Umi Garrett - Angel Of The Piano
Born 15th August 2000 - Aliso Viejo Ca
by Bill Ross, London England
Photo Gallery at the bottom of this page
Umi with dad Steve
The story
Picture this: You're quite an
intellectual, you're not overly keen on pop music, and, being
intellectual and somewhat hi-brow, you listen to Radio Three and Radio
Four. The music you play on your CD player is mainly classical, the sort
that wouldn't appeal to the vast majority of people, certainly not to
most young people. So, you're in your armchair, feet up, intent on
listening to some sophisticated serious classical music. You're a
devoted piano lover, you love Piano Concertos, the Chopin Mazurkas,
Nocturnes, Etudes, Mendelssohn compositions, Rachmaninov, Mozart,
Beethoven, Debussy, Brahms and many more of that ilk.
You decided to play a DVD of classical piano music, it's Chopin's
Fantaisie Impromptu, not the easiest piece in the world to play were you
a pianist yourself. You press play, then you sit back and absorb the
wonderful sound that is emanating from your hi-fi/television system.
Next night, you go to a concert hall. On the occasion, it's Mozart's
Piano Concerto No 23, one of your favourites. You only just managed to
get in because it's a sell out, the hall is bursting at the seams and
you know that many people have been turned away. The venue is in Florida
and the orchestra is the Charlotte Symphony. Are you sitting
comfortably? Then they begin; you close your eyes to absorb the music
more thoroughly. Maestro Francis Wada raises his baton and the magical
moment begins.
With your eyes still closed, in your mind's eye, you try to generate an
image of the person who is playing the piece. You see a middle aged man
wearing a dickie bow tie, white shirt, coat and tails; the music is
becoming very sophisticated - you see his hands flying across the
keyboard at the speed of light; his fingers are moving like flies'
wings, so fast, your vision wouldn't be able to keep up with them. There
is fire coming from the piano, it's just so powerful, your so
engrossed, you wonder, "Who can possibly play this piece as well as
this, it must be Horowitz or Paderewski, maybe Baremboim, or even
Ashkenazy.
But no, now you open your eyes and you can't believe what you see. It's a
little girl wearing a beautiful pink dress (her favourite) and sporting
a long brown pony tail. Unbelievably, she can be no more than ten years
old. There's a close up shot on her hands flying across the keys. You
can see there is still puppy fat on the back of her hand and those hands
are really tiny. They fly across the keyboard of the Steinway Model D,
resulting in music that now has a new dimension.
Now, this girl, apart from her skills, would appear to be a normal ten year old. She chats non-stop, almost as if speaking had only just been discovered and she is determined to get her fair share while it's still available. She has an extremely pleasant disposition, not unlike that of the average very happy 10 year old who loves life, which she lives to the full. She has no airs or graces as one might expect from someone so talented; in fact, if you met her, knowing nothing about her, you wouldn't think there was anything about her that sets her part from all the other children she goes to school with. In some cases, children who have such a profound interest and ability to play hi-brow music such as this, would be very sophisticated, dull and extremely boring as they revel in their intellect. The word that is often used to describe them is 'geek', but I detect that the latest generation of children is moving forward in this regard.
Over here in England, we have a very distinguished young pianist called
Benjamin Grosvenor who played a Liszt Concerto on the opening night of
the BBC Proms this year (2011). When he was aged only 11, he won the
keyboard section of the BBC Young Musician of the Year contest, although
I strongly suspect only his age prevented him from winning outright,
going by the comments of the judges. The winner of that contest
qualifies for the European version of the contest but the minimum age
for that was 14, so someone older than Benji had to be the winner.
However (I'm digressing, I know), he too was an extremely pleasant child
with no airs and graces. I saw a documentary on TV about him and his
life at school. He was the most popular child in the school, all the
kids would sing, "We love you Benji, oh yes we do." Had he been a swot,
and full of himself, he wouldn't have been loved by other kids to this
level; in fact, he might have been despised.
