The Daily Cougar: Is this your first time visiting UH? What do you think of the Moores School of Music so far?
Larissa Dedova: Yes, this is my first time. So far, I like it very much; it’s a great school. I was practicing yesterday in one of the studios, and there were two wonderful pianos. I was very impressed. The piano in the halls where I had the master class has quality, and that’s very important.
TDC: You’ve been a part of many piano festivals. How does it feel to be a part of this year’s International Piano Festival?
LD: I’m thrilled. There are such wonderful artists playing. The concert yesterday — I enjoyed it so much. I never heard Mr. Simon play live, and it was a fantastic opportunity. It was amazing.
TDC: How does being a part of a piano festival differ from performing in concerts? What do you take away from it?
LD: It’s so much more happening. A concert is a concert. You come, you play, and you go home. But here, you have meetings, master classes, artists playing around — you have new people to meet. I love festivals. The environment and the purpose of any festival is actually to meet with people and just share what you know, what you love, with as many people as possible.
TDC: You will be performing Mozart, Chopin and Debussy at your recital tomorrow night. What inspired this music selection?
LD: Well, I love all this music. This is my favorite music. Debussy was inspired because for the last three or four years, I was doing a very big project. I recorded works by Claude Debussy. So it was all about Debussy, Debussy, Debussy. I love his music. And Chopin is Chopin; so what can you say?
TDC: As an accomplished pianist and professor, what advice do you have for the students studying music here at UH?
LD: First of all, love music. If you love music, then the rest comes naturally. You practice a lot because you love it. You learn, and you listen to many things — not only your instrument, for example, not only from the piano, but orchestras and other things. If you can’t live without it, and you think, “This is my life,” then do it. If not, then I don’t know if it’s worth it because the profession is extremely hard.
