Cowley Piano Studio Recital - Press Release..

I should have posted this earlier and I should have a digital record of this event on my personal blog. They played so well and it was such a nice afternoon.

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April 18, 2011

Students shine during Piano Studio Recital, Art Majors Show

Having worked hard in preparation of the Piano Studio Recital held Sunday in the Robert Brown Theatre, eight Cowley College students played with clear musical intent and managed to convey the character of the pieces they performed.

For a few of the students, this was their first piano recital.

“I have one word for all of the performers – Bravo,” Dr. Gloria Tham, piano instructor said. “I am very proud of them.”

Dr. Tham said the students benefited from having several piano lessons on the Steinway concert grand, learning to listen critically to the sounds they were producing and adjusting to the acoustics in the theater. They also had practice performances to overcome stage fright and to learn coping strategies for performing to go along with their performance at Southwestern College for the music faculty and music majors on April 8.

“Their hard work, diligence and patience paid off at the recital,” Dr. Tham said.

The recital featured different composers ranging from Bach, Beethoven to Bartok, spanning the different periods in music history. Cowley students were joined by Danielle Anderson of Wellington High School, the recipient for the Piano Activity Scholarship for 2011-2012.

The recital featured performances by the following Cowley College students: Will Austin, Anne Bloyer, Aaron Brooks, Melisa Coberley, Hanah Dillard, Valerie Monteith, Asa Muntz, and Kelley Reynolds.
Along with the Piano Studio Recital, the Art Majors Show held an opening reception Sunday afternoon inside the Earle N. Wright Community Room.

This year’s Art Majors Show is an exhibit of artwork created by this year’s graduating sophomores during their time at Cowley.  On display are various art media created in drawing, painting, design ceramics and sculpture classes.

A reception was held in the Earle N. Wright Community Room following the Piano Studio Recital.

“It was such a nice afternoon to enjoy two art forms and a reception where people could mingle,” Dr. Tham said. 

Work done as part of the Art Majors Show will be displayed through May 9.  The following sophomores have works displayed in the show: Michael Bowling, Maribel Ramirez, Jessica Vega, Caitlin Bowman, Talia Bowman-Bekemeyer, and Zane May.

Cowley Recital Press Review - April 5, 2011

 Dr. Tham Performs Powerful Recital

Featuring music by Beethoven, Gottschalk and Tcherepnin, Cowley College piano instructor, Dr. Gloria Tham, gave an impressive performance during her piano recital Tuesday night in the Robert Brown Theatre.

Dr. Tham also played several transcriptions, namely Bach’s Chorale “Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme” by Wilhelm Kempff, and two Chinese pieces by Chen Peixun and Chu Wanghua.

 The pieces selected were to display both a variety of techniques and range of emotion.

“Of all the pieces, the Beethoven “Pathetique” Sonata was the most emotionally challenging to be able to express and convey the “pathos” he intended,” Dr. Tham said. “The middle movement of that sonata has such a longing and ends with great resolve. There’s only one word to describe it – sublime.”

Dr. Tham considered Gottschalk’s Souvenir de Porto Rico to be technically the most difficult because she has to hold her maximum hand span and play loudly for an extended period of time.
The recital was filled with intensity and excitement.

“Last night was a special evening for me in my performance experience and I’m so glad to be able to share that with many of my piano students,” Dr. Tham said.

Dr. Tham will have three other performances in April. On Sunday, she will perform at First United Methodist Church in Ponca City, OK at 2 p.m. Dr. Tham will be joined by Rebecca Tast, cellist, to perform a movement from Schumann’s Fantasy Pieces, op. 73. A graduate of the University of Kansas, Tast is the orchestra director for the Arkansas City School District. She has held the position for three years and was recently named the Young Teacher of the Year by the Kansas American String Teachers Association.

On April 21, she will perform a Master Class and Recital at Central Christian College in McPherson at 7:30 p.m. Her final performance in April will take place April 29 at College Avenue United Methodist Church in Manhattan, KS at 7 p.m.

All performances are free and open to the public.

College Music Society Great Plains Chapter Meeting .. The Fun Stuff

I presented my paper entitled "Jasmine Flower in Three Different Lights" at the College Music Society Great Plains Chapter Meeting in Liberty MO. Unlike the previous week's trip to Kansas City, I brought my whole brain with me and had regained my sense of direction. I did not get lost and found William Jewell College easily.

I enjoyed the complimentary concert at the Music Hall immensely. The Prague Philharmonic is a great orchestra. The amazing feat performed by the substitute pianist at the last minute, was just awesome. We couldn't believe that he had not practiced and did not find out that he would be performing Dvorak's 2nd Piano Concerto until 5:30pm that day. There were hardly any mistakes.. maybe one or two notes that were a tad blurred. The audience gave him the applause he deserved and he played a Chopin Mazurka as an encore. However, the most amusing person was the timpanist. I have never seen a more enthusiatic performer, following and gesturing the conductor's every cue with his head (whom, by the way, had a dyed red mohawk). I could hear suppressed giggles in the audience. We knew when the timpani was about to appear since he flashes the biggest smile as his entrance approaches and he plays with such flair, no one would have missed him.

As far as my presentation went, I expected something to go wrong and yes, something did. My CD wouldn't play and I had to think very quickly. I wasn't prepared to play the excerpts without the approval of Dr. Trechak, my piano professor and certainly didn't want to read open score for the opera excerpt. The tech. had to plug in my laptop and play it from there. It was the first time that I walked on stage to a podium instead of the piano. Although I have no qualms about performing, I found out that I was nervous having to present a paper. I broke the ice by giving the background of my research and what it meant to me. Somehow you can always endear an audience when you talk to them about childhood. Yes, I learned the Chinese folksong "Morlihua" my first day at Chinese class when I was pretty young then. The presentation went nicely and I had to face the questions. I think I managed to give satisfactory answers to the ones posed.

I am certain I was the youngest participant and presenter at that conference. It gave me a chance to see what a musicology conference is like. I received many compliments about my paper and left calling cards with a few people. They are going to take my project back to their classes. I met someone from Italy who has the same interest in my topic. That is what I had hoped would happen so I believe I would be in contact with this person.