Benji aged 11 at BBC Young Musician Final Benji aged 19
Back to Umi, there's a video on You Tube called 'My Favourite Things' in
which Umi shows us around her home and bedroom. It starts with her
playing a small clip of extremely fast music, then she stops, addresses
the camera with "Hi, My name is Umi Garrett and I'm a pianist. I'm going
to show you my favourite things." She starts by removing her headband
and explaining, "This is my favourite headband; it has flowers on it,
and here's my favourite sweater because it has pom poms on it. I like to
play with them." Then she giggles. She then goes on the explain about
the dress she's wearing - "…it has flowers on it." Umi shows us her
favourite concert dress and it's true, she does seem to wear that one in
all her concert performances. The point I'm making here is that, apart
from this girl being extremely advanced in what she does, even more so
than the vast majority of adults, there's another side to her that is
absolutely normal, no different from other kids of her age. Add to that
her lovely and very bubbly personality which for me works like this:
were I to get up one morning feeling all groggy and dull, one minute in
this girl's presence would elevate me to the height of the world's
tallest building (which is currently in Dubai).
Next, Umi shows us her room - "This is my bed which is (guess what?) pink, that's my favourite colour." Her favourite fluffy ball was bought when she was in China. Umi travels all around the world to play at concerts; most recently to Austria and Italy although she is in Panama right now. She's playing a concert at the Teatro Nacional in Panama this evening (19 August 2011). Next exhibits are from Umi's collection of teddy bears, her favourites are the ones she sleeps with every night. Next, something REALLY amazing - and you thought you'd heard it all didn't you? What more can this genius child do that the rest of humanity can't? She now shows us her favourite stack of books, a pile of about 25 books. They're all in Japanese and Umi has read them all. How can she do that? Not only is it a different language, but the alphabet has to be learned too. They have all patterns, squiggles and weird shapes. So, first you have to learn that, then you start on the vocabulary, the grammar and idioms etc. She speaks both Japanese and English fluently without an accent. My mind has just flown right out of my head - is that the meaning of 'boggled' do you think? Quite how Umi finds the time to do all that she does, amazes me. My day only has 24 hours in it, so sometimes, I have to abandon piano practice to make room for other things that have to be done. I guess Umi's interest in Japan comes from her mom, Fujiko. Her dad is Steve, so I guess he's American. Umi follows on with her favourite toys - all toy food which "I play with them a lot." She shows us several of her toys and explains where in the world she got them - "From everywhere I performed"; a teddy from Mexico, an item still in a gift bag: "……I got when I performed in China, and this I got in Boston."
Umi just being a girl
Umi's family is not musical, she is an only child. Her dad helped with
the family furniture store plus he helped develop a business, growing
coral for sale to pet shops near their home in California. At the age of
4, Umi begged her parents to let her study piano with her pre-school
teacher. By the age of 7, when other kids were still discovering middle
C, Umi was well on her way to stardom, playing Bach, Chopin et al..
Umi being a concert pianist
But, what now of this amazing little American girl? Her abilities don't stop at being a brilliant pianist. She also plays the violin (does anybody know why we use the definite article when referring to musical instruments, but the indefinite article when we mention what vehicles we drive? -digressing again, but that's me and my wandering mind).
We're not done with Umi's favourites yet. She goes on to introduce her favourite composers which are Mozart, then Rachmaninov, then Liszt and Chopin. Then comes the announcement that goes with being a ten year old: "They're all COOL!!" she says as she does a thumbs up gesture with both hands, supported by an ear to ear smile. What's the difference between Umi and the average ten year old following this proclamation? Well, "They're all cool!" would come from the lips of almost all ten year olds, but others would be referring to Lady Gaga, JLS, Cher Lloyd, Beyoncé, Demi Lovato or Adele and not Chopin or Rachmaninov.
What this story is explaining is how a little girl can be just that, a
normal little girl on the one hand, and in the blink of an eye, she can
become a world standard concert pianist. She
finishes the video by
playing Chopin's Fantaisie Impromptu, which she seems to find extremely
easy to do. I have been trying to learn that for over a year and I'm not
there yet. For some time, I've been trying to find the appropriate
expression to describe this amazing phenomenon. Today, whilst I was
watching Umi play the Fantaisie Impromptu, I think it came to me.
