Final Forte 2025: Atticus Coen

[piano music] – My name is Atticus Coen.
I am 18 years old and I go to Sun Prairie East High School.
I play the piano, and I’ve played since kindergarten.
[applause] [piano music] I have one sister.
She’s 16 years old.
She plays the clarinet.
We play music together a lot, actually.
[piano and clarinet duet] I work at Primal Cue.
My whole friend group works there.
Sure, for here or to go?
It’s really nice to have something that’s also different from music, where it’s just straightforward.
– That’s great!
– Atticus: I’m also doing at my school the musical, Big Fish, and I’m in the pit for that, on the keyboard.
Playing in the pit is a very unique experience.
[piano music] Things can go wrong and you have to really be always ready to, like, jump ahead or to jump backwards.
A lot of music just speaks to me.
[jazz music] I’m really into jazz.
It’s really free.
It’s one of the most expressive forms of music.
– Lana Robotewskyj: Short chorus, keep it dry.
– Atticus: I’m currently studying at Melodiya Piano Academy under Lana Robotewskyj.
And I’ve been there with her for eight years.
[Lana singing] She really changed how I practiced and how music was presented to me.
– Lana: That sounded great.
– Atticus: She brought me to where I am today.
– Good.
[singing] – I think performing with the Madison Symphony Orchestra is gonna be really great.
I will be playing the Gershwin Piano Concerto in F Major.
My teacher, Lana, helped me select this piece.
She knew I have this love for jazz, and Gershwin has a deep connection between classical and jazz music.
It has so much contrast.
The beginning is very introspective.
And then later, it’s bouncy and fun and exciting.
It’s going around all these different characters and just their lives and how they kind of all intertwine.
Music really allows me to express myself without using my words.
Everything that I really have been doing has been revolving around music.
[ending note] [applause]