Texas Tech University Keyboard Area

Commencement weekends are such a joyful time and this one was no different as we celebrated our most recent graduates. We're incredibly proud of each of them and their accomplishments and wish them only the best as they embark on their next adventures, whether here or elsewhere. Congratulations, graduates! Go do great things!

Yuwei Jiang (DMA, Performance)
Diego Lizaola Moyron (MM, Performance)
Yijie Liu (DMA, Performance)
Elias Manzo Hernandez (MM, Performance)
Hanwen Yan (DMA, Pedagogy)
Xinlin You (MM, Pedagogy)
Chenrui Zhang (DMA, Performance)

A few weeks late but what a joy it was to welcome Alessio Bax and Lucille Chung for a visit earlier this semester. Each provided our students with sensitive and responsive teaching during their masterclasses and the duo ended their stay in Lubbock with a stupendous 4-hand performance. This couple is truly a collaborative powerhouse and we can't wait to have them back!

Congratulations, Elias!

Congratulations to pianist Elías Manzo, the 2026 Texas Tech School of Music Concerto Competition winner! 🎵

Elías delivered an exceptional performance of Franz Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major. As the winner, he will have the honor of performing with the University Symphony Orchestra in the 2026-2027 academic year.

We'd also like to recognize the outstanding performances of each competitor, our wonderful judges, and the faculty and staff who make an event like this possible.

Wreck 'em!

TTU Piano faculty and students, past and present, recently participated in this year's MTNA Conference in Chicago! Along with Dr. Se-Hee Jin and Professor Emeritus Dr. William Westney, numerous graduates of our program were on site to present their work, offer conference support, and receive recognition for professional contributions. Congratulations to all!

Proud to share that the Texas Tech Piano Area made its mark at the CMS Central Chapter Conference in Denver! Dr. Se-Hee Jin presented a lecture recital, American Expressionism: Dynamism, Expressive Intensity, and Artistic Syntheses in Louis Karchin’s Piano Music, and doctoral students Hanwen Cao and Belle Yishu Teoh gave outstanding performances at the Showcase Concert - works by Marion Bauer and Vítězslava Kaprálová. Wonderful work by all! 🎶

This weekend we hosted our annual PianoFest, which brought to our campus over 60 (!) young pianists, many representing the West Texas music community. Participants enjoyed a Friday evening Piano Extravaganza concert and took part in festival and competitive events on Saturday, culminating with an afternoon winner's concert and masterclass. We thank our event coordinator, Dr. Se-Hee Jin, all of the student workers, independent teachers, parents, performers, competitors, TTU School of Music staff, and our sponsor Steinway & Sons for making PianoFest a huge success. See you all next year!

Our annual piano area concerto competition took place yesterday afternoon in Hemmle Recital Hall. Excellent performances were given by Artur Mikhlin, Lingxi Xu, Ana Diaz, Elias Manzo, and Diego Lizaola and their collaborators.

CONGRATULATIONS to runner-up, Artur, and our winner, Elias, both students of Prof. Daniel del Pino. Elias will now go on to compete with Liszt's Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major in TTU's school-wide competition later this semester for a chance to perform with the University Symphony Orchestra.

Much gratitude goes out to our adjudicators: Dr. Marina Bengoa, Dr. Adonis Gonzalez, and Maestro Lanfranco Marcelletti!

TTU's PianoFest 2026 is fast approaching! For more information or to sign up your students, visit the link below.

https://www.depts.ttu.edu/music/community/youth-programs/pianofest.php?fbclid=IwY2xjawPWCb1leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA80MDk5NjI2MjMwODU2MDkAAR7kEU0AJVvyDcrHlCYGcHFJhL774Wq3OxV9ax9VO4kslgDZvTEjJRuwY3LC_w_aem_CqiG3ncbKIMPIajzEu_oTw

Tune in THIS Friday at 11 am EST to hear Drs. Miri Park and Hideki Isoda talk about some new, very cool technology that can be applied in music-learning environments!

More info in the link:

Recent Music Research - From Touch to Technology: A Tactile Feedback Device as a Pedagogical Tool in Piano Education Tactile feedback has long been central to piano teaching with teachers often relying on physical touch to adjust posture and guide technical coordination in ways that words or demonstrations alone…

If you are attending the MTNA Collegiate Symposium at the University of South Carolina this weekend, be sure to go see our TTU students present their impressive work!

Saturday, 1/17

2:30 pm - Recital Performance - Soyoung Bae

5:20 pm - Lightning Session
"Tiny Pieces, Big Impact: Inclusive Piano Teaching with G. Kurtag’s Játékok I" - Soyoung Bae

Sunday, 1/18

10:45 am - Session
"From Touch to Technology: A Tactile Feedback Device as a Pedagogical Tool in Piano Education" - Miri Park

4:30 pm - Session
"The Athlete at the Piano: How Sports Movements Can Impact
Pianists" - Lingxi Xu