Full or Partial scholarships are available and are awarded anonymously based on the merit of the submitted recording.
All participants will have daily lessons with the Southeastern Piano Festival faculty during the week of the festival. Participants are divided in groups and each group is assigned to a faculty studio. Participants will receive two private lessons and two group lessons. For the group lesson sessions the group attends the lesson together, and each participant will have an open half-hour lesson. Group lessons enrich students' knowledge of the piano repertoire and provide a unique opportunity for students to learn through observation.
Every participant will be offered sound/video recording file with all his or her performances during the festival. The recording is made using state-of-the-art equipment and is of a highest professional grade recording quality. All participants are highly encouraged to make use of this opportunity. The sound and video files containing all performances are $200 and the link to download them will be provided within 60 days following completion of the festival.
Each participant has one or more opportunities to perform in a formal concert setting in student recitals, one of the guest artist masterclasses, or in the competition. All performances are open to the public and are very well attended.
A practice room with a grand piano will be assigned to each participant for the duration of the festival. USC piano students will monitor practice sessions. The monitors will make sure the students are in their rooms at the start of the session, and will check the rooms periodically. There will be a "lounge" station where participants can take breaks during the practice sessions. Snacks will be provided at the lounge.
The University of South Carolina was founded in 1801. The centerpiece of the 330-acre urban campus is the historic and beautifully restored Horseshoe, site of the original campus. Ten of its buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The University enrolls more than 24,000 students on the Columbia campus, and approximately one-third are graduate students. The student population represents every state in the nation and more than 100 countries. The University is surrounded by restaurants, music clubs, fast-food franchises and specialty stores. The award winning Richland County Public Library is nearby, as is the Columbia Museum of Art, the State Museum, and the historic South Carolina State House. A trolley bus is available to transport participants from the campus to the Five Points and Vista areas where many of the most appealing eating, shopping, and entertainment venues are located.
The University of South Carolina School of Music occupies a new multi-million dollar teaching and performance facility adjoining the Koger Center for the Arts. The USC School of Music is housed in a state-of-the-art facility that features more than 100 acoustically designed rooms for practicing, rehearsing, and teaching; an intimate Recital Hall that is an ideal venue for solo recitals and chamber music; a comprehensive music library that contains more than 90,000 books and scores and 60,000 sound recordings; a music technology center; and a fully-equipped recording studio. USC music ensembles perform regularly in the beautiful 2,200-seat Koger Center for the Arts, which adjoins the School of Music.
The Southeastern Piano Festival is grateful to the many generous individuals and businesses that help our festival become a reality. Steinway and Sons is the official performance piano of the festival. The Symphony League of the South Carolina Philharmonic sponsors the Arthur Fraser International Concerto Competition.
Site created and maintained by Scott Wolf. Festival photography by Michael Bull, Nick Levine and Dev Patel. Graphic design and logo by Linda Dodge.