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“I was really taken aback,” says the third-year ���ϳԹ���Bachelor of Music student. “I couldn’t believe the piano was capable of creating such beautiful sounds.”

Spiliopoulos has practiced on that piano—made possible by donor gifts to the Fountain School of Performing Arts annual fund—many times since then. Each encounter has revealed something exciting and new about its potential and his own artistry. 

“I’ve noticed that, especially after it is tuned, the hammers travel really fast, allowing me to generate more repeated notes, which are very common in the classical music repertoire,” he says. “It helps the music really flow, but even more than that the sounds it produces are very flattering to the performer. That helps me gain confidence in my skills.”

Discovering a passion

Each discovery takes Spiliopoulos back to his childhood in Greece and the first time he heard his sister playing his family’s piano. That foundational experience was his introduction to the life-changing power of music.

“I realized that it was a way to express my emotions and opinions,” he says. “I started composing music before I ever started playing, and I think that really helped in terms of my abilities.”

Even before his first lesson, Spiliopoulos knew what sounded right and wrong to his ear. But his proficiency and passion grew with the encouragement of his piano teacher, and he decided he wanted to be a professionally trained musician. He set his sights on Dal after moving to Nova Scotia in 2020, influenced in part by his mother, a Dal alum, and the many great musicians who have trained at the Fountain School of Performing Arts over the years. But it was associate professor Peter Allen that was his main reason for choosing the university.

“I had heard a lot of great things about him in high school,” Spiliopoulos says. “He’s inspired me and shown me everything that you can do with the piano. That really gave me the commitment to excel in my post-secondary studies.”

Practice makes perfect

The donors who helped make the new piano possible provided further motivation for Spiliopoulos and other pianists in the program to excel. “Having access to it is really shaping us as musicians,” he says.

“It means a lot to see how much donors care for us as students and our development, and I hope they know how much we appreciate that.”

The next year will be a busy one for Spiliopoulos. In addition to inspiring a new generation of pianists as an instructor with the Scotia Suzuki School of Music, he has recitals to plan and a fourth year of studies to prepare for. Beyond that, he is not sure what the future holds, but he feels well prepared thanks to his professors and Dal donors.

“It’s been a real honour to get to play and explore such an amazing instrument in my studies,” he says. “It has taken my university experience to a higher level.”