An up-and-coming pianist shares his love of music with children
Jan Lisiecki has fit a lot into his young life. At 22, he鈥檚 a world-renowned classical pianist 鈥� and he鈥檚 made it a priority to blend his artistry with humanitarian work, especially involving children.
Hailing from Calgary, Alberta, Mr. Lisiecki has worked with UNICEF for almost a decade and has been a UNICEF Canada ambassador since 2012. He raises funds through charity recitals, holding several a year, most of which aren鈥檛 listed on his website. He鈥檚 also visited with and performed for children in impoverished communities in Guatemala and Lebanon, as well as his native Canada.
鈥淐hildren are all the same: They all have the same basic needs,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou can only do so much. You cannot change their circumstances. But I hope to give them some feeling of still being kids.鈥�
Lisiecki, the son of Polish immigrants, started performing professionally at age 9. He has been featured in several short documentaries, including 鈥淭he Reluctant Prodigy鈥� from the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. Among other top venues, he has performed at Carnegie Hall in New York, and he鈥檚 recorded albums featuring works by Chopin, Mozart, and Schumann.
Audiences tend to be captivated by his performances. When onstage and in concert attire, he seems far more grown up than his age would suggest. But in street clothes, he looks like any other 20-something. And he鈥檚 strikingly modest and down to earth.
Indeed, Lisiecki is modest when asked about his motivations for getting involved with humanitarian work, saying he was simply led in that direction. But he also emphasizes that such work has always played an important role in his life.
As a child, he was a popular guest at local charity events in his hometown of Calgary, where he was frequently asked to perform. Eventually this led him to UNICEF, for which he became a national youth representative in 2008, before his designation as an ambassador four years later.
Lisiecki has partnered with other humanitarian groups as well, including the David Foster Foundation and Make-A-Wish Foundation.
鈥淛an is a very talented, gifted musician with an amazing heart, helping to make a difference in children鈥檚 lives,鈥� says Frances Graham, a development manager at UNICEF Canada, in an email interview. 鈥淗e has a tremendous awareness of global issues and children鈥檚 rights and he consistently acts to pass this awareness and knowledge on to others.鈥�
In 2011, Lisiecki was scheduled to perform three solo recitals in Japan. His visit, however, coincided with the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Fukushima prefecture. So he turned his recitals into benefit concerts, donating the proceeds to UNICEF鈥檚 relief efforts.
Lisiecki says he particularly enjoys performing in lesser-known locations, bringing his music to people who don鈥檛 usually have access to it. For example, in March 2016 he traveled to La Ronge, a remote First Nation community in Saskatchewan. During the visit, which was supported by the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra and Cameco, a Canadian mining company, he met with students and also performed for the larger community.
In terms of special trips, perhaps his most noteworthy one was to a Syrian refugee camp in Lebanon in 2014. He was already scheduled to perform in Lebanon鈥檚 capital, Beirut, and the nearby refugee crisis moved him to do a second performance afterward, organized by UNICEF.
So Lisiecki聽 near the city of Zahl茅, which was about a two-hour drive away in the Bekaa Valley.聽The trip involved passing through numerous security checkpoints. 鈥淲e could feel we were getting very close to Syria,鈥� he notes.
Once there, he says, he was given a tour of the community and could see UNICEF鈥檚 relief work up close. He visited with families and performed for schoolchildren. And the students shared and performed songs they had written.
鈥淚t teaches you to appreciate everything you have. It gives you perspective and brings you back to the core of who you are,鈥� says Lisiecki, reflecting on his humanitarian work.
He acknowledges it can sometimes be difficult balancing this work with his regular tour schedule. His reputation as a performer is growing and his name is spreading rapidly, so he is in increasingly high demand.
鈥淏ut you can always mix [special events] in,鈥� he says. 鈥淭here is always something on my calendar.鈥�
