By Angela Wang
Kelly Cao, a current grade 12 student, is an integral part of both the music and visual art community here at Collingwood.
Kelly came to Canada with her family when she was five years old, but she became involved with music even before that. When she was four years old, she started learning the piano and the violin, although she started focusing solely on piano after she came to Canada. Kelly initially didn’t like learning the piano very much, often sitting in front of the instrument but refusing to play, but as she improved and gained confidence, she started enjoying playing more and more. This culminated in her preparing for the ARCT in grade ten, a high level diploma for piano players. “I realized that music is a lot more interesting and has more depth and variety than I expected,” Kelly said. “I learned music history, music theory, and harmonies. I learned so much that it felt life-changing.”
After finishing the ARCT exam, Kelly started teaching children to play the piano. Although it started as just a way for her to keep her piano skills sharp during her busy schedule, she now greatly enjoys interacting with her students and teaching them to enjoy and understand music. She now teaches three students on a regular basis, and they have all progressed quite a lot since she started them. She loves the sense of accomplishment and responsibility this brings her.
Kelly Cao, a current grade 12 student, is an integral part of both the music and visual art community here at Collingwood.
Kelly came to Canada with her family when she was five years old, but she became involved with music even before that. When she was four years old, she started learning the piano and the violin, although she started focusing solely on piano after she came to Canada. Kelly initially didn’t like learning the piano very much, often sitting in front of the instrument but refusing to play, but as she improved and gained confidence, she started enjoying playing more and more. This culminated in her preparing for the ARCT in grade ten, a high level diploma for piano players. “I realized that music is a lot more interesting and has more depth and variety than I expected,” Kelly said. “I learned music history, music theory, and harmonies. I learned so much that it felt life-changing.”
After finishing the ARCT exam, Kelly started teaching children to play the piano. Although it started as just a way for her to keep her piano skills sharp during her busy schedule, she now greatly enjoys interacting with her students and teaching them to enjoy and understand music. She now teaches three students on a regular basis, and they have all progressed quite a lot since she started them. She loves the sense of accomplishment and responsibility this brings her.
Apart from music, Kelly also greatly enjoys visual art, for which she was featured in the Summer 2017 edition. Kelly believes that all forms of art are interrelated, and all are great ways for one to express oneself. For Kelly, art should be something that’s enjoyable – she now frequently downloads music from movies that she like to play herself. “That’s something I enjoy throughout my musical process, being able to play music that I love,” Kelly said.
For budding artists, Kelly has this to say: “If you don’t enjoy your art right now, don’t give up. I actually thought about giving up piano when I was seven or eight, but if I quit then, I would never have experienced the happiness of playing the piano and teaching students. Just never give up, and you’ll probably fall in love with your art one day.”
When asked about her major influences in music, Kelly points to her piano teacher, whose love and enjoyment for teaching piano has inspired her to do so herself. She also says that her parents, who wished to play an instrument but never found the opportunity to do so, helped her better appreciate how fortunate she is to be able to pursue her interests in art and music, and they had been supportive and encouraging every step of the way.
Although Kelly hopes to pursue business or finance in college, she will definitely take music classes and keep music in her life as a hobby. All of us here at Arts Mag wishes her a successful and happy future doing what she loves!