THECOMPASSCONCERTS

Dan DiPaolo

Musician and educator Dan DiPaolo began formal study of the piano at age 8, French horn at 9, and guitar at age 13. His obsession with music was sealed once his guitar teacher introduced him to chords, scales, and approaches to creating and organizing improvisations, unlocking his ears and imagination.

This curiosity lead him to the academic world, where his graduate work focused on tonal theory, popular music (especially Steely Dan, Brad Mehldau, and Frank Zappa), and the history of theory.

From 2010-2018, Dan taught music theory, ear training, and fundamentals at NYU's Steinhardt School. He also taught Music Humanities at Columbia University, History of Rock and Rap at Montclair State University, and Aural Skills at the Eastman School of Music.

Dan holds advanced degrees in historical musicology and music theory from King's College London and Columbia University. He is a piano teacher and freelance pianist in Los Angeles, where he lives with his wife, daughter, and cat.

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Shinichiro Inaji

Shin loves piano and has been learning on his own since he was a child, and finally started long-sought piano lessons under teacher and friend Louis Yungling since 2018. Piano and music are a big part of the joy of his life and he is very curious and appreciative to learn the connection of mind and body through piano playing. Currently he works as a freelance illustrator/animator and Licensed Massage Therapist in Portland Oregon where he lives with his husband Walter and Shiba-inu Yuki.

Shin is very happy to be a part of the COMPASS Concerts as a performer, an audience and co-founder with Mari and Louis through which he has been able to meet and interact with wonderful friends and musicians.

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Birce Polat

Born in 1989 in the idyllic province Balikesir, Turkey, Birce began to play the piano at the age of 5. She was accepted to the State Conservatoire of Istanbul University at 7 and was selected a mere three years later as the student ambassador to perform live on visual media across the country. She continued with her high school education at the respected Uskudar American Academy in Istanbul for five years.

She then advanced her piano education in Germany at the Lübeck Academy of Music with Pianist David Meier and Professor Konstanze Eickhorst. Along with Gulnare Shekinskaya – who introduced her the Russian Technical Regimen, her most important guide, the great pedagogue Vassilia Efstathiadou – who influenced several generations of musicians – is a lifelong mentor to Polat.

At just 21 she gave her first celebrated performance at Bosch Young Artists Festival, Istanbul. Also a chamber musician, she has performed together with her cellist friends’ circle, especially works of Turkish composers.

Always a committed pupil in her heart, she found time to pursue masterclass events during long Mediterranean summers such as the Gumusluk Classical Music Festival Academy in Bodrum, Turkey – working with State Artist Pianist Gulsin Onay. This prestigious festival invited Birce Polat to perform live & online for them during tough times in 2020 – for classical music lovers at home.

Birce Polat is a multi-faceted artist. Her profound devotion to her artistic career is mirrored in her intellectual questioning and evergreen curiosity.

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Louis Yungling

Hello, my name is Louis Yungling and I'm a co-founder of COMPASS Concerts. I'm also a pianist and piano teacher.

Meditation, mindfulness and awareness exercises are an integral part of my teaching and practice. Musicians benefit greatly from these practices by being able to fine tune their focus and get more out of their practice as well as increase their responsiveness to sound and be more present and confident in performance.

I created COMPASS concerts to extend these practices to audiences and give everyone a moment to pause and go inward. We do this by sharing a brief contemplation exercise before every concert. In this way we practice being aware of one another and give ourselves a chance to feel and appreciate our unique contribution.

Preparing our minds and bodies to receive and make music allows us to be more receptive to the beauty and generosity that goes into a musical performance. And practicing this type of mindful preparation regularly can help us open our hearts more to the experiences of our day to day lives.

I am thrilled to share this journey with you and the very talented, generous artists who perform here. Thank you to all my musician friends for sharing your gifts and creating beautiful programs of music for our COMPASS community. And thank you to all who come and partake in these heart-warming community concerts.

I currently live and teach piano in Valencia, Spain. My teaching website: Yungling Piano Studio.

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