When she's not actually playing the piano, she's a normal unsophisticated giggling (and I emphasize normal) little girl who is always smiling and laughing.
When she turns and faces the piano, as she rests her fingers
onto the keys, she changes into something completely different. Gone is
the typical little girl, gone is the smile and the laughter; it's all
been replaced by a sophisticated middle-aged highly intellectual woman.
The moment that the piece is finished, back comes the all smiling little
girl. It's the most amazing instant transition I've ever witnessed.
Umi is studying with Yoshie Akamoto right now. Initially, she would fly coast to coast from her home in California, just for piano lessons, but that was laborious and expensive, so eventually, it was decided that Umi would move with her mother to New Canaan, Connecticut while dad stayed home to continue his work.
To see Umi perform her 'party piece' you can log onto her Ellen Degeneres Show interview (on Umi's You Tube site) where she'll show how she can play the piano backwards. What that means is that she sits with her back to the piano and plays the piano which is now behind her. It means playing the left with the right and the right with the left. She can also lie down on the stool with her head underneath the piano keyboard and still play at the speed of light. Shucks, my mind was just returning to my head, now it's in orbit again. (Video at bottom of this page).Earlier this year, Umi won the Chopin International Piano Competition where all three judges awarded her a perfect score. This is the first perfect score in the history of the competition. WOW already!
Umi has a lot of affection for Japan; during the aforementioned concert with the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra earlier this year, she tearfully announced to the audience that she wanted "…….to be a great pianist when I'm grown, and to help other pianists as well as to contribute money to help people in need, particularly in Japan." This was at the time of the disaster that had just befallen Japan. Umi dedicated the performance to the people of Japan. It is her wish that Japan will rise from the ashes of the tragedy and become once again, a superpower. On the 8th of April 2011, Umi gave her first charity concert in Westport Connecticut to help the Red Cross raise funds for Japan. The concert raised $3,400.
There are other child pianists all around the world, and many off them
are quite amazing. To name a few: Emily Bear who I think is in Chicago,
also very famous across America, then there's the very brilliant Annie
Zhou from Toronto, and Nadia Azzi from Florida, and we mustn't forget
the brilliant Aimi Kobayashi from Japan. But, I could go on forever. This website is full of them.
The amazingly brilliant Aimi Kobayashi from Japan
I discovered a ten year old girl from Reading in Berkshire, England this
year. Her name is Faye Evans and she played with Lang Lang at the
Massed Piano Event in the Royal Festival Hall in May of this year
(2011). She played Chopin's Nocturne in C Sharp Minor and I have to say
that I have never heard it played so beautifully by any other pianist,
adult or otherwise.
Her performance motivated me so much, that I
focussed my practising onto this piece in an attempt to raise my own
standards to come somewhat closer to hers. I'm not there yet, but am
improving.
Amazingly, Faye looks very much like Umi and also performs in a pink dress, has a long brown ponytail and moreover, she is ten years old. I believe that I made the one and only video recording of Faye's performance at this event, which is shameful really. One would have thought professional broadcasters would have swooped down onto an occasion such as this.
Just to finish this presentation, here is a list of Umi's achievements
which I have copied from her Bio on the ReverbNation website:
Artist Bio
In May 2009 Umi Garrett, 8 year old pianist, was welcomed and wowed the
world on NBC's "The Ellen DeGeneres Show." Now at 10 she has already
displayed a remarkable talent and thrilled audiences wherever she has
appeared.
Umi, Grand Prix Winner of the 2nd Chopin International Competition Hartford, Connecticut 　
Umi debuted in China with Wuhan Symphony Orchestra in Wuhan, China, September 2010.
Umi appeared with Boston Pops. It was broadcasted on the nation wide radio show "From The Top".
Umi has performed with the Desert Symphony in Palm Desert, California.
Her performance thrilled the audience with brilliant playing and charm,
earning standing ovation and endless applause.
On May 2010, Umi had her solo debut recital at age 9 at Neurosciences Institute in San Diego, California.
