Baylor's Summer Piano Institute To Be Held June 20-26

by Richard Veit

The Baylor University School of Music will host 36 high school piano students from Texas and Tennessee during its annual Summer Piano Institute June 20-26 in Roxy Grove Hall. The institute will feature a week-long series of recitals by Baylor faculty and students and high school participants.
The institute will open with a faculty recital at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, June 20. Brian Marks will play three pieces by Rachmaninoff, including Earl Wild's arrangement of the familiar Vocalise. Jane Abbott-Kirk and Mary Tidwell Rich will present Brahms's Variations on a Theme by Haydn, Bizet's Jeux d'enfants, and "Gracia" from Infante's Andalusian Dances. Baylor Organist-in-Residence Joyce Jones also will perform.
A second faculty recital will be held at 7:30 p.m. Monday, June 21, in Roxy Grove Hall. Kristian Klefstad will play music of Brahms and Chopin, Bradley Bolen will present the Sonata 2000 by Earl Wild (including "Toccata à la Ricky Martin") and organist Joel Bacon will perform music of Bach, Rheinberger and Messiaen.
On Tuesday, June 22, Baylor keyboard students will be featured in a 7:30 p.m. recital. Pianists taking part will be Christopher Johnson (Buxtehude), Sharon Wilber (Debussy), Heather Ward (Rachmaninoff) and John Elam, Gloria Mace and Jeanine Tipton (Grieg). Two organists - John Tidmore (Sowerby) and Joanna Li (Heiller) - also will perform.
Then, at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 24, there will be a recital by Baylor piano students Jacob Miller (Beethoven), Melissa Creider (Chopin), Amy Cockerham (Bolcom and Albéniz), Cary Cobb (Schubert and Nancy Hill Cobb) and David Anderson (Ravel).
The week-long series of recitals will come to a close with two events featuring many of the Institute's high school-age students at 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 25, and 10 a.m. Saturday, June 26.
The recitals are free and open to the public. For more information, call the keyboard division of the Baylor School of Music at (254) 710-1417.