Hamilton Piano Festival at WT to Feature International Medalist Ponochevny

Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, cchandler@wtamu.edu

CANYON, Texas — A globally renowned pianist will open the 2025 Grace Hamilton Piano Festival at West Texas A&M University.

Andrey Ponochevny, