This week’s NY Entertainer of the Week is Lionel Yu. Lionel is currently following his passions in NYC as a classically trained pianist and composer. He will be performing at Merkin Hall on Wednesday, April 3rd at 7:30 p.m. We talked about his upcoming performance, his YouTube channel MUSICALBASICS, and his NYC favorites.
upfrontNY: Can you tell us about how you became a classically trained pianist and composer?
Lionel Yu: When I was really little I signed up for piano lessons, my parents had got me into it. Then I started writing music when I was a teenager. I fell in love with writing classical music throughout middle school and high school. Even though I went to business school and majored in business I still kept taking lessons from different schools. I went to NYU and I took classes at NYU for music composition. Later on I took lessons at Juilliard for piano and for composition as well. I have been deeply connected to music for my whole life.
upfrontNY: You run a classical music channel, MUSICALBASICS. Can you tell me a little about that, how you got started, and where you got the idea to start your own channel?
Lionel Yu: Sure, MUSICALBASICS is my own music channel that I started back in 2008. When I originally started it I had this philosophy, which is that even simple melodies and harmonies have a lot of meaning behind them and if performed correctly they can inspire people and change people’s lives. So since then over the years I have uploaded my own music, own compositions, and my performances of them. The reception has just been so positive and so amazing from people all around the world who have listened and told me that my music has helped them, encouraged them, and lifted them through hard times. The most common thing they have told me is that it has encouraged them to pick up the piano and learn it. That is something that I am proud of. I think that my music has connected with a lot of people over the years.
upfrontNY: What is that feeling like knowing that you are inspiring others?
Lionel Yu: That is an incredible feeling, because of something that came from deep within me it connected to them in some way that resonated deeply as well. That is a really powerful feeling and to know that I have inspired people around the world with some melodies that came from my head and the emotions that came from my heart, that makes me inspired to continue.
upfrontNY: You have inspired many others. Who inspires you?
Lionel Yu: My inspirations come from a lot of areas. There are the classical composers that everyone looks up to, Beethoven and Chopin. In terms of what I get inspired by on a daily basis, it is really good music that I discover throughout different mediums. It is not limited to one genre per se. One musical that has really inspired me recently is Hamilton because of how innovative it is. The different art forms that are out there that are done in a really artistic and profound type of way, they resonate with me.
upfrontNY: How has MUSICALBASICS changed things for you and your music?
Lionel Yu: For me it has always been a partner for me in this journey. I know that without it I probably wouldn’t have been doing music just because there wouldn’t have been a platform to express myself because I didn’t go to music school. I would say it has always been there to encourage me. The reception that I have got from putting up videos part time over the past 10 years has created so much for me to decide this is what I want to do with my life. My YouTube channel has been very instrumental in getting my life in this direction.
upfrontNY: Do you feel like it is passion or the hard work that gets you to where you want to be?
Lionel Yu: I think passion is the key element, but the hard work is the fuel that gets the passion to where it needs to be.
upfrontNY: In December you made your Carnegie Hall debut, what was that like?
Lionel Yu: It was incredible. It was a very last minute thing. I decided to focus full time on my music starting in October of last year and within a month I booked Carnegie Hall. Fortunately they had one slot available for December otherwise I would have waited for this year in September. The timing was just right. I booked it and had 6 weeks to prepare for it. Everyone who went told me they loved it. It was a special experience and a lot of my fans came out from different parts of the country including the west coast to New York to see me play. When I got on stage I was like this is where I want to be and nowhere else in the world. That feeling was something special.
upfrontNY: What can the audience expect from your upcoming show at Merkin Hall?
Lionel Yu: It is kind of a sequel to my Carnegie Hall performance, but it is also an expansion to my musical vision. At Carnegie Hall I played solo piano and a violin duet for a few of them so it was more classically orientated. At Merkin Hall I have my really good friend and fantastic beat boxer Amit joining me. We are going to have 50% of my original solo work because that is what people know the best, but then 40 % will be this fusion between myself which is the classical world and the hip hop world with Amit and his beat boxing. It is going to take people on this new perspective of classical music because I think that classical music is extremely enjoyable if you modernize it in a way that people don’t necessarily expect it. There is another 10% that is going to be a surprise.
upfrontNY: What has been the best part of pursuing your music in NYC?
Lionel Yu: New York City is really the perfect place for my vision of music and New York City has the best music scene in the world. Whatever genre you can think of has probably been performed here and has a fan base here. Classical music is really strong in New York City. Also to be able to meet Amit in New York City and these other creative people I can work with.
It is really about being here, having these connections, the proximity to these venues, the fan base here, and to the audience that is willing to try out new things. Merkin Hall, their audience is really willing to experiment and they love to hear new styles of music. This has been a good combination of many factors.
NYC FAVORITES
Favorite NYC music venue: For classical- Carnegie Hall / For non-classical- Terminal 5
Favorite NYC restaurant: Daniel in the Upper East Side
Favorite NYC spot for a night out with friends: K-Town or Chinatown
Favorite NYC memory: A few years ago I went to Central Park for a Regina Spektor concert.
Favorite thing about NYC: The music scene
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