Fresno City College piano students Andrew Hall and Roman Baranskiy are both preparing to transfer out of FCC into four-year institutions after this semester. But before they leave the FCC music community, they will share the results of their hard work in a distinctive recital.
“It’s sort of a celebration, I think, for both of us,” said Hall of the event. “It’s a culmination of a lot of really hard work and determination. We’ve both encountered obstacles – Roman’s injured himself, I’ve injured myself.”
The amount of work that Hall and Baranskiy have put into preparing for this recital has been extensive. Both began working on their pieces in early summer of 2011. While this may seem like an excessively early start, the time is necessary to the learning process. Olga Quercia, FCC piano instructor, cited the high level of the pieces as the reason behind the massive time requirement. “They’re technically demanding, and they’re artistically demanding,” she said.
On the program are such works as J.S. Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in B minor, Beethoven’s Sonata No. 8 “Pathetiqué,” and Liszt’s “Funerailles.” Many who attempt pieces of this level have been training for years. Hall and Baranskiy are comparatively inexperienced, but have attained this advanced level of musicianship nonetheless.
“I have been around the piano for as long as I can remember, but never really had any sort of formal training with it,” said Hall. Hall’s experiences with piano consisted of playing jazz, blues, and rock ‘n’ roll.
“But as soon as I got to high school and learned music theory, the world of piano really opened up,” he said. He continued to play jazz, and has worked with a number of performance groups here at FCC. The decision to major in piano performance, however, required Hall to begin training classically. This semester is only his fourth of formal training.
Baranskiy began studying music at a young age in his native country of Ukraine. “I started going to music school studying guitar,” he said. However, he quit after five years of study. “Some of the teachers in Ukraine are not devoted to teaching students,” he said. He soon began studying piano at a different music school, but only spent two years there before graduating. At the age of 16, Baranskiy moved to the United States. He spent years away from the piano before picking it up again. “I remembered that I always wanted to be a composer, but that I just never gave myself a chance,” he said. Baranskiy has been composing for two years, studying the craft at FCC, and has produced a diverse body of work that includes a classical string quartet, a romantic guitar solo, and a contemporary sonata for viola and piano.
Both Hall and Baranskiy plan to transfer into music degree programs, Hall focusing on piano performance, Baranskiy on composition. They are currently in the midst of auditioning for several universities. Hall has applied to CSU Northridge, CSU Long Beach, San Diego State University, and San Francisco State University. Baranskiy has applied to USC, UOP, and the San Francisco Conservatory. Both Hall and Baranskiy hold the San Francisco colleges as their top choices. “It’s a very inspiring city,” said Baranskiy.
In the future, each has goals centered in the world of music. “I’m anticipating going on and doing graduate work and getting a Master’s at least in Piano Performance, either Jazz Studies or Classical Piano,” said Hall. “And ultimately,” he continued, “I’d like to try and make it as a performance artist. But if that doesn’t work I guess the fall-back would be teaching.”
Though Baranskiy is planning on majoring in composition, he said, “I actually want to study music more than write it.”
Their recital marks an important transitional period for Hall and Baranskiy. In addition to preparing them for futures in the music world, it will also serve to enlighten and inspire other music students. “The purpose is two-fold: to give them a completion of their work and also for the department to know that we are constantly trying to keep the standards high and to get people ready to move on, which is very competitive, especially in piano,” said Quercia. “And,” she added, “I think it’s good for the students here – kids that are in piano classes, or music appreciation – to hear some outstanding performers.”
The recital is scheduled for Feb. 29 at 7:30 p.m. in the FCC Recital Hall.