VALLEY, N.S. — A girl from Valley is now one of Nova Scotia’s finest young pianists.
Sarah Astatkie won gold from The Royal Conservatory of Music at a Nov. 30 ceremony in Halifax, with the best provincial score in her level. She earned her reward after sitting an intensive exam she sat in June, the culmination of years of piano-playing experience.
“I’m really happy,” said Astatkie, 14. “It’s really unexpected, because I didn’t think I’d performed my best at the exam and I wasn’t expecting anything big from it. When I got the email, I was really surprised.”
Astatkie first started playing piano nearly 10 years ago, following her older sister Elisabet with mother Rachel’s encouragement.
She went on to play at the Truro Music Festival nearly every year, which helped her gain confidence when playing in front of an audience. It was there she won her first awards.
Astatkie also does piano lessons with a tutor once a week and also practices at home, helping her prepare for her conservatory exam.
She went on to score 91 per cent in her level seven piano exam. Anyone who scores over 90 per cent could play music at the awards ceremony in Halifax five months later.
Astatkie performed a rendition of Sonatina in D Major, written by the Italian-English composer Muzio Clementi more than 200 years ago.
“You can express your emotions with fast songs such as the piece I played at the conservatory, you can really dig into the keys,” said Astatkie. “With slower songs, you can express more grateful emotions, such as sadness.”
Astatkie’s mother was also delighted to see her youngest daughter’s progress.
“It’s not guaranteed, even if you work very hard, but this gives her the motivation and I’m happy,” said Rachel.
Astatkie herself aims to progress to a level 10 in piano by the time she finishes High School.
The Royal Conservatory of Music measures a student’s ability using levels and offers both teaching materials for instructors and certification exams to students.
