Jessie Gu
Jessie Gu began playing the piano when she was 7 and has retained her passion for playing for the past 10 years. That dedication rewarded her with a performance in the Winners Concert of the Brooklyn Music Teachers Guild at Carnegie Hall, New York City, where she performed “Waltz in A! Minor” by Alexander Peskanov. “It was the largest concert I have ever performed in; a lot more formal than what I am used to with smaller recitals,” she says.
The old joke is “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” The answer is “practice, practice, practice.” Jessie does just that. She practiced the Peskanov waltz for more than a year, takes two piano lessons each week, sings in the Dobyns-Bennett Chamber Choir, enters competitions and performs in recitals.
“Music has always been an important part of my life, and I plan on continuing it in the future. Playing the piano has allowed me to express myself in ways that words cannot, and I am able to convey the intricacies of music directly to an audience,” Jessie says.
The piano was her first instrument and remains her only love. “I prefer to focus my skills on one thing and never really thought about switching to a new instrument or turning back,” she says.
She plans on studying computer science in college but wants to continue music, either with a double major or a minor. She’s also considering studying music composition because she likes to write songs and classical music.
“I mostly write music in my spare time — pop songs to sing as well as pieces for the piano. I would like to write an orchestral piece soon, but those are a bit more complex,” Jessie says.
She is the 17-year-old daughter of Haifeng Gu and Weimin Gu and is from Kingsport, Tennessee. She attends Dobyns Bennett High School.
