Returning piano soloist caresses ears with Latin American music on Valentine’s Day

Music filled the Memorial Hall Auditorium on Friday evening as piano soloist, Susanne Skyrm, a professor from the University of South Dakota, Vermilion, performed a variety of Latin American musical numbers.

She was originally scheduled to perform at Chadron State College in October; however, due to Winter Storm Atlas hitting the panhandle, the concert was postponed. During this time, Skyrm was stranded in Chadron a few days, which allowed for some students to get a little one-on-one time with her. This was especially beneficial to the piano students.

“The campus benefits by getting a new perspective from someone who is familiar with the area,” James Margetts, music associate professor and music teacher’s national association sponsor said. “It helps give us healthy, friendly relationships with outside sources.”

This time around the weather was cooperative and about 100 students attended the Valentine’s Day concert.

Skyrm showed off her talents with the Spanish piano music she acquired from her vacation last spring in Spain. Her performance included four sonatas, 12 variations on the theme of Chopin, two nocturnes, and performed two other numbers.

Skyrm has been performing for more than 30 years. Along with mastering the standard piano she also can play on some of the earliest invented pianos, such as the fortepiano. Spanish and Latin American keyboard music is one of her passions and she has even recorded a CD of eighteenth-century Spanish and Portuguese keyboard music.

Skyrm has degrees in piano performance from the College of Idaho, the University of Cincinnati, and the University of Colorado, Boulder. At the University of South Dakota, she was the first to receive the University of South Dakota’s College of Fine Arts Biennial Distinguished Professor Award in 2006.

The event was sponsored by CSC’s MTNA chapter. The MTNA chapter on campus is also a branch of the national MTNA, which is a service and professional organization. The organization is used to provide teachers and students professional opportunities and to give them knowledge of how to become better teachers.

Below is an example Skyrm’s pianowork from the National Music Museum: