Sophomore Atsuo Chiu performs at Carnegie Hall on March 3, marking his third performance there.

Q&A: Three questions with three-time Carnegie Hall pianist (video included)

Sophomore Atsuo Chiu performs at Carnegie Hall on March 3, marking his third performance there.
(Photo used by permission of Chiu)
Sophomore Atsuo Chiu performs at Carnegie Hall on March 13, marking his third performance there.

Sophomore Atsuo Chiu played at Carnegie Hall, in New York, for the third time on March 13.

Q: This is your third time going. What did you do this time that was different?

A: The first two times, I played the same piece (Chopin – Étude Op. 10 No. 12). This time, I played a different piece (Brahms – Klavierstücke Op. 118 No. 3). This was the best I have played.  It wasn’t the piece. It’s just practice. I just looked at my score and listened to how I played and changed it.

Q: What was different about your trip this time?

A: This time, I went for three days. (The first two times), I went for five.

The first two times, I went all around Manhattan and even went to Queens. We (saw) the Brooklyn Bridge, the Statue of Liberty and the Upper East Side.

This time, our hotel was in Times Square, so I got to tour around Times Square. I had gone before but never really toured it.

Because we had less time, the only places I went for a second time were Grand Central Station (and Times Square).

Q: Did you do anything to celebrate going for your third time?

A: We wanted to celebrate being in New York, so we decided to go to a fancy dinner. We went to Le Bernardin, (a seafood restaurant) and Brasserie Cognac (a French restaurant) in Times Square.

Read about Chiu’s piano career to date. 

Check out Chiu’s YouTube channel for his recordings of pieces by Brahms, Beethoven, Chopin and Mozart. 

—By Jake Longoria

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