In the Last BRAVO! Series Masterclass of the 2024-25 Season, Four BYU Music Students Play for Accomplished Pianist Joyce Yang
Grammy-nominated pianist Joyce Yang is dynamic in both performing and providing feedback. In early April, she led the last masterclass of the 2024-25 BRAVO! Series season. Four students majoring in piano performance (Sadie Reeves, Nicole Papenfuss, Faith Nixon and Miles Fawson) played for Yang and received constructive feedback.
Yang herself is no stranger to receiving feedback on her performances — even at a young age. At just 19 years old, Yang stepped into the international spotlight when she won a silver medal in the 12th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. Since 2006, she has performed with the New York Philharmonic on various occasions, as well as with Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony and Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, among others. With violinist Augustin Hadelich, Yang received her first Grammy nomination for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance for her recording of “Franck, Kutag, Previn & Schumann.”
This April, Yang spent an afternoon working with individual students in The Box at the BYU Music Building. There, Sadie Reeves was first to take the stage. She performed Edward Macdowell’s “Etude de Concert in F# Major, Op. 36.” Yang helped Reeves add intensity to some redundant patterns in the piece. “It is not written, but I think it needs a little taffy pull,” Yang said, instructing Reeves to experiment with stretching the tempo.
Following this powerful performance, Nicole Papenfuss played “Impromptu in E-Flat major, D. 899” by Franz Schubert. After she ended, Yang was surprised to hear that this is a new piece for Papenfuss. “It seems so natural,” Yang commented. “It sounds like it's a part of you.” Yang worked with Papenfuss to find the interesting details embedded in this piece, encouraging her to slow down and celebrate when the song peaks.
Faith Nixon then played “Pagodes” by Claude Debussy. Yang clarified how to practice the piece and play it with a stronger pulse. “I wasn't expecting that to be a comment,” Nixon said, “but I am really thankful. I learned to really go for it and not feel afraid of the intensity. Yang pushed me to do something that the audience will remember.”
Lastly, Miles Fawson performed Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “Etude Tableaux Op. 39, No. 5.” Yang commented on the power of his musicality and helped Fawson add accents to develop a darker tone. She encouraged him to play less gently and more like a shaking of the earth.
In a brief Q&A following the masterclass, Yang gave insights into her professional career, preparing for large scale competitions and more. She suggested preparing for larger performances by playing in-house concerts so students can feel comfortable and confident in performing the piece in a low-pressure setting. Yang also emphasized that longer competitions are tests of stamina, and finding one’s musical niche and specific passions makes all the difference. “It has to be something you love to play,” she said. “That is the most important — play the pieces that are your forte.”