North Idaho piano festival gives young musicians supportive stage in Coeur d'Alene

Young pianists got a stage at North Idaho College where the goal was growth, not medals. The North Idaho Music Teachers Association used its Piano Performance Festival in Coeur d’Alene to give students a supportive setting to play prepared repertoire, manage nerves in front of an audience and learn from individualized feedback.

Guest adjudicator Dr. Deborah Rambo Sinn brought a resume built on performance and teaching. Her biography says she has appeared as a soloist and chamber musician in the United States, Europe, China, Polynesia, New Zealand and Australia, and has played keyboards and piano in more than 500 professional musical productions in Europe. Oxford University Press says she has performed classical concerts on four continents and served on the faculties of two universities. She also released Pocket Piano Proficiency in January 2021.

Alyssa Jacobs, president of the North Idaho Music Teachers Association, said the festival was designed to push students beyond simply learning notes. She said the event helped them follow through to a finished result in a supportive performance environment, and gave them room to grow, take risks and even struggle a little as they built resilience and confidence over time.

The festival ran from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, with the weekend wrapping up with an Honors Recital at 3 p.m. Sunday in the Choir Room at NIC. That recital was free and open to the public, giving families, teachers and music supporters a chance to hear the students’ work in a formal setting without the pressure of a cutthroat competition.

The setting also fit NIC’s broader role in the region’s arts life. The Schuler Performing Arts Center in Boswell Hall hosts music, theater and many community events, and the college’s Communication and Fine Arts Division says it brings more than 10,000 community members each year to concerts, plays and other arts events. NIC also uses its campus for educational conferences, meetings and public events, making it one of Kootenai County’s most important gathering places for arts education.

That role has shown up before in student music showcases. NIC’s music department has hosted free public invitational events such as Choral Kaleidoscope, which a student publication described in 2023 as its third annual choir event. A previous NIMTA Piano Performance Festival at NIC also drew an Honors Recital the next day, underscoring that the association has made the college a regular home for performance opportunities that keep young musicians engaged.