Sisters pianist masters Bach, Beethoven

"Bach would have been delighted," Cammi Benson's piano judge wrote.

The comment came on her evaluation at the National Piano Guild competition, July 24, at Long Beach, California. (See "Sisters pianist called 'exceptional,' The Nugget, August 6, page 6.)

Cammi, 10, did not compete against other people, but she did face intense pressure.

She performed in a small room with no parents or teachers, and played in front of just one judge for 45 minutes.

Her selection was 10 songs by Johann Sebastian Bach, called the Bach Repertoire. She played all from memory, in two octave scales and with major/minor chord progressions.

Cammi was the youngest to play the difficult Bach Repertoire.

She scored 23 out of a possible 24 points, earning her a Superior Plus rating, the highest possible rating a player can achieve. This is the third year she has achieved that ranking.

The judge evaluated her playing for accuracy, continuity, phrasing, pedaling, dynamics, rhythm, tempo, interpretation, style and technique.

Before the competition, Cammi practiced every day from one to two hours, in addition to weekly piano lessons from Donna Moyer in Sisters.

Cammi has a keyboard with the same playing requirements as a standard piano. She loves fast songs, with Beethoven her favorite.

Julie Benson, her mother, says one reason for her success is the absence of TV in their home.

"She has more free time at night," she said.

Cammi started the piano when she was six, and quickly showed aptitude and determination. She was the first among a group of first graders to complete a piano instruction book, and soon began lessons.

She is now entering the fifth grade at Sisters Middle School, and has won a spot in the competitive Jazz Band led by Jodi Henderson.

Cammi has many talents besides the piano. She likes science in school and is in the Talented and Gifted Program. She skis, swims and plays soccer, and recently won several riding awards with her horse "Stormy."

Julie says her daughter's ability to memorize comes in handy while performing complicated routines with her horse. So handy, that she won grand champion in Dressage at the Deschutes County Fair.

"When she isn't on the piano, she's out with her best friend Stormy," Julie said. Stormy is a rescue horse, about 22 years old.

While it is early to think about a career, Cammi wants to combine her love of animals and music, by studying to be a veterinarian and continuing her love for the piano.

Julie and her husband, Benny, started an engineering company in Sisters six months ago. The firm, Energyneering Solutions, designs and constructs small power plants run on renewable resources. The family moved here two years ago from Southern California.