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FEATURES Chinnawat Themkumkwun Devoted Teacher, Inspiring Perfomer TEXT BY IVAN LIM Aug 10 2024 
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I choose a programme that would make my audience want to come to my concert again..... I would like to create a good impression. I aim to make the classical guitar more popular. I can play anything serious or listen to any kind of music easily. The most important thing is to serve I first came across the name, Chinnawat Themkumkwun, last year – in a YouTube video posted more than a decade ago. The Thai guitarist, then a schoolboy, was playing the duet, Cancion (Quinta Campoma) by Irina Kircher and Alfonso Montes:
I found out to my amusement a day later that Chinnawat and his duo partner, Ohm Worrapat Yansupap, grew up to become the Juggajee Guitar Duo. And here they are, playing the same piece: COACHING TALENT Then earlier this year, I was with two Malaysian guitarists when one of them said he was an online student of Chinnawat. When I finally met Chinnawat in person at the 4th SEA Guitar Festival and Performance Awards held in Bangkok in June, he was with a teenage student who was competing for the Young Artist Award. More than just being there for moral support, Chinnawat was cheerleader, coach, cameraman and concierge to his young charge. He seemed to enjoy every moment of it and appeared very proud of his student, and when the teenager finally won the top prize, he celebrated as if he had won the title himself. The devotion was outstanding and very much aligned to his attitude towards teaching. “I enjoy everything about teaching the guitar. For me, it’s not difficult to be a teacher but being an outstanding teacher is very difficult,” explains Chinnawat. “I appreciate every single moment during the class. All my students come to me with a lot of expectations to play better. I will try my best to fulfil that dream of theirs.” For that to happen, he does his best to be inspiring to his students during lessons, to inspire them to become better players. “The student must be happy and enjoy the lesson with a beautiful attitude,” says Chinnawat. Here is the student he was with when I met him in Bangkok: Chinnnawat's student Pimlapat Nilasewi
His students have also taken part and done well at international competitions, like this one who was runner-up in the Junior Division of the Guitar Foundation of America’s International Youth Competition in California this year: And here’s the winner of the High School Division at the Houston Classical Guitar Festival and Competition 2024. His love for teaching has helped his students attain an outstanding level of performance, and for Chinnawat, the biggest challenge for him as a teacher is to balance his work between teaching and performing as he feels he needs to maintain a high standard as a performer. “For me, the most difficult thing is to balance between being a good performer and a good teacher. Maintaining the performing skills is also very challenging. This is the reason I can’t accept too many students as I believe that quality is more important than quantity,” he elaborates. Chinnawat, who graduated from the College of Music at Mahidol University in Thailand with a degree in classical guitar performance and completed his postgraduate studies, also in classical guitar performance, at the Universität Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria, was introduced to the guitar when he was in primary school. “I touched the guitar for the first time when I was 11 or 12 years old during music class in primary school. It was in a class with 30 students and 30 guitars, with one teacher,” says Chinnawat, who is now 30. He recalls playing single notes on open strings during that time. “I didn’t have any impression about the instrument but I liked to listen to music, which, at that time, was Thai pop music with bands and singers. I was focused on my studies then because that was what my parents wanted me to be,” he says. But three years later, and half a lifetime ago when he was 15, he decided he wanted to become a professional guitarist. “I spent many hours with the guitar. However, my parents tried to take me away from the guitar and tried to convince me to attend a famous high school in Thailand (that specialised in science). “In the end, I made my own decision and I’m very happy with it,” says Chinnawat, who is the only musician in his family. His father is a gardener and his mother is a housewife. He has two sisters – one is a religious teacher and the other a dentist. His parents eventually supported his decision and he is grateful for it. Chinnawat at 15
Today, despite his teaching commitments and running a business – Chinguitars – selling guitar accessories, Chinnawat still makes sure he practises – he spends four to six hours a day doing that. “I don’t have to say why practising is important other than to say that I can’t imagine how I can play well without practising,” says Chinnawat, who would spend 10 to 12 hours practising when he was a student. Now, there is no fixed routine for practising but he is very focused when preparing for a performance. “I just practise a lot and practise what is in front of me,” he explains. He puts in the hours to make sure he is at his best for a performance. “No exceptions, no excuses – the standard of performance on stage has to be excellent,” he adds. For his performances, Chinnawat usually picks a programme according to the audience he will be playing for. “I choose a programme that would make my audience want to come to my concert again,” says Chinnawat. “I would like to create a good impression. I aim to make the classical guitar more popular. I can play anything serious or listen to any kind of music easily. The most important thing is to serve the listener.” He likes to provide a mix of contrasting moods in his performances. “My repertoire is extremely varied: Dramatic, poetic, exciting, funny, playful, sentimental, even aggressive – I don’t want my audience to get bored,” he says. One piece you’ll hear him playing very often is Julia Florida by Agustin Barrios Mangore. “I’ve played it several times in concert and every single time when I tried a new guitar. Here he is, playing that well-loved piece: Chinnawat has also included works from Thai composers in his repertoire. “Recently, I have performed a lot of traditional Thai music,” he says. Here’s one performance: Chinnawat says he loved his time in Salzburg, adding that being Asian was no disadvantage during his time in Europe. “We are all equal,” he says, and notes that there are many excellent classical guitarists coming out of Asia. “We have so many great players now. The next step is not only to make good players but to create a career for them as performing guitarists,” says Chinnawat, who feels it is difficult to make a living in Asia solely as a performer. But he is happy with his life as a guitarist. And he keeps himself fit to make sure he can continue playing the guitar for as long as possible. 
KEEPING FIT
“Exercise is very important,” explains Chinnawat. “You will find it important when your body gets weak and in pain. You will find it important when your body becomes overweight. You will find it important when you can’t practise for a long period. The body will tell you.” But he is not waiting for his body to tell anything, which is why he spends a considerable amount of time at the gym to keep himself in shape. Because he cannot think of being anything else besides being a guitarist. “Maybe a guitar maker,” he finally concedes. And if he were a guitar luthier, he would probably be making double-top guitars in the style of Dammann. “I love double-top guitars!” he exclaims. “If there is a name that comes to mind when I think of guitar makers, it would be Dammann. Dammann guitars have everything a good guitar should have. The only problem is, I still have not had the chance to get my hands on a Dammann guitar from the makers – Matthias and his son, Julian.” Chinnawat playing a Dammann guitar
He is already halfway into the 10-year wait for the guitar he ordered in 2019. But he wishes he could have the guitar earlier. “I hope the maker will have an opportunity to read this interview and make the guitar more quickly for me.” So Matthias or Julian, if you are reading this, thank you in advance. It would go a long way in helping this devoted teacher and dedicated performer inspire his students and audiences. |
