Northwest hosting annual Bach Family Festival for youth

Students in grades four through 12 will showcase their piano skills again at the Northwest Missouri State University Bach Family Festival in October.

The festival begins at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 19, in the Charles Johnson Theater at the Olive DeLuce Fine Arts Building with a welcome and a masterclass. Students will perform in an honors recital at 4 p.m., and awards will be presented afterward.

All performances are free to the public and will be available to stream at https://vimeo.com/event/4237259.

"Students will have the opportunity to submit a video audition, and we'll provide a video response, coaching them depending on their pieces," Dr. Anthony Olson, a Northwest professor of music, said. "It's a great way to connect them to campus and encourage them in their music."

Participants are encouraged to study works by J.S. Bach and members of his family with guidance from their teachers. Works can be played on the piano, organ or harpsichord, and collaborative works are highly encouraged.

"The whole festival is also a great opportunity for the public to come support the students and view the performances," Olson said. "Our Northwest piano students will also be helping, coordinating traffic and really help out with the whole service."

A $75 prize may be awarded for outstanding performances of solo or collaborative works. Participating high school juniors and seniors can also earn a piano scholarship to Northwest, based on their performance and difficulty of the composition.

Guest pianist Dr. Hyeyeon Park, a professor of piano at the University of Nevada-Reno, will assist in judging for the awards and perform a recital at 7 p.m. She has appeared as a soloist and chamber musician on concert stages throughout the world, including in Mexico, Italy and Japan. She is also the Artistic Co-Director of Friends of Chamber Music Kansas City.

For more information, visit https://www.nwmissouri.edu/finearts/music/bach-festival.htm.