STEINWAY Chronicle MIDWEST UPDATE

As seen in the Winter 2016 edition of the Steinway Chronicle

state-of-the art complex

Offering spectacular views of Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline, The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Center for the Musical Arts at Northwestern University is an architectural marvel. Home to the Bienen School of Music, the Z-shaped state-of-the art complex sits on the southeast corner of the Evanston campus. Working with the Steinway Piano Gallery of Chicago, Northwestern University purchased 14 new Steinway grand pianos: two Model D’s, two Model B’s and 10 Model O’s. James Giles, associate professor and coordinator of the piano program at the Bienen School, along with associate professors Sylvia Wang and Alan Chow traveled to the Steinway & Sons factory in New York to select the concert and studio pianos.

A reimagined learning environment

Students at the University of Michigan’s School of Music, Theatre & Dance are experiencing a totally reimagined learning environment in the E.V. Moore Building. Following a three-year, $29.5 million makeover, the Moore Building reopened in the fall with the William K. and Delores S. Brehm Pavilion, a new wing that added 34,000 square feet of magnificently renovated space. Longtime supporters of the U of M, the Brehms donated $1 million to equip the practice rooms, rehearsal halls and recital venues with 15 new grand pianos from the Steinway Piano Gallery of Detroit. The school now has more than 150 Steinway and Steinway–designed pianos.

All-Steinway hospitality

Ball State University in Muncie Ind., an All-Steinway School since 2002, recently played North American host to the preliminary round of auditions for the prestigious 2016 Hastings International Piano Concerto Competition. Twenty nine young pianists from the United States and Canada, ranging in age from 16-30, visited the campus for a chance to compete in England for monetary prizes and an opportunity to perform with the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra. To support this additional campus activity as well as increased enrollments, Ball State University invested in 14 new Steinway grand pianos: one Model D, four Model B’s and 9 Model O’s. Shown selecting in New York are Robert Palmer, Distinguished Professor of Piano, seated, and Robert A. Kvam, Dean of the College of Fine Arts at right. They are joined by Craig Gigax, owner of Steinway Piano Gallery Indianapolis, Steinway’s authorized dealer in Indianapolis.