As I walked into the venue where I would be seeing Yevgeny Sudbin, an acclaimed pianist who has performed throughout Europe; I seemed to be the only person there under the age of 30, apart from the musician, who was born in 1980. I expected as much, after trying to get a friend to accompany me unsuccessfully. Ironically, the performance, part of the Peoples Symphony Concerts series, was held at Washington Irving HS. As I settled in my seat, I was apprehensive. I enjoyed classical music, but hearing it live is completely different from listening to a CD. I become relaxed to the point of no return; the music is so soothing that everything else fades away.

It starts soft, tiptoe-ing down the keys in a whisper, each hand debating through melody. The pianist is composed, serene, not a hair out of place. The concert progresses like an argument, starting out soft and civil, but fully formed and all out by the end.

The second Sonata, in G Marjor, by Domenico Scaralatti was my favorite. It began joyously, bursting out through the piano like the first day of spring. It made me want to dance around in a field of wildflowers, and you could see that Stubin become more involved in the music, moving his head and using more flourishes on the keys.

The third piece, Sonata in E Minor by Haydn, was another favorite. The music was mischievous, yet brazen, a pet you cannot bring yourself to scold. The bass tones seem to reprimand the high notes, yet they triumph in the end, fleeing the piano as they prance and chatter. Stubin also played Chopin, Medtner, and Prokofiev. The tone of the performance was light and lively, giggly, almost.

I left the venue feeling refreshed and renewed, as if spring was radiating outward from the building, turning everything around it verdant and blooming. Classical music has an undue reputation, at least for people my age, as stodgy: creaky people sitting at cobwebbed instruments in formal clothes. It is a mistake to think that a music’s age determines its vibrancy; classical music can be as fun and exiting as any band with a few guitars and catchy choruses- you simply have to be willing to sit still and use your imagination.