Get to know Charlie better with answers to frequently asked questions. If you have other questions that you'd like to submit, join the Charlie Albright Fan Page on Facebook and post them.

Please tell us a bit about your family and hometown. Where are you from? Do you have siblings?
I was born in Washington State and grew up in the small town of Centralia, WA since I was about one year old. Before heading off to college, I lived with my younger sister, Lillian, and my parents Hyesoo and Jeff.

How old were you when you started the piano?
I started playing the piano when I was three and half years old. We had an old upright piano in the house, and I am told that I climbed up on the piano and started playing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" by myself. ...Of course, I don't personally remember.

Who taught you as a child?
My mom started teaching me when I was three and a half for a short time. I learned how to play from several different teachers, and actually played by ear entirely until I started taking from Nancy Adsit, when I was about 7 years old.

What kinds of things did you play by ear?
I played a little bit of everything, I guess. I always loved playing songs from Disney movies, and also playing rock and roll, like "Great Balls of Fire." Hahaha...

What was it like performing as a young child?
It was a lot of fun. I remember performing a lot...starting from age four.

You met Nancy Adsit when you were seven. Tell us about her.
Mrs. Adsit introduced me to classical music. She taught me how to read music, and both of the Adsits became just like grandparents to me. They're both wonderful.

Now as for practicing. How much do you practice every day?
Hahaha...not enough! I try to get in about two hours of practice per day, but that rarely happens. I usually only get somewhere between 0 and 1.5 hours per day.

You're the first classical pianist in the 5-year Harvard/New England Conservatory B.A./M.M. Joint Program. Can you tell us about this program?
The program is really neat, because I can go to both an academic and a music school at the same time. I am a full-time student at Harvard, majoring in economics and doing my pre-medical requirements. I'll graduate at the end of my fourth (senior) year, in May of 2011. I'm also simultaneously starting my Masters of Music degree in Piano Performance. So after I graduate from Harvard, I'll go to NEC full-time for one more year before I graduate from there.

During the first four years, I live at Harvard and go to NEC for weekly lessons. I am taking some classes at Harvard, however, that transfer to NEC for my masters. During my fifth year (2011-2012), I'll be taking classes only at NEC to finish it up.

You do a considerable amount of performing year-round. Can you talk to us about that, and about how you do that while going to school full-time?
I guess I am gone quite a bit from school. Hahaha...This past semester (Fall, 2009) from September through November, I had 11 performances in 6 cities in 2 countries...and managed to catch the swine flu for almost a week as well. It was quite an experience, but a whole lot of fun. It's rough, though, because I miss a considerable amount of school as a result. Between this past October and November, I think I was gone for 4 out of 8 weeks, due to being sick, traveling, and concerts.

It is a bit rough to miss so much school, because I've got to keep up with everything while I'm gone...which means lots of studying in airport restaurants, in airplanes, and in hotels. Hahaha...keeping up with problem sets, papers, and exams while practicing and performing is a challenge, but is very exciting!

Age:
22

Hometown:
Centralia, WA

Management:
Young Concerts Artists, Inc.

Education:
Centralia College,
Associate of Science in General Science, 2007

Harvard College
Bachelors of Arts in Economics with Minor in Music, 2011

New England Conservatory of Music
Masters of Music in Piano Performance, 2012

Note: Charlie was the first classical pianist to be in the 5-year B.A./M.M. Harvard/New England Conservatory Joint Program

Primary Teachers:
Wha-Kyung Byun (2007-Present)
Nancy Adsit (1995-2007)