Piano and dance lessons no longer just for kids


For many Koreans who grew up in the 80s and 90s, taking piano lessons was something that they had to do grudgingly as kids.

After the rapid economic development in the 60s and 70s, purchasing musical instruments, especially a piano, was considered a symbol of wealth in Seoul’s newly emerged middle class.

Their kids would be sent to the private piano studios to take lessons after school. All the kids in the country were taught the same repertoire, which began with Bayer, then Czerny, then Mozart and Beethoven.

Kim Yang-kyu, a Seoulite who works for an investment company, was one of them. He was made to take his first lesson when he was in kindergarten. “I didn’t enjoy the classes at all,” he says. “I quit after mastering that book ‘Czerny 30.’ I’d skip the lessons all the time.”

The 29-year-old, however, started taking piano lessons again earlier this year. And the lessons are nothing like what he had to endure as a kid. He practices five to six times a week, on top of weekly lessons.

“I’ve never been so passionate about taking private classes of any kind until now,” he says.

Visiting the piano studio where Kim takes his lessons would explain his passion instantly. The property looks nothing like those ‘piano hagwon’ for kids. It looks rather like a fancy bar, with its sleek grand piano in the center. There are 16 piano suites, where you can practice as much you want.

They are open seven days a week till 11 p.m. You don’t have play Czerny or Mozart. One can simply search, download, and print the score they want using its massive music database. It contains all kinds of genres, including classical, new age and pop. And, most importantly, you have to be at least 19 to take lessons here.

The studio, named “Piano Libre,” opened in the center of southern Seoul in April. There were only 10 students in the beginning. But now, some 160 people come here to take lessons and practice, including urban professionals, university students, and even those who are in their 50s.

This one-of-a-kind studio is an ambitious project by its CEO and piano musician Kim Eui-young. The 26-year-old, who majored in piano performance in university, thought of creating such a space after giving private lessons to grown-ups for more than 8 years.

“Unlike kids, most grown-ups don’t have pianos at home,” she tells The Korea Herald. “Most of the times, they’d come to my place to take lessons, using my piano. But they wouldn’t be able to find an instrument to practice in their spare time. And many chose not to continue lessons because of that. So I started thinking of creating a place with a lot of practice suites, where people can practice as much as they want.”

Public figure and author Kim Mi-kyung once stressed the importance of having a hobby for grown-ups with professional careers.

“Even if you love your job, work is still work ― it consumes your time and energy,” she writes in her book “Mentor’s Words.”

“So you have to find your passion in different things, outside of your work, and resume your energy from it. You should make your hobby as one of your personal assets.”

Though he regards playing piano as his hobby, Kim in fact chose to take lessons after attending a number of parties at his work.

“So many people knew how to play musical instruments just beautifully,” he says. “I wanted to master at least two to three new age pieces, to a degree where I can perform at any time without looking at the scores.”

Ballet

School teacher Kim Na-yun found her hidden passion for dance by taking ballet classes. Many would mistake her for a professional dancer; her lean and poised physique makes it hard to believe she only started taking lessons back in 2009. She’d never danced as a teenager or a child.

She is one of some 120 amateur dancers who take classes at Korea National Ballet’s dance school at Seoul Arts Center. 

“When I was about seven, I had an opportunity to wear a tutu,” she says. “It felt like a gown that a princess would wear. But I was too shy to tell my mom that I want to take ballet lessons. I knew she thought of me as a reader and a writer. Not a dancer.”

She kept her passion for ballet a secret till 2003. That year, she started dating a man who she now calls as her “first love.”

“I told him that I want to take ballet classes someday,” she says.

“I’d never told anyone about it till then. And a few weeks later, he gave me a pair of shoes and a ballet leotard as a gift.”

But it was after they broke up that Kim started taking amateur ballet lessons at Korean National Ballet’s dance school. She danced in the leotard her ex had given her.

“During my first class, I found out that the amateur dancers were going to hold their annual performance the next month,” she says. “I wanted to perform on stage so badly, so I worked really, really hard. I also invited my ex to the show. I didn’t see him while I was performing onstage. Turns out, he did come to the performance. I found it through his text message.”

Although Kim and her ex never got back together, ballet has changed her life forever. The middle-school teacher, who teaches Korean literature, recently completed a certificate course in dance education at Ewha Womans University. “Everyone thinks I’m a dance teacher at my school,” she laughs.

“Ballet is meaningful to me because it has given me the opportunity to explore the path that I did not choose to take. And it has made my life so much more fun and eventful. It’s made me to appreciate more in life.”

For more information on Piano Libre, call (02) 536-9915 or visit www.pianolibre.com

For information on Korea National Ballet’s classes, visit www.kballet.org.

Drawing & painting

The Hongdae area is known mostly for its indie music scene and clubs, but it is also the best region in Seoul to take art classes. Because the region takes place near the Hongik University, which is famous for its art and design schools, a plenty of artists run their own studios and classes in the area.

While many of them target high school students who are preparing to enter art schools, the area also has a number of classes for adults without much experience in art.

Hongdae-based art studio “Louis Atelier” is specifically for amateurs, and offers introductory classes for those who have never done anything artsy in their lives. The small-sized studio offers a series of drawing and watercolor lessons for beginners.

You can also take pastel and oil paintings later, once they master the basic drawing and painting skills. Another private art school targeting amateurs, “Goodspace studio,” offers a very similar curriculum to the one at “Louis Atelier.”

The studio regularly holds exhibitions of its students, as well as parties and social gatherings. Both of the studios are located in the Hongdae area. Reach “Louis Atelier” at (02) 324-2626 or www.louisatelier.com, and “Goodspace Studio” at (02) 337-6585 or www.goodspace00.com.

Cooking

Cooking classes are a fantastic way to acquire new culinary skills. For those who are from overseas, it can be a great way to immerse yourself in the local culture.

“La Cuisine,” a cooking school located in central Seoul, offers a variety of classes from traditional Korean cuisine to making of simple sandwiches. There are special one-day classes for couples, where they can learn how to cook and eat the dishes after.

There’s an introductory course for making kimchi, pasta and pizza. One can also choose to learn how to make French deserts, American-style burgers, and even Japanese or Mexican cuisine. Those interested can sign up for the classes through its website at www.lacuisine.co.kr. For more information and class fees, call (02) 518-7592.

By Claire Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)