Friday, May 10, 2024
Liz Derstine (MM ’25) is a pianist with many passions.
“I tried writing music as a pop artist. I started a running club. I coached high school students. I was a substitute teacher. I’ve never been just one thing, and that’s okay.”
For years, Liz, a former high school and college runner, had difficulty navigating her relationship with the sport, carrying shame around what others might say about her level of commitment to her art.
“If I wanted to be a serious musician, I should only focus on music.”
Liz Derstine
She found that her faculty mentors and peers at Longy gave her freedom to balance all her interests without judgment—something she never felt possible before.
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The encouragement she received at Longy was restorative, granting Liz the flexibility to finally pursue her passions with equal devotion. She felt empowered to make a lifelong dream come true in 2020: through-hiking the 2,193-mile Appalachian Trail.
“It was always something where I said, ‘Oh, maybe I’ll do that one day.’”
That summer, she attempted the long trek and succeeded, setting the fastest known time for women in the northbound direction: 51 days.
Now that Liz feels as free to set running records as she does to compose new pieces, she can finally appreciate how her two worlds complement, rather than contradict, each other.
“There’s always been this duality of the athletic and the music sides, and whenever I try to separate them, I always feel a little dissatisfied.”
Although she always enjoys her time in nature, after a period of solitude with plenty of time to ruminate, Liz finds herself craving the emotional release of music.
“My background with pop music, running, and outdoor pursuits were seen as assets that I was bringing to the table, not things that would detract from music.” – Liz Derstine
“Sometimes, I’ll come up with little melodies in my head while I’m out hiking. Step after step, you have a rhythm and a groove going, and it’s almost hard not to start bopping around. I’ll have all these things or feelings in my head, and I need some kind of outlet to let that out.”
While she’s had plenty of athletic achievements—additional fastest-known times on the Long Trail in Vermont, the Pinhoti Trail through Alabama and Georgia, and Via Alpina in Switzerland, as well as a fourth-place ultramarathon finish and qualifying 13 times for the Boston Marathon —her musical side always lures her back to the piano.
“Even though I’m chasing these big goals, it does start to make me feel almost bored in the sense that I’m walking all day, then eating and sleeping. I’m seeing all these beautiful things, but it starts to feel a bit monotonous. I start to have this longing for music.”
Similarly, when she is back at Longy practicing, running offers a respite when striving for musical excellence becomes overwhelming.
“Of course, I want to devote as much time and energy as I can to music, but to do it well, I have to take care of myself.”
Liz has embraced running as her preferred form of self-care. When she is stressed, lacing up her sneakers allows her to decompress and recalibrate. It resets her creative process, inspiring her to look at her music with fresh eyes when she returns.
“Getting out of my head a little bit helps and then ultimately informs what I’m creating. When I make that time to be outside, I find that’s when some of my best ideas come to me.”
“There’s always been this duality of the athletic and the music sides, and whenever I try to separate them, I always feel a little dissatisfied.” – Liz Derstine
Liz then returns to making music, completing a cycle in which her two loves continue to feed and nurture each other.
“Whether I’m in the ultimate creative world or very focused on hiking all day, I find myself longing for the other thing.”
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The conservatory proved to be the perfect fit for a multifaceted student, helping her feel secure in all her various identities.
“My background with pop music, running, and outdoor pursuits were seen as assets that I was bringing to the table, not things that would detract from music.”
Liz felt called to pursue her love of classical music at Longy after five years recording and playing music with Grammy Award-winning artist RAC and under her solo moniker, Pink Feathers, not knowing how much she’d redefine herself as a person and a musician.
“Longy really embraces people coming from unique backgrounds who aren’t necessarily following a traditional path.”
Liz intends to capitalize on this in the fall semester, taking elective courses in new subject areas, working with her peers, and celebrating the myriad passions that make her who she is.
“I want to make the most of my time. I’m going to sign up and do as many things as I can, absorb as much as possible, and collaborate with as many people as possible.”