suggests the following books: Alfred Cortot’s Aspects of Chopin, and Jean Jacques Eigeldinger’s Chopin Pianist and Teacher As Seen by his Pupils. As for recordings, he suggests the following: for nocturnes, polonaises and ballades, Arthur Rubinstein; for preludes, Arthur Rubinstein or Martha Argerich; for etudes, Alfred Cortot and Maurizio Pollini; for waltzes, Dinu Lipatti; for mazurkas, Samson François. Teacher and student should listen to many different recordings together, the teacher pointing out the differences between each one, being careful to guard against narrow-mined interpretations.

As the lunch crowd started filling up the café, I asked Mr. Lauber for some final words of wisdom for our piano students. He paused for a moment, and I could almost anticipate what to write by the expression that transformed his face. “Students must have a deep love and respect for the greatness of the musical art. It should be the prime motivating factor in their study of music. They should strive to keep their musical goals in focus and never give up when faced with difficulties. “As a performer, recording artist and teacher, Tristan Lauber strives to maintain a high level of passion and dedication to his art. May we also , as teachers , seek to convey to our students a genuine love for music as an expression of human emotion.

Chopin: As Seen by a Pianist

Tristan lauber  was asked to write an article on Chopin for the well known magazine The Music Scene which was published on February 1st 2000

Chopin: As Seen by a Pianist

by Tristan Lauber / February 1, 2000

The year 1999 marked the 150th anniversary of Frederic Chopin’s death, by far one of the most famous composers of the 19th century. The son of a refined French emigré and a stout-hearted Polish woman, he was born in a small town close to Warsaw, where he lived until the age of seventeen. The happiness of these early years was extremely important to him, for it was his departure from Poland and subsequent inability to return (due to the Russian occupation) that forever engrained within his heart the ardent nationalism so faithfully expressed in his Mazurkas and Polonaises.

After traveling throughout Europe, he finally settled in Paris to teach, perform and compose. His taste in music was not particularly broad. He adored Bach and spent many hours performing and teaching the great composer’s preludes and fugues (this influence is often felt in the numerous contrapuntal passages found in many of his later works, most notably the two Nocturnes Op.62 and the second from Op.55). Mozart was a favourite, Beethoven less so. His attitude towards his contemporaries was ambiguous at best. He was cool towards Schumann, never reciprocating the latter’s enthusiasm for his own music. And his admiration for Liszt was tinged with jealousy. But perhaps the most important aspects of his personality were his insecurity and his indecisiveness (many letters to his parents in which he expresses his hesitation between going back to Poland to fight alongside his countrymen or staying in his new adopted home attest to this trait). This “folie du doute,” his inability to make up his mind, actually permeates many of his works and is even reflected in his harmonic language, making him by far one of the most original harmonists of his time. The second Prelude Op.28 in A minor and the Mazurka, Op.68, no.4 as well as many of his later works are replete with bold modulations into foreign keys, arrived at by a subtle “sliding” from one key to the next. These are perfect examples of his vacillating personality expressed in music. It is as though the composer meanders over the keys not really knowing where he wants to go, changing direction without warning, much as the composer’s own moods tended to do. Musicologists now agree that such harmonic daring easily foreshadows Wagner’s infamous “Tristan chord.”

In 1839 Chopin published the 24 preludes, Op.28, which are considered one of the most important works of the Romantic repertoire. Each prelude is written in one of the 24 keys, in a characteristic tribute to Bach. Within each of these musical miniatures, the entire spectrum of the composer’s emotions is represented. From joy and light-heartedness to melancholy, even rage and anger, this is perhaps the greatest variety of moods ever assembled in a single set of pieces.

Aside from a few exceptions, Chopin’s creative output was devoted exclusively to the piano. His works present particular challenges to the performer for he pushed piano technique to a level unsurpassed at the time. The Etudes, Op.10 and 25, are the best example of this, being without a doubt the most difficult sets ever written for the instrument, especially when performed in their entirety. He took the typical figurations (scales, broken chords, trills, double notes…) found in the studies of Hummel and Clementi but brilliantly reinvented them, making them even more pianistically challenging. Nevertheless in this master’s hands, they are tools with which to express musical ideas rather than vehicles for superficial showmanship as had been the case up until then. Because his admiration of the bel canto style (as represented by Bellini) was the backbone of his artistic vision, this made his conception of the piano above all vocal rather than orchestral. This is why, despite the virtuoso nature of the Etudes, he eschewed such flashy devices as the thundering alternating octaves and crashing chords so dear to the Thalbergs and Liszts of his day. Chopin’s Etudes are of great help in overcoming two of the most challenging aspects of performing his works: developing a fluid, powerful and free technique that makes the piano sound as if it were playing itself and creating the singing tone without which his music loses its beauty. It can be said that Chopin originated the form of the concert etude, followed by Liszt, Rachmaninov, Scriabin and many others who wrote their own sets, treating the etude like a serious piece of music worthy of respect.

This leads us to the subject of his playing, considered unique like his composing. Contemporary accounts describe an evanescent and transparent quality to his performances. His great trademarks were pearly scales, subtle voicings and an unsurpassed legato. When asked by his students how he came to develop these qualities, he explained how important it was to listen closely to the great singers of the day in order to discover the true art of singing at the piano. This advice remains just as wise today as it was then.

Nevertheless, after his death in 1849, a very unusual – by present-day standards – approach to his music was perpetuated, mostly by his own students. Because they romanticized the pale, death-stricken figure of the composer sitting weakly at the piano, moving the enraptured aristocrats to tears with soulful renditions of his latest Nocturnes, they mistakenly believed that this meant his music should never be played at a dynamic level above mf. They misinterpreted the fact that this ability to create so many gradations of pianissimi (though undeniably admirable) was an inevitable result of his inability to play forte, because of his weak health. This is why for many years afterwards, they severely criticized anyone (such as Anton Rubinstein, one of the most popular pianists of the late 19th century) who dared to infuse any kind of bravado in his music. Thankfully, things have changed since then, for pianists have come to understand that despite the composer’s physical weakness, his indomitable spirit was thriving with energy and passion. Therefore though a Chopin performance must always be musically logical and stylistically faithful, perhaps one can say that its most important trait is that it must come from the heart.

For further reading, I recommend Alfred Cortot’s Aspects of Chopin, and Jean Jacques Eigeldinger’s Chopin Pianist and Teacher As Seen By His Pupils. As for recordings, here are some of my personal choices. for the Nocturnes, Polonaises and Ballades, Arthur Rubinstein; for Préludes, Arthur Rubinstein or Martha Argerich; for Etudes, Alfred Cortot and Maurizio Pollini, the former for his unsurpassed imagination, the latter for his unsurpassed technique; for the Waltzes, Dinu Lipatti; for the Mazurkas, Samson François.