Umi captivated European audiences in August 2009 as a performer in
Vianden Music Festival in Luxembourg and Saarburg, Germany. She was
recognized as the little star from America and featured live on
Luxembourg television as a "wunderkind" which included a personal
interview. 　
She has had several appearance on "From The Top" national radio show, a
concert at Steinway Hall in New York City, reception for Grand Masons of
Anahaim, and annual reception for Philharmonic Society of Orange County
in California, and a solo guest in the annual meeting of Music Teachers
Association of California and Annual Leonard Hodges Keyboard Concert in
Washington D.C. 　
Umi has won first prizes at the Southwestern Youth Music Festival and
the J.S. Bach Competition where she competed with pianists up to age 18.
She is a winner in J.S.Bach competition in consecutive two years.
October, 2009, she was an overall winner of complete works of J.S.Bach.
In November, 2009, Umi was a winner of the Saddleback Symphony Concerto Competition against age 18. 　
Since 7 years old, every year Umi has been participated and performed in
Killington Music Festival as the youngest performer in the 26 year
history of the Festival.
For the past two years Umi has been invited to participate and perform
in concert at the Killington Music Festival in Vermont as the youngest
performer in the 26 year history of the festival.
The young pianist also captivated European audiences in August of 2009
as a performer in several concerts at the Vianden Music Festival in
Luxembourg and Germany in selected solo and chamber music works.
Finally(although I've said that before), genuinely thinking that I was
being original, I had decided to call this story, Umi Garrett, Princess
of the Piano, but as I was surfing the internet doing research, I found
that I'd been beaten to it by Frederick R Andresen whose story is here: http://www.fandresen.com/tag/umi-garrett/
Because of that, I'm using the title, Umi Garrett, Angel Of The Piano.
It sounds just as nice, which it would have to do, anything less
wouldn't be an appropriate title fitting to this magnificent little
person with whom God has blessed this world, for which we thank Him.
Addendum:
Notes on Umi Garrett - Birthday 17 August 2000. Speaks and writes fluent Japanese
Genre
Piano Classical
Hometown
Aliso Viejo, California
Record Label
Arizona University Recording
About
Pianist
Umi Garrett, dubbed American 'wunderkind' by Luxemburg TV. Featured on
Ellen DeGeneres show. Winner at 9 years old of first prizes at the
Southwestern Youth Music Festival and the J.S. Bach Competition against
pianists up to 18 years of age.
Biography
In May 2009 Umi Garrett, 8 year old pianist, was welcomed and wowed the world on NBC's "The Ellen DeGeneres Show."
Now at 10 she has already displayed a remarkable talent and thrilled audiences wherever she has appeared.
　
Umi
is the Grand Prix Winner of the 2nd Chopin International Competition
Hartford, Connecticut, held on March 3 -5, 2011. As a result, she was
invited to play at Carnegie Weill Recital Hall, New York City in April,
2011."
She has also recently won Liszt Competition in Connecticut in April, 2011.
　　
One
of Umi's most recent performances was a guest performance with
Charlotte Symphony in Florida in March, 2011. Umi also had her China
debut with Wuhan Symphony Orchestra in Wuhan, China in September, 2010.
Also Umi appeared with Boston Pops, and it was broadcast on the nation
wide radio show "From The Top". Umi has performed with the Desert
Symphony in Palm Desert, California in 2009. Her performance thrilled
the audience with brilliant playing and charm, earning a standing
ovation and endless applause.
On May 2010, Umi had her solo debut recital as a 9 years old at Neurosciences Institute in San Diego, California
Umi
captivated European audiences in August 2009 as a performer in many
concerts at the Vianden Music Festival in Luxembourg and Saarburg,
Germany with solo works and Beethoven's Piano Trio, Op. 1, No. 1.
