Rehearsing and performing have never felt like pressure. It’s always a great joy. My first performance opportunities were in church aged four, playing for the congregation during worship. This taught me that the purpose of playing music is to share it with others, and there’s nothing to be nervous about. This joy of playing and learning new things has stayed with me ever since. I remember being at kindergarten and plotting out my practice plan for when I would get back home each day!
My most formative teachers were Almita and Roland Vamos, with whom I learnt from the ages of 9 to 17. They gave me everything I had been craving, from technical advice to musicianship and stage presence. I would have back-to-back lessons with both of them, which could be quite intense. But it was challenging in a really fun way and gave me a well-rounded training, as Mr Vamos is more analytical whereas Mrs Vamos is more instinctual. If one would say something I wasn’t quite motivated to change, but the other then said the same thing straight after, it really confirmed that I had to work on it! I also loved that they weren’t dogmatic and would let me make my own intepretative decisions.