Tickling the Ivories 1,300 Student Pianists
from Nassau Schools to Perform at C.W. Post
More than 1,300 young pianists from Nassau County will gather for what
is being called the largest piano festival in New York state on May 18,
19 and 20, 1999 at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University in Brookville,
New York.
The pianists are students in grades 4 through 12 from about 30 public,
private and parochial schools in Nassau County, including Locust Valley,
Great Neck, Manhasset, Herricks and Friends Academy. New York state-certified
judges from as far away as Florida will evaluate the pianists on their
talent and skill-level, according to standards set by the New York State
School Music Association (NYSSMA) and the National Association of Music
Educators (MENC).
This is the third year that the C.W. Post Campus has organized the "C.W.
Post/NYSSMA Spring Piano Evaluation Festival." More than 20 music
rooms on the college campus will be used over the three-day period, from
4:30 to 9:30 p.m. daily.
"Many music educators are calling this the state's, if not the
nation's, largest gathering of pianists for one single event," according
to Joseph R. Sugar, director of music education at C.W. Post and chairman
of the Piano Evaluation Festival. Professor Sugar, a resident of Wantagh,
NY, is past president of the Nassau Music Educators Association, the New
York State School Music Association, the New York State Council of Administrators
of Music Education, and the Eastern Division of the Music Educator National
Conference.
Nassau County music teachers will use the results of the assessments
to determine student skill levels, to set individual study and performance
goals and to help students improve technique and instruction.
According to Professor Sugar, "Ideally, the results of the assessment
are placed in a permanent performance portfolio to serve as a tangible
record of a student's musical progress throughout his or her entire school
career." He added, "This way the student's future music teachers
can refer to the records and adapt an instructional program that is in
keeping with the student's skill level."
For more information call the C.W. Post Music Department at
(516) 299-2474 or 3014.
For more information call the C.W. Post Public
Relations Office at (516) 299-2333 or e-mail pr@cwpost.liu.edu
or send mail to: Long Island University, C.W. Post Campus, 720 Northern
Blvd., Brookville, New York 11548-1300.
