Rounding out UCSB’s 2018-19 season were two very different masterclasses: one for cello with Yo Yo Ma at The Granada Theatre and one for piano with Jeremy Denk at Geiringer Hall on the UCSB campus. Mr. Ma moves around the stage and his is as much a performance as a teaching event. He engages his pupils, and the audience, asking questions and pursuing tangents that can at first seem a little bewildering, but he ties it all together to explore the intent and psychology of a sudent’s musical endeavors. He makes sure all in attendance learn something and have a good time too, with his intellectual curiosity and improvisatory skills on full show. Jeremy Denk focuses like a laser on the nuts and bolts of technique, but always in pursuit of helping students achieve their musical goals while being mindful of the history and accepted intent of the composer. Since the last time I saw a Denk masterclass almost 6 years ago, he has become more relaxed and imparts more of a sense of enthusiasm and joy about the art of music making while he provides good advice for improving a student’s skills to become a better performer. Both men are very skilled at being mentors, even in a brief 40 minute session, artists who give from their deep wells of knowledge and experience to new generations of aspiring classical musicians.
