European Commission Interpreters Share Secrets of Mastery with Master’s Degree Students of the Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation

The new academic year at the Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation started with a unique master class: our Master’s degree students had an opportunity to learn from Paolo Torrigiani, an interpreter of the DG Interpretation of the European Commission who also heads the Italian Interpreting Unit. Guided by a top-class professional, the first and second year students were immersed in an intensive interpretation course for five full days.
The visit of Paolo Torrigiani was especially important for the first year students: they had to pass an aptitude test, in which their knowledge and skills were assessed not only by the School trainers but also by the expert from Brussels. Having listened to our freshmen, Paolo marked out strong and weak points of each student and gave valuable advice on improving interpretation skills, presentation of the interpretation and, which is especially important for beginners, an ability to cope with anxiety and stress.
After the test, our second year students also joined the classes. Paolo Torrigiani explained to the guys how to make a team consisting of interpreters with different levels of competence, and stressed the importance of joint training sessions. The second year students shared their impressions and knowledge that they got during the first year of their studies. They also showed their skills in both consecutive and simultaneous interpreting, and the first year students could check the work of their colleagues. This format allowed the guys to interact with each other and achieve positive results.
A week of classes with Paolo Torrigiani was intensive and fruitful. The first year students got answers to the questions they are deeply concerned with: how to take notes, analyze speeches and avoid typical mistakes. Paolo not only shared theoretical knowledge but also showed in practice how to do consecutive interpretation properly. He also demonstrated his system of symbols for note taking and shared useful resources and techniques for independent work of students.
According to Paolo, an interpreter must constantly work on him-/herself as, for example, athletes work every day, because only constancy in training will help achieve success. And it is necessary to train not only memory: an interpreter must learn how to analyze the text and, while listening to the words, convey the idea.
Paolo Torrigiani inspired our MA students with his skill and made them love their future profession even more. Paolo gladly helped students, answered questions and simply shared his life experience. The international-level professional taught future interpreters a lot during these five days, became an excellent example and gave practical guidelines to everyone.