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Six-year-old Richmond piano student Katrina Poon with her teacher Linda Shirley.
Photo courtesy Lind Shirley
Richmond piano student, 6, receives highest exam mark in B.C. and the Yukon
Published 2:47 PST, Tue December 3, 2024
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Six-year-old Katrina Poon was recently awarded a gold medal from the Royal Conservatory of Toronto for her impressive piano exam mark.
Poon, who takes lessons at The Arts Conservatory from teacher and school founder Linda Shirley, received the medal at a Celebration of Excellence concert held at the Vancouver Academy of Music's Koerner Recital Hall in late October. Her Preparatory B exam score of 95 was the highest mark in that grade for all students in B.C. and the Yukon who participated in 2023/24 Royal Conservatory of Music exams throughout the year.
"Katrina continues to inspire me as a teacher because she is so passionate about her music lessons and about the pieces she is learning," says Shirley. "I always look forward to her lessons and love it when she arrives with a piece I assigned the previous week and says, 'Can I play this one first? I love it! It's so beautiful!' Katrina is self-motivated and frequently practices on her own and goes to the piano without prompting often to just play and explore. Along with several other dedicated students, she is one of the reasons I continue to teach and won't retire."
At the Celebration of Excellence concert, Poon performed "Habanera" from Georges Bizet's opera Carmen, and set the mood for the famous Spanish story by wearing a black dress with a red rose in her hair. She loves practicing and performing and is proud of her achievement, adds Shirley.
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