🎹 [1st Year Junior High, PTNA Class D - Start Episode 1] "You can keep up, right?" Elsa-sensei's quiet declaration of war

The spring recital has come to a close.

Starting from "shabby," passing through "tacky," and arriving at "sparkling."

After my daughter finished her intense two-month battle, Elsa-sensei offered her warm words of appreciation.

The very moment she caught her breath.
The next sheet music was already in the teacher's hands.

🎹 The Wall of PTNA Competition Class D

The PTNA Piano Competition.

It is one of Japan's largest piano competitions, held on a national scale.

Required pieces are selected from four eras that color the history of music—Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Contemporary—and participants approach the actual performance while deeply studying the music of those four periods.

Only those who pass the preliminary round can advance to the next stage.

The pass rate for the preliminary round is about 30%.

Even if 10 people stand on stage, only 3 or 4 can move forward.

It may sound harsh, but that is the reality of the stage that is the PTNA competition.

This year, my daughter is challenging Class D (for those up to 2nd year of junior high).

From C to D.
It is only a one-character difference, but this wall is higher than imagined.

Compared to Class C, the difficulty of the Class D required pieces jumps up by one level, no, several levels.

And once you reach this point, the faces of the participants change completely.

Children who are still seriously continuing piano even after entering junior high are, in a sense, the "survivors."

They are children who have made it through the three great enemies of club activities, studies, and puberty, and yet still haven't let go of the piano.

Class D is a stage where only the serious ones remain.

For such a stage, the sheet music Elsa-sensei handed to my daughter consisted of four books.

Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Contemporary.

A magnificent lineup that traverses the history of music.

🎹 You are a child who wants to study music seriously

While looking at my daughter's face as she received the sheet music, Elsa-sensei began to speak quietly, but directly.

"How you approach music is up to you. I believe that both enjoying it leisurely as a hobby and studying it seriously as an art are precious."

Then, the teacher paused for a moment.

"However, having watched you for half a year since last autumn, I have realized something."

"You are a child who wants to study music seriously."

My daughter gasps softly.

"While the children around you started at age 3 or 4, your start was significantly late. But your speed of growth is truly fast."

🎹 You can keep up, right?

However, the teacher continued.

"Because you have been playing recklessly, there are parts where the basics of music are completely missing. First, let's aim to pass the preliminary round while carefully learning those basics."

"Rather than the result, prioritize learning the pieces. It will be a difficult path."

"But you have the potential to overcome it."

The teacher's eyes stared straight at my daughter.

"You can keep up, right?"

My daughter straightened her back and answered.

"Yes."

🎹 The first goal, a play-through session

Then, the teacher announced the first goal.

"We will have a recital during the May holidays.
By then, you need to have four pieces memorized and ready to play.
Let's do our best starting today."

Four pieces, memorized. About a month and a half until the holidays.

Something was quietly ignited within my daughter's heart.

Right now, we still can't see what lies ahead.

But, that's probably fine.

There must be a view that can only be seen after overcoming this wall.

I felt like I knew at least that much.

Along with the arrival of spring.

My daughter's new battle begins.

I believe that is a moment that comes to everyone who seriously faces something, not just in piano.

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