Arlene was an amazing person and a wonderful teacher, and I will forever be grateful to have had the opportunity to both know her as a person and learn piano with her. I always looked forward to lessons with Arlene, and her warm-heartedness and encouragement never failed to put a smile on my face. She critiqued, but never criticised, and did so in a way that made me want to practice more to do better the next time.
I cannot think of a time when Arlene seemed annoyed at any of her students, even in exasperating situations. Once, at the annual Piano Extravaganza duet concert, my duet partner and I decided to have a last minute practice session before we performed. However, we lost track of time and missed our performance. I’m sure Arlene wasn’t pleased, but she never got mad at us, and let us perform, even if it meant messing up the order of the program.
Arlene cared about what her students did beyond the piano—whenever I told her about my internships, computer science classes or plans to study abroad, she seemed so excited, happy and proud. I have so many fond memories when I think of Arlene: her dinners at Yan’s at the end of the academic year or after a masterclass, her enthusiasm at Friday piano workshops and the Jacquie Lawson e-cards she would send. She was a wonderful person, and I will miss her dearly.
Liyaan Maskati ’21