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A flash of Pan

by Robyn Israel

A fter performing with the California Youth Symphony (CYS) for more than 10 years, Joyce Pan is finally getting her chance to shine as a soloist.

The Palo Alto violinist will take the spotlight this weekend and next, performing Sergei Prokofiev's "Violin Concerto No. 1." Pan has been playing the piece for the past two years, but her upcoming solo is causing her some anxiety.

"Right now, the main thing I'm focused on is trying to relax," the Gunn senior said. "I heard that even if you prepare 100 percent, you only play 80 percent of what you prepared. So I've been trying to focus on not tensing up!"

But Leo Eylar, music director of the Palo Alto-based California Youth Symphony, is confident of Pan's musical ability.

"Joyce is one of my strongest concertmasters ever, and is also a solo violinist of remarkable strength and assurance. Her command over the 'Prokofiev Violin Concerto' is complete and simply amazing. She has a beautiful tone and a tremendous technical ability that shines through everything she plays."

When Pan first heard Prokofiev's 1917 composition two years ago, she loved it, and it quickly became one of her favorite pieces.

"It's contemporary, so it has some discordant notes. But it's very rhythmic. I think some parts are very emotional. It has some nice melodies. When I first heard the third movement, I thought it was one of the most beautiful pieces I ever heard. It sounded vaguely familiar, like I had heard it before. It reminded me of when I was little, my Dad would listen to a lot of classical pieces. There were some pieces I thought were sad. When you heard them, it stirred up something inside."

Pan's favorite version of Prokofiev's "Violin Concerto" was recorded by Maxim Vengerov.

"My teacher (Patricia Burnham) had me listen to a lot of different versions. With some, I thought they were cluttering the music. But I thought Maxim Vengerov played it very purely and didn't seem to clutter it. At the same time, he made it very beautiful. And he wasn't afraid to cover different ranges. He also made it sound really easy."

Pan, 17, began her violin studies at age 5 with Audrey Gray of Palo Alto, and began studying with Burnham at age 11. At age 7 she began studying piano, but somehow the violin resonated more with her.

"I feel more emotionally attached to the violin," Pan said. "I can experiment more with it, with different sound ranges and different bowing techniques. I really love playing piano, but I played it more for fun, to relax. With the violin, I competed more and I felt more ambitious with it."

To that end, Pan has certainly succeeded. She is the 2002 winner of the CYS Young Artist Competition and is also a two-time winner of the Stanford Young Artist Festival (1999 and 2001) and a three-time winner of the Palo Alto Jewish Community Sounds of Music Festival (1997-1999). She said her 10 and a half years of playing with CYS has been both fun and tremendously educational.

"I learned it takes a lot of group work and cooperation and it has really taught me a lot about sight reading, rhythm and how to follow the conductor. It also provides a lot of exposure to more types of music. CYS does a lot of romantic and contemporary pieces."

Pan is also first violinist in Quintet to Go, a professional CYS quintet that performs at various gigs, including weddings. It's a lot different than performing in the 104-member CYS senior orchestra, Pan said.

"We practice on our own -- that's very challenging," Pan said. "Without a conductor, it's harder to stay together, to know who's going to slow down when. You're responsible for a lot more -- there's no hiding your mistakes."

Pan hopes to attend Stanford University next year, and intends to study music as part of a double major. She also expressed interest in joining a percussion ensemble. When she's not playing music, Pan enjoys math puzzles, drawing, reading and listening to operas.

What about pop and rock music?

"I listen, but I don't buy the CDs," she said. "My friends like that music, so I'll listen to their CDs."

E-mail Robyn Israel at risrael@paweekly.com

What: The California Youth Symphony, conducted by Music Director Leo Eylar. Palo Altan Joyce Pan will perform the "Violin Concerto No. 1" by Prokofiev.

Where: The Flint Center, 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd. (De Anza College campus) in Cupertino.

When: Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

Cost: Tickets are $12 general; $6 seniors and students, and will be available at the door.

Info: Call (650) 325-6666 or visit www.cys.org
A repeat performance will take place on March 16 at 2:30 p.m. at the San Mateo Performing Arts Center, 650 N. Delaware in San Mateo.