On Saturday, May 26, international pianist Akiko Sugitani gave a lecture at the Kyoto Ekimae Satellite Hall of the Kyoto Institute of Information Science.Originally, a piano concert by Mr. Sugitani was scheduled for that day, but due to an arm injury sustained by Mr. Sugitani from intense practice, the event was hastily changed to a lecture.
Mr. Sugitani is from Wakayama City.He spoke for an hour about his experiences during the air raids of the Pacific War, his first encounter with the piano, his acceptance to the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, his studies and debut in Germany, the home of classical music, and his subsequent activities.He explained by playing the themes of various pieces, etc., focusing on Beethoven, who is most respected for his occasionally uninjured left hand.
In addition to students from KCGI and KCG, there were also members of the general public who listened to Mr. Sugitani's talk with great interest.During the question period after the lecture, many questions were asked, such as "How do I stay motivated when mastering difficult songs?" and Mr. Sugitani answered them carefully.
