NATCHITOCHES – The Dear School of Creative and Performing Arts at Northwestern State University will host the Louisiana Music Teachers Association (LMTA) Piano Ensemble Festival on Saturday, October 10-11 in Magale Recital Hall. The festival will feature multiple grand pianos on the Magale stage.
The LMTA Piano Ensemble Festival is a multi-piano ensemble held during the LMTA State Conference. It is a two-day event comprised of rehearsals, coaching, and group activities all culminating in a large ensemble concert.
“The Piano Ensemble Festival is rewarding in that students develop musical connections with their peers,” said the festival’s founder and chair Megan Reilly Shannon. “They get to experience the thrill of ensemble playing while learning to follow a conductor and gaining valuable audition, rehearsal and concert experience. And they get to feel a sense of accomplishment when the final chord is played and all is said and done. If you have ever performed music and have felt that connection with your fellow performers, you know what I am talking about. This feeling, to me, is more important than any competition.”
On Saturday, Oct. 10, there will be a concert at 6:30 p.m. featuring recitals by participating students, conducted by NSU Director of Choral Activities Dr. Shane Thomas. At 7:30 p.m., NSU Associate Professor of Music – Collaborative Piano Chialing Hsieh will perform a Festival Artist Recital with fellow LMTA teachers and students. The concert will feature works by Holst, Saint-Saens, Ravel and Rachmaninoff.