VKGoeswild is the stage name of Ukrainian pianist Viktoriya Yermolyeva. Viktoriya was born in Kyiv, and when she was in kindergarten, her parents were given the fantastic news that she had perfect pitch and a true musical talent. Luckily for Viktoriya, her parents took this news seriously and enrolled her in a music school so she could train as a classical pianist.
About Viktoriya Yermolyeva
Over the years that followed, Viktoriya competed in lots of competitions as well as playing concerts and continuing her studies. She won many of the competitions she entered including, “Filippo Trevisan” International for Piano Interpretation, the 35th International Competition” Vincenzo Bellini” and the 4th Sigismund Thalberg International Piano Prize. However, as you can imagine, this is a lot of pressure for a young girl to have to deal with.
By 2007 Viktoriya was thinking about her life and her connection to her music. She had won numerous competitions beating older and more experienced pianists. She had played in some of the most prestigious concert halls in Europe including, Ukraine, Germany and Holland. She had received specialised teaching from some of the leading figures in classical music today and been awarded scholarships. However, the more she played classical piano, the more she felt drawn to a different type of music entirely – rock music.
To give herself an outlet featuring music she loved while she was still performing as a classical pianist, Viktoriya set up a YouTube channel. She performed her own arrangements of classic tracks from the worlds of Rock and Metal. She played not as Viktoriya Yermolyeva but using her rock chick name, VKGoesWild. She describes rock music as the soundtrack to her inner reality.
Since that day, she has recorded hundreds of unique arrangements of rock songs on her channel. Some highlights include Radiohead’s Karma Police, Toxicity by System of a Down, Sympathy For The Devil by The Rolling Stones and Aerosmith’s Crazy. Her channel now has more than 730,000 subscribers, all waiting eagerly for her to post her next piece. After 14 years, many channels would lose their popularity, but VKGoesWild goes from strength to strength.
Piano Tutorials
Viktoriya is not content just with sharing her music on YouTube though. She publishes the sheet music of her arrangements so that fans who want to give it a try themselves can buy it. They are available on flowkey, musicnotes.com and by contacting her directly. She doesn’t charge a fixed price meaning everyone who wants to gets to enjoy playing her music.
If nothing gives you more of a thrill than seeing music live, VKGoesWild has toured but had to stop due to Covid. Until the world returns to normal, check out her amazing music here and get your head banging!
If you would like to watch more from this awesome rock piano player, or find some of her piano tutorials, subscribe to her YouTube channel or follow her Facebook page.You can also visit her official website by clicking here.