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Teen prodigy works her piano magic to wow crowds in packed theatre

Nanjala Antonia Musundi
The theatre, packed to the rafters, promised a beautiful night. The lights went off. Rainbow-like stage lights came on. The emcee called out her name. Nanjala Antonia, wearing a pink Ankara top and pants, came on stage and bowed.
She then walked to what we later learnt is the love of her life — the piano. She held her breath, placed her fingers on the keys and the aura in the theatre changed. “Pour Le Piano” prelude, by Claude Debussy, a French composer, was befitting for a gala concert for International Women’s Day held at the Kenya National Theatre (KNT) last Friday. It felt like listening to one of the Charlie Chaplin's instrumentals of his comical movies — breathtaking!
PROMISING PIANIST
At just 17 years old, Nanjala, christened Nanji, must be Kenya’s most promising pianist. She was introduced to the piano when she was five by her parents.
Nanjala Antonia Musundi (in pink outfit) poses
Nanjala Antonia Musundi (in pink outfit) poses for a photo with the full orchestra band before a concert at the Kenya National Theatre on March 7, 2020. PHOTO | FRANCIS NDERITU | NATION MEDIA GROUP
“Every time I play the piano, it feels like an adventure. It is surreal to master the music after a couple of days and wonder if the composer would like your interpretation of their work. In the humdrum and chaos of things, I find an escape into beauty and wonder,’’ Nanji says.
She has won many awards. She was recognised as the highest of the ‘high scorers’ during the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) high scorers’ concert held at KNT earlier in the year.
She also bagged an award in the intermediate category of the Young Musician’s Competition at Kenton College, which is the highest competition for instrumentalists in the country.
TALENT SHOW
It was the first time a pianist had won the event. Young Nanjala is also the winner of the Kenya Music Festival piano category 2016 to 2018, only coming second last year when she played at an advanced level.
In 2018, she was chosen to represent Kenya and Africa in the talent shows at the Global Round in Barcelona and at the Tournament of Champions at Yale University.
Nanjala Antonia Musundi poses for a photo next
Nanjala Antonia Musundi poses for a photo next to a Grand Piano before an orchestra concert held the Kenya National Theatre on March 7, 2020.PHOTO | FRANCIS NDERITU | NATION MEDIA GROUP
When her parents, Cordy and Joel Musundi introduced her to the piano, it was on the basis of what people said about the benefits of learning a musical instrument. They did not know if she would like it: “Many people actually start their kids up at three years old, but we started at an age when she could count and she could read, so that when she was told, clap three rounds, or this note is a d or g, she could understand.’’
EXCITEMENT
Nanjala took to it like a fish to water, playing her first instrument when she turned five. She would wake up at 5.45 am and spend at least half an hour playing the piano before she went to school.
“When I was first introduced to the piano, I already had a keyboard that my mum got me. At the beginning, the excitement was about owning a keyboard than playing it,’’ she says.
“Later, when I first started learning it, I liked it. Then it started getting difficult, so difficult, I would cry.”
Looking back, Nanji is grateful to have had very good music teachers, notably, Winnie Mureithi, whom she has worked with since she was nine.

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