Piano professor’s passion inspires students
By Angela Shawn-Chi Lu
Nov. 5, 2003 9:00 p.m.
Behind UCLA piano Professor Vitaly Margulis’ large
square-framed, thick-lensed glasses there’s a benign, pensive
gaze. But looks can be deceiving, especially when one discovers
that behind Margulis’ calm expression there is a mind of such
fiery passion.
“What is inside, what is intuition, is the most important
part of art,” Margulis said in his thick Ukrainian accent.
“Art is not science; art is this part of our soul that we
cannot explain at once.”
In his teaching, Margulis has motivated his students to pursue
fully his life’s passion.
“At first it was hard to practice with all the academic
requirements,” fourth-year music student Hyejin Kim said.
“He encouraged me to think about why I wanted to do music. He
reminded me why I was doing this.”
Margulis, now 75, found a renewed passion for the piano
following a heart attack at age 37. Afterward, Margulis played Bach
exclusively for five years. Margulis wrote a book, “Johann
Sebastian Bach’s Symbolic Language and the Well Tempered
Clavier,” on the religious symbolism and spirituality of
Bach’s music.
Margulis’ passion for the piano translates not only in
performance but also in teaching.
“He really cares about his students, and he’s always
encouraging them to go and explore new musical ideas,”
first-year music student Carissa Kim said. “That’s what
I’m really thankful for.”
To Margulis, playing the piano is like speaking to God.
“An atheistic pianist doesn’t realize that when he
plays, he’s praying,” Margulis wrote in his series of
aphorisms titled “Bagatelles.”
Before becoming a professor at UCLA in 1994, Margulis taught at
the Musikhochschule in Freiburg, Germany. Prior to that experience,
Margulis attended the Leningrad Conservatory and performed more
than 1,000 concerts throughout Russia.
“When I went to his concert for the first time, I thought
he was a genius,” Hyejin Kim said. “He was playing the
piano like a toy. He knew how to play.”
Last Saturday, Margulis treated an audience to a piano
performance of Schumann, Brahms and others, with an emotional
intensity that stilled Schoenberg Hall.
“He’s a real pianist,” Carissa Kim said.
“Most piano players, they can play the notes, they have the
technique, maybe they can put in a few expressions, but they
can’t really present their own ideas and make the audience
understand what they want. But I think Professor Margulis can.
It’s his interpretation of the music. He uses what the
composer wanted, but he uses also his own interpretation to make
the music. He’s a genius.”
Margulis’ students are performing on Nov. 10 from 8-10 PM in
Schoenberg Hall. Admission is free.
