National Music Museum seasonal concert showcases piano performance, instrument collection

Pianist Richard Steinbach performed his holiday concert “Christmas Spirit” at the National Music Museum Friday night.

The concert was the last performance of the NMM’s fall semester, and was a seasonal performance focused on piano.

Steinbach performed the concert on the museum’s 1855 Broadwood piano. The monthly concerts showcase various instruments from the museum’s collection. Steinbach, from Sioux City, IA, is a professor of music at Briar Cliff University.

NMM communications manager Patricia Bornhofen said they try to showcase instruments that are representative of their collection.

“We just try to have a variety, (however) we have 15,000 instruments in our collection so any musician could some way reflect the collection,” Bornhofen said. “We are looking for very high quality performers that will fit this venue.”

Steinbach opened the concert with Joseph Martin’s version of “I Saw Three Ships,” then welcomed the audience to the concert.

“I’m really honored to be performing in this wonderful space,” Steinbach said at the beginning of the show. “Most of you know, but we’re sitting in one of the largest and most prestigious collections of instruments in the world.”

Steinbach played six songs on the piano before a brief intermission. He played a variety of holiday songs, both contemporary and classical, including “Silent Night” and “What Child is This.”

After the short intermission, soprano Shannon Salyard and oboist Brandy Trucke joined Steinbach on stage and performed seven more collaborative pieces.

The concert ended with a bonus duet by Steinbach and Salyards of “Baby It’s Cold Outside,” leaving the audience in a standing ovation.

Sioux City resident Lynne Boulden said she enjoyed both the performances and the NMM venue.

“(The concert) was wonderful, they are all just so talented,” Bolden said. “This is a nice place to have a concert, it makes it more intimate and it is just so nice.”

About 100 community members attended the event.

The next concert at the NMM will be on Jan. 19. Bornhofen said she encourages students to take advantage of the opportunity to attend the concerts for free.

“We encourage students to come and see the concerts, students are always free,” Bornhofen said. “The museum is such a nice thing to have so close to campus.”