She
was recognized as the little star from America and featured live on
Luxembourg television as a "wunderkind" which included a personal
interview. Some of her past appearances include several appearance on
"From The Top" national radio show, Kyoto Symposium in San Diego as a
guest artist in April, 2011; a concert at Steinway Hall in New York
City; a concert in Washington D.C. sharing the stage with cellist,
Allison Eldredge; a charity concert, "Jammin' for Jullian" in Southern
California, a reception for Grand Masons of Anahaim, an annual reception
for Philharmonic Society of Orange County in California, a solo guest
in the annual meeting of Music Teachers Association of California and
Annual Leonard Hodges Keyboard Concert in Washington D.C.
　
Umi
has won first prizes at the Southwestern Youth Music Festival and the
J.S. Bach Competition where she competed with pianists up to age 18. She
is a winner in J.S.Bach competition in consecutive two years. October,
2009, she was an overall winner of complete works of J.S.Bach.
In
November, 2009, Umi was a winner of the Saddleback Symphony Concerto
Competition also against age 18, and was featured as a soloist in March,
2010.
Since 7 years old, every summer Umi has been participated
and performed in concerts at the Killington Music Festival in Vermont
as the youngest performer in the 26 year history of the Festival.
Umi is a student of Mrs. Yoshie Akimoto.
Umi also plays violin in school orchestra, and she has learned classical ballet since she was 2 1/2.
She
loves to paint, swim, read and run. She is interested in science,
history, computers, and math. She is fluent in English and Japanese.
Booking Agent
Jack Price jp@pricerubin.com
Press Contact
Dany Joumaa, nessup@gmail.com
Booking Agent
Jack Price jp@pricerubin.com
Press Contact
Dany Joumaa, nessup@gmail.com
Website
http://umigarrett.com/
http://www.arizonarecordings.com
http://www.amazon.com/Just-For-You/dp/B0...
http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/just-fo...
http://www.ilike.com/artist/Umi+Garrett
http://www.youtube.com/user/UMIPIANO
Update - 15th October 2011 (Umi is now 11 years old)
Hello my friends!!! How have you all been being? I have been extremely busy, initiating with school – which sums up to other time-consuming products as homework and studying for frequently occurring tests, quizzes, and occasionally pop (even more frequent now that it is the end of week 7 of school). Following school, comes piano, which is much more than practicing and includes lessons, traveling to LA twice a week to the new music school I am attending, Colburn School of Music (learn more about my fun experience there on the next blog) and homework I get from the theory/music history class. From my Panamanian recital, I had many performances, but the one that stood out most was the concert with Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra in Indianapolis, Indiana.
I had much fun in Indianapolis and ICO’s warm welcome made me very happy. I was so happy to see Maestro Trevor again after I played with him in Missouri last summer. I was happy to meet Mrs. Lucina Moxley who supported me to come to Indianapolis. I knew I won’t be playing Mozart piano concerto No.23 for a long time after this, so I wanted to have a lot of fun which I did in that time that seemed to fly past me like wind. After the concert, I greeted everyone in the lobby and I was happy that everyone had fun at my concert. That’s exactly how I wanted the audience to feel and I feel the same for all of my future performances. I felt sad leaving Indianapolis after so many great days. I wondered why time had to go, and why I couldn’t stop the time. Unfortunately, I have no magical power (I wish I did) so I came back with mixed feelings.
I felt happy that everyone had a wonderful time at the concert but I missed them very much. My Indianapolis experience was one of the best performance trips that I had, and so it will be until the end of time, but for now…There are times when I think I've said all there is to say about this 'Wunderkind', but no, it will never all have been said. Every so often, God sends us a special present, something with which to reward the rest of us. One of the comments on Umi's You Tube said that the world is a better place with this girl; what I suppose is meant is that the world is a better place BECAUSE of this girl. Another comment said that God has blessed Umi, I'd go further: God has BLESSED US WITH UMI. Most of us at some stage make a difference, but the difference that Umi makes is gargantuan and that's an understatement. I've never met her, but I already love her to bits. Her piano skill isn't the only delight that she blesses us with. Even if she couldn't play a note, her personality is magnetic and so lovely. I could love her for just that - if that's all she had, but the piano playing, wow. After this marathon story, I'm finally lost for words. I'll be back when I find some more, don't go away folks, I'll be back.
......Good night and have a nice dream
