CSB/SJU music professor to perform piano recital May 1

Music is with us everywhere, but sometimes we have to deliberately let it in.

That goes doubly so when terms like COVID-19, N95 masks and personal protective equipment have made it into our everyday vernacular.

College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University Associate Professor of Music (piano faculty) Amy Grinsteiner has a way to – at least temporarily – make us forget about these unusual times.

Grinsteiner will perform a solo piano recital at 7 p.m. (CDT) Friday, May 1, that will be streamed live on the CSB/SJU Facebook page from the Stephen B. Humphrey Theater at SJU. No audience will be allowed in-person, and it is a one-time stream (no rebroadcast will be available at a later time).

“The recital will be a mix of some of my favorite pieces to play right now, especially during this unique time,” Grinsteiner said.

Her 45-minute recital will include classical selections by Franz Liszt, Frédéric Chopin, Francis Poulenc, Mily Balakirev and William Bolcom, and two jazz pieces: a transcription of Bill Evans’ “Peace Piece” and an arrangement of George Gershwin’s “Embraceable You” by Earl Wild.

Grinsteiner said she wanted to do the recital before the end of the school year.

“I wanted to stream a short recital in hopes that people would be interested in sitting together, at home and across the Internet, to listen together,” she said. “Classical music has a way of helping us be still while giving us a moment to reflect and consider.

“As a performer, I am interested in creating a space for people to be able to turn inward and let music move through them. Since we can’t gather together, this streaming recital seemed like the next best thing,” Grinsteiner said.

Grinsteiner has taught at CSB and SJU since 2012 with classes in studio piano, classical piano, collaborative piano, piano pedagogy and music through history.

Born and raised in Montana, she holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Washington, Diploma of Postgraduate Performance and L.R.A.M. Teaching Certificate from the Royal Academy of Music in London, a Master of Music Degree in Piano Performance from the Eastman School of Music and Bachelor of Music Degree in Piano Performance from the University of Colorado, Boulder.