A 7-year-old from Philadelphia is about to become one of the youngest students ever admitted to the Curtis Institute of Music, the tuition-free conservatory known for producing some of classical music's biggest names. Olivia Li, a third-grader at Germantown Friends School, will enroll at Curtis this fall to begin individualized piano lessons and coursework, making her the youngest student the school has taken in at least 75 years.
Li is believed to be Curtis's youngest student since 6-year-old violinist Diana Halprin enrolled back in 1950, according to reporting by The Philadelphia Inquirer. Over its century-plus history, Curtis has admitted 13 other children before they turned 10, per the same reporting, but Li's enrollment stands out even against that rare company. As reported by PHILADELPHIA.Today, most Curtis students are college-age, which makes Li's arrival this fall a notable exception rather than the norm.
Li began playing piano at age 4, and by the time she applied to conservatories she had already built a competitive resume. She won the Grand Prize at the XVI Chopin International Piano Competition in Hartford, the Grand First Prize at the Chicago International Music Competition, and the Grand Prize at the Ocean Music International Piano Competition, according to Sound Espressivo. Before conservatory, she trained under instructor Qi Zhang at the Musart Music School in the New York area, the same outlet reports.
A Rare Choice Between Curtis and Juilliard
Li earned a spot at Juilliard as well as Curtis, but she chose Curtis over the New York conservatory, per PHILADELPHIA.Today's reporting. Classical music outlet Slippedisc reported that Li had originally prepared to audition for Juilliard's Pre-College Division before her teacher urged her to also try for Curtis, a decision that ultimately led to offers from both of the country's premier music schools.
Getting into either program is a long shot. Curtis's piano department received 154 applications for this year's class and accepted just four students, according to PHILADELPHIA.Today. Founded in 1924, Curtis awards full-tuition scholarships to 100% of its admitted students regardless of financial need, operating with an acceptance rate of roughly 4%, according to Business Insider. The conservatory caps its total student body at around 160 musicians across all disciplines in order to sustain a full symphony orchestra and opera company, and more than 40% of its students come from outside the United States, per the same outlet.
Faculty Praise for Li's “Phenomenal Fingers”
Michelle Cann, a Curtis professor who will guide Li's piano studies, said Li's musicality, personality, and character stood out during the admissions process, according to PHILADELPHIA.Today. During auditions, Cann noted that Li possessed “phenomenal fingers,” per the Inquirer's reporting. Cann joined the Curtis faculty in 2020 as the inaugural Eleanor Sokoloff Chair in Piano Studies, a title honoring the conservatory's longest-serving piano instructor, and she is a Grammy Award-winning pianist recognized for her performances of works by composer Florence Price, according to the Curtis Institute of Music.
Li will also study under conductor and pianist Ignat Solzhenitsyn, who holds the Sondra F. Matesky Chair in Piano Studies at Curtis. Solzhenitsyn, the son of Nobel Prize-winning author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, studied piano at Curtis himself under legendary pianist Gary Graffman before joining the faculty, according to Curtis. He has since served as Conductor Laureate of the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia and as Principal Guest Conductor of the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, per the same background.
Balancing Third Grade With Conservatory Life
Even as she takes on individualized piano lessons and music courses at one of the world's most selective conservatories, Li will remain a third-grader at Germantown Friends School, according to PHILADELPHIA.Today. Asked about her goals, Li said she hopes to play piano well, learn many pieces, and share her music with the world, the outlet reports.
Her admission arrives as Curtis welcomed 13 musicians under the age of 18 out of nearly four dozen total new students entering the conservatory for the fall semester, according to the Inquirer. That statistic underscores how, even at a school accustomed to prodigies, a 7-year-old moving through hallways alongside college-age classmates remains a milestone worth marking.
