Many performance opportunities are offered to students during the year, in addition to weekly private lessons. All contests, festivals, and exams are optional. Take a look at some of the fun we’ve had in previous years!
RECITALS
Recitals are held twice a year: in the fall and the spring. Recitals are usually at the Steinway Piano Gallery or at the Oxford United Methodist Church.
SAN ANTONIO RAGTIME FESTIVAL
The San Antonio Ragtime Festival is every November and sponsored by the San Antonio Ragtime Society. There are two parts: the festival and the competition. The festival is open to any student that plays a ragtime piece, often arranged. The competition is for those that are playing original rags by composers such as Joplin or Bolcom.
WINTER FESTIVAL AT ROLLING OAKS MALL
The Winter Festival is sponsored by the San Antonio Music Teachers Association (SAMTA). It gives students the opportunity to play for the holiday shoppers at Rolling Oaks Mall on a Saturday in December. This is a very fun event and is open to students of all ages.
TMTA THEORY TEST
The Texas Music Teachers Association (TMTA) offers a written theory test with ear training for students of teachers in the organization. Students have the opportunity to earn medals, based on their grade. The test is worth 100 points. A score of 98 or above earns a gold medal. A score of 94-97 earns a silver medal. A score of 90-93 earns a bronze medal. Students of Ms. Kiefer regularly earn medals, and they have also earned the top theory awards given by TMTA.
NATIONAL FEDERATION OF MUSIC CLUBS FESTIVAL
The National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) was founded over 100 years ago to promote the music of American composers. Students play two pieces by memory for a judge. One of the pieces is chosen from the contest list and the other is a choice piece, often by a foreign-born composer. If the student earns a “Superior” grade at the local event, they are invited to play at the state competition, held at Texas State University.
Each rating at the local festival earns points; after 15 points students earn their first Gold Cup trophy. After they earn another 15 points, they earn a larger Gold Cup trophy, and so on. This event is very popular with students of all ages.
Biennial Special Programs
Every two years the Anna Kiefer Piano Studio participates in a special program, created and directed by Ms. Kiefer. Past programs have included:
The Melody Bober Festival (2015). We welcomed back Melody Bober to our studio! This project was designed to give students the opportunity to interact with a living composer and was exclusive to the Anna Kiefer Piano Studio. The studio presented recitals with Ms. Bober in attendance, and completed creative projects inspired by her works. In addition, Ms. Bober gave a presentation to the students about composition and answered many questions about the life of a composer.
Playing With Sound (2013). Playing With Sound was developed to spend a year focused on improvisation, which culminated in three improvisation recitals. While students improvised, back up percussion was provided by audience members. This was truly an amazing event that students and parents still talk about!
Back by popular demand, Extraordinary Ensembles (2011) gave the students in the Anna Kiefer Piano Studio the opportunity to perform a benefit concert for the San Antonio Children’s Shelter. Students played ensembles on four pianos, collected several truckloads of goods from their classmates, neighbors, and families, and raised over $1000 cash for the Children’s Shelter.
Art and Music (2009) was developed by Ms. Kiefer to allow her students to explore the relationship between visual art and music. Students went on a tour of the San Antonio Museum of Art and learned about components of art through the museum’s extensive collection. Then, they completed a curriculum written by Ms. Kiefer, which compared these elements of visual art to elements of music. At the recital, students displayed a personal art project, inspired by the motives, lines, and form of their performed pieces.
Directed and co-created by Ms. Kiefer and Ms. Karen Tarmon, Extraordinary Ensembles (2007) was created to give piano students an opportunity to play as a group and benefit a community charity. Through a “practice-a-thon” fundraiser and a benefit concert with students performing on five pianos simultaneously, students of three teachers raised over $1800 for the San Antonio chapter of the USO’s Injured Soldiers’ Fund.
The Melody Bober Festival (2005) was designed to give students the opportunity to interact with a living composer and was exclusive to the Anna Kiefer Piano Studio. Throughout the year, students played Bober’s compositions in recitals, competitions, and festivals, and completed creative projects based on her works. The year culminated with recitals, which the composer Melody Bober attended and gave presentations on the life of a modern-day composer.