World-renowned, award-winning pianist Spencer Myer will fill Bryan Hall Theatre with his own captivating take on classical piano.

At a conference for the Music Teachers National Association in Chicago earlier this year, MTNA collegiate chapter president Esther Hayter said she got the chance to see Myer perform and was involved in bringing him to WSU

“His performance was just really inspiring,” Hayter said. “It was like … this is something very special. I thought it would be great to bring that here to WSU.”

Hayter wrote a proposal to bring Myer to WSU as a part of the new student-led music educational program Allegro.

Karen Savage, professor of piano and collaborative piano, studied with Myer at Juilliard and was able to make the initial contact that brought him here.

“Spencer is a highly-gifted pianist whose playing is imaginative, brilliant and sensitive,” Savage said. “I know that the audience on Friday will be captivated by his exceptional pianism and musicianship, and that they will be moved by the beauty of his playing.”

Myer will perform three Scarlatti sonatas, Schumann’s “Fantasie in C,” Adam Schoenberg’s “Picture Etudes,” selections from William Bolcom’s “The Garden of Eden” and Samuel Barber’s “Excursions,” according to WSU School of Music.

He will also give two master classes open to the public at 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday in Kimbrough Concert Hall. There will be a lunch in between sessions to give students a chance to meet and talk with Myer.

Graduate students Tom Guenther and Alvin Delos Santos helped found Allegro earlier this year after several years of interest in utilizing state funds to promote student education in jazz and classical music. Delos Santos, Allegro secretary, said the fruition of their labors was really a dream for School of Music Director Greg Yasinitsky.

“He’d wanted to see this type of program since coming here,” Delos Santos said. “It was really (Yasinitsky’s) call to say, now is the time to put this organization together.”

Many of the programs and channels that had previously been able to provide funding for jazz and classical student-led education programs have since gone away, Delos Santos said. Allegro funding goes toward bringing world-class musicians to perform with WSU student ensembles, as well as to perform master classes that are open to the public.

The program is focused on finding new student programs that can find support through Allegro funding as well as support in other ways. It’s a program that is looking to be in service to the WSU community as a whole, Delos Santos said.

“It is an incredible opportunity to hear a world-class performer,” Hayter said. “You don’t want to miss it!”

Those interested in learning more about the Allegro program can contact Delos Santos at [email protected].

The performance is free for WSU students with a student ID. Admission for non-WSU students is $5 and general admission is $10. Tickets for the performance are available in the lobby 30 minutes before show time.