Article January 1, 2000 ISSUE

Music is my life

Milana Strezeva—Moldova

Herald: Milana, how long have you been in the United States?

MS: We arrived six years ago in June, and settled down in Sarasota, Florida, In two years, I moved to New York City to attend The Julliard School. I got my bachelor's degree in piano this last May, and now I'm going for my master's. My whole family is musical. My father is a clarinet player. He was a principal clarinetist for 20 years in the opera house in Moldova. My mother was a prima donna at the same opera house and sang all over Russia and Europe. When we moved to the States, we decided to form a family trio—piano, voice, and clarinet—which felt very natural to start with.

Herald: And you are the pianist in the trio. How did you get the idea of studying piano?

MS: I believe it was decided for me at an early age. My father claims that I wanted to play the piano at four or five. What I remember is that he was really strict with me and made me practice most of the time. There was a great deal of discipline needed to accomplish that, but now music is my profession, and I love it. It was wonderful that my parents actually recognized my talent and supported it. And they remained faithful to that during all these years.

Herald: You just mentioned discipline — the hours and hours of practice that you have to put in when people go to movies and do other things. Is it worth all that?

MS: Of course. Music is my life. It's work and enjoyment at the same time. And at a concert it all comes back to you in a wonderful way, when people are enjoying the music and are inspired by it. That's when all the work and study pays off.

Herald: How did you learn about Christian Science?

MS: I became acquainted with it through a friend of our family. We invited him several times for dinner. And at one of those dinners, my father asked him what church he attended, because our friends’ outlook on life was very interesting and genuine, and that was rather intriguing. He said he had been a Christian Scientist and gave us Science and Health in Russian. So my parents became really interested. As for myself, I was a believer in Christ for a while already, but I had never heard of Christian Science before.

Herald: But you did know the Bible, right?

MS: Yes. I was reading the Bible on a regular basis. But after I went to a Christian Science Sunday School, some things in the Bible became much clearer and more interesting to me. I had a really great Sunday School teacher, and I'm grateful for that.

Herald: Did Christian Science help in your study of music?

MS: A Christian Scientist has to diligently study the Bible and be faithful to what is true. The same is true for music — you have to study. You have to be really diligent about studying a certain piece and very faithful to the music you are playing. Being faithful to yourself — that means not stealing ideas from other people but expressing what's inside of you. And that expression comes from God. As soon as I turn to God, I realize that I'm a kind of channel of beautiful expression that comes from Him. Right away everything changes — the way I play the music, the way people perceive me.

Herald: It sounds like you are deriving energy from your prayer. Energy for your playing, energy for practicing.

MS: As I said, everything changes as soon as you turn your thoughts to God. And it changes for the better. Because in the presence of the Lord, everything is possible. You don't feel fear anymore.

Herald: When you say you turn to God, what is happening?

MS: I have ideals that are very high — very high standards. And when I turn to God, I realize I'm not limited by my experiences. I see that there is something much higher, much better, and I strive for that. This works for me. I have this perfect model of music, this view of ultimate greatness and perfection. Sometimes at auditions I've been really discouraged. This year the competition was so difficult that I was scared to play. But then I realized that as I long as I was scared, nothing good was going to happen. So at a certain point, I started praying about the situation.

Herald: What kind of thoughts were helpful to you?

MS: I was very scared of the competition because I knew that several people who were auditioning were really amazing. They'd won all sorts of international competitions. But when I was reading Science and Health, I learned that achievement doesn't come from us, I realized that God is leading — taking care of everything — and I don't have to worry about the outcome. There is nothing impossible to God! I felt that whatever was right for me would happen. There's no competition in God. One competes only with oneself, and one should think only about expressing one's talent (which comes from God) and the joy of participation. This is the most important aspect. As long as you enjoy giving your gift freely, as God gave it to you, everything is going to be perfect.

Herald: What do you see as the mission of your work? What do you want to communicate to people when you play?

MS: God's love! When I am right with God, then everything has to do with God — everything. All my practicing and my career — it's all devoted to God. I want people to feel that there's this great love I have for what I'm doing, and for God. And I want them to realize how beautiful it is when you are no longer drawn to ugliness and hate, but drawn to spirituality instead. To a beauty that can raise the standard of life for all of us. This is my ultimate goal.

About the author

Milana Strezeva came to the United States from Moldova with her family a few years ago. Currently, she's pursuing graduate studies at The Julliard School of Music in New York, where she's on a full scholarship.

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