Keys to the Competition

His fingers fly up and down the black and white keys. His head is bowed downwards, swaying intently with the rhythm of the notes. Sophomore Brenen Prinzing’s eyebrows furrow in concentration. This is where he belongs: on the small black bench behind the Yamaha Baby Grand piano.

Music became a part of Brenen’s life on the day he was born. His mother and father are both professional violinists in the Cameleon Ensemble quartet based out of Kansas City. As a music major, Brenen’s older sister attends St. Olaf College, a liberal arts school in Minnesota.

“In our family, both my husband and I are professional musicians. And it is my personal belief that the study of music, especially at a very high level, actually makes you a better person,” Brenen’s mom Cathan Prinzing said. “So I require it for all my children.”

When Brenen was seven, he began simple piano lessons. At eleven years old, he entered his first local piano competitions for prize money. Year after year, his love for the piano grew stronger.

Some kids have soccer tournaments, others have dance recitals, but Brenen has piano competitions.

Brenen commonly competes in the spring and fall. Spring is based on concerts while the fall concentrates on competitions and judging. The one most concernable however, is the Music Teacher National Association (MTNA) state competition. In November, he will have a chance to show his skills and give himself a chance to advance to the regional competition: one step closer to reaching his goal of nationals.

Brenen is involved in the MTNA, a Midwestern organization in which a teacher trains their student to master five pieces of music a year. The state competition is at a different location every year, usually in college auditoriums. This year it is in Columbia, Mo.

“I practice all year around, no breaks,” Brenen said. “I must practice between two to six hours every day. Just those five pieces, every day.”

To him, that amount of time is not a ridiculous number. Through the years he has realized that there is never too much practice, that there is always room for improvement. He needs to build stamina, and the only way to do that is by playing.

Brenen prepares for the competition by choosing five pieces ranging from four to nine minutes each. He plays one from each era of music: romantic, baroque, classical, impressionistic, and modern.

He is taught each piece and within two to three months he must have them memorized. That leaves around seven months to hit every note accurately without the “cheat sheet”, because when the time comes the sheet lays only in the hands of the judges.

Every year it is the same routine–Brenen sits in the vacant auditorium, with only the presence of the judges. He is perched on the bench with posture fit for a king, behind the 88 keys he knows like the back of his hand. For the next 26 minutes, Brenen plays the same five pieces he learned 365 days earlier. All of the work, all of the memorization, everything he worked so hard for in the past year is finished in 26 minutes.

The judges watch every movement and listen to every note. Each performer receives a rating as well as a thorough critique from the judges panel.

Last year Brenen did not place, but received a 1+, or in layman’s terms, fourth place. He did not advance to regionals.

“If you can’t play everything note-perfect, let alone dynamics and articulation, you have no point in going. You will not place,” Brenen says.

Not placing is one of the last of Brenen’s worries before the show. First he must persevere through his stage fright. Brenen commonly experiences sweaty and clammy hands before taking the stage, therefor he carries a hand handkerchief with him at all times.

“Going into a room with five experienced piano professors that have the music right in front of them and know every single time you mess up is just really nerve racking,” Brenen says.

Warming up for 20 to 30 minutes before each show is a normal ritual for Brenen. On the other hand, his post concert tradition is something he considers unique. Since coffee and sugar have thrown him off focus in the past, he is banned from these delicacies a whole week or two before he performs– restricted to mainly salads. After his show, whether he wins or gets dead last, all he looks forward to is indulging.

“Afterwards, it is so satisfying to know that I am free to eat what I want to eat, and just go and get a large amount of caffeine,” says Brenen.

Knowing that a group of his senior competitors have graduated, his goal of advancing to nationals is looking a bit more obtainable. Competing at regionals as a freshman was an eye-opening experience, and he now knows what it will take to come out on top.

“Just that feeling after those 26 minutes, that is what I practice for. That is why I play piano. It is for that feeling of success afterwards. Even if I don’t win, I know that I played the best I could possibly play,” Brenen said. “It is all about the feeling of knowing that you achieved what you set out for,” Brenen says.