By Sarah Wallace

Pianist plays in P.A. before major audition

Jan 22, 2017 | 11:00 AM

A Saskatchewan pianist on his way to an international competition has planned four stops in the province, including Prince Albert.

Samuel Deason was born and raised in Saskatoon and spent his entire youth in the province. He currently attends university in Baltimore.

The 28-year-old said he took up the instrument when he was just three.

“I’ve been playing piano as long as I can remember anything. [Three] sounds very young, but in terms of learning the piano actually a lot of people start around the three, four, five year age,” Deason told paNOW.

Playing the piano, Deason said, was not always fun, especially when he was younger.

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“I remember a time when I was 14 years old and I wasn’t really happy playing the piano,” he said. “Every year in the fall I would be assigned a number of new pieces, and learning new pieces was never fun. It takes a lot of work… I wanted to quit really bad.”

Deason said the idea of playing professionally changed his attitude. Since then he’s been playing in competitions around the world.

“It’s fun, but it’s probably not as glamorous as one might assume,” he said. “It’s rather unpredictable.”

Although Deason said he enjoys travelling to play in different places, his trips are far from vacations.

A recent visit to England, Deason said, was just over two days long, and most of that time was spent dealing with jet lag and playing the recital before jumping back on a plane without any time to look around.

“It’s a lot of energy, but it makes life interesting as well,” he said.

Deason is currently preparing to audition for the upcoming Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Fort Worth, Texas.

The competition, Deason said, is one of the largest and most important for pianists. The Van Cliburn Competition not only offers a chance to win money, but the winner gets to play hundreds of concerts throughout the year.

“It basically sets you on a path, giving you a chance for real prolonged, sustained international success, Deason said.

Deason said he has made it to the pre-selection phase, and will travel to Fort Worth next month to audition. In the meantime, Deason said he is using his stops in Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, Estevan and Weyburn to get used to the repertoire he will be required to play at the audition.

The performances, Deason said, will feature selections by the Russian late-Romantic composer Rachmaninoff, who he described as one of the best composers who ever lived.

“His writing is very impactful,” Deason said.

“He basically revolutionized piano playing in terms of actually what was possible at the instrument. Some of his piano compositions are among the most difficult ever composed.”

Deason’s Prince Albert recital will be held Feb. 1 at Wesley United Church at 7 p.m. Tickets will be available at the door.

Sarah Wallace is paNOW’s community reporter and afternoon anchor on 900 CKBI. She can be reached at swallace@panow.com or tweet her @sarahthesquid.