Love of Piano and Composing Has Opened Up a New World for Pierson Senior

When Kai Basseches took the stage at the annual pops and jazz band concert at Pierson High School at the end of the last school year, most people in the audience probably didn’t realize what they were about to experience.

Basseches, a junior at the time, performed an original electronic piano composition, and it was, indeed, electric. Austin Remson, the Pierson band teacher, remembers the night vividly, and in particular the feedback he heard from many parents in attendance.

“They were like, ‘Wow, that kid really connected to that song, and took everyone on a journey,’” he said.

Basseches, now a senior, has been on a musical journey himself for many years, and his dedication to playing piano has paid off. The electronic composition he played at the spring concert was selected for a student composers showcase at the New York State School Music Association — essentially the highest level of competition offered by NYSSMA — and he won in the electro-acoustic composition division. Over the summer, he was one of a small group of students from around the country selected to participate in a prestigious two-week workshop at Tanglewood, where he and other student composers worked with professional musicians, wrote their own compositions, and attended concerts.

He’s kept it up during his senior year, and will head to the NYSSMA competition in early December to play piano accompaniment for an All-State wind ensemble.

Basseches came to his love of piano and music naturally. He comes from what his mother, Judy Basseches, describes as a musical family — his father, Stuart, plays guitar, and Judy said that when Kai and his twin sister, Poppy, were little, they would play along with their father on ukulele or drums when he picked up his guitar after a day at work. Kai and his sister started taking piano lessons when they were 7. She eventually gave it up and started playing cello, but Kai stuck with it, and had natural ability from the start. He stuck with the same teacher, Ellen Johansen of East Hampton, from the start, and credits much of his success to her.

He started participating in NYSSMA competitions, quickly achieving the top level, and then started tinkering with creating his own compositions.

While Basseches had the kind of talent that was clear early on, he was not so unlike many other children who start piano lessons at a young age — or any extracurricular pursuit that requires some degree of focus and dedication. Which is to say he didn’t uniformly love it day in and day out, and put up a fair degree of resistance when it came time to practice independently.

“I kind of don’t like piano lessons,” Basseches said, in his soft-spoken manner, with a laugh. “I like it more now, but I used to not like it. I wouldn’t practice.”

Once he progressed past the beginner and intermediate phase, however, Basseches said it all became easier, and he gave credit to both his piano teacher and his mom.

“I’m really glad that my mom made me keep taking lessons,” he said. “So much of the stuff I do now is related to my piano experience, like jazz band, chamber group, composing.”

His teacher, Johansen, was equally influential.

“She was very focused on the music theory behind the pieces,” he said. “She wouldn’t just teach us the notes, she would teach us how the chords fit together, and all the harmonies and rhythms and how they played out. With that influence, I developed a vocabulary where I was able to express myself.”

Kai’s mother gave him credit for sticking with piano through the learning phase, and said his penchant for exploring the music and experimenting was likely what kept him going.

“There were times where he said he didn’t want to take lessons, but he always found a new way, a different piece to play,” she said. “He always found ways to keep it interesting. He does have a real love for playing and improvising and creating music, and I think he’ll have that for the rest of his life.

“It was clear he had ability and that he was really getting somewhere, and it was bringing him to a different world,” she added. “It’s a small community out here, and it can feel like the world is very small. And when it brings you to bigger places and bigger things, it’s really exciting.”

Remson said he’s been happy to have Kai in jazz band, and complimented him not only for his musical talent, but for his maturity and well-roundedness.

“He’s very easygoing and very happy,” he said. “He helps us out by playing in jazz band, showing up before school starts. It’s not easy. He’s just a really great young man. He’s dependable, and extremely talented, and he’s a fantastic student.”

Kai will continue on to college in the fall, and the future remains bright for him. He’s an excellent student, with an interest in math and science, and he’s applying to several prestigious colleges.

Right now, he does not plan on pursing a music-related major, but wants to continue playing music, and making it a part of his life. He explained what playing the piano and creating music means to him and does for him, and why he wants it to continue to be part of his life, even if he isn’t pursuing it as a career path.

“It’s a sort of meditative experience for me, especially when I’m improvising and composing,” he said. “It’s a way to get away from work and other stuff and just focus on the piano. That’s, I guess, the main function.

“And also,” he added, “It’s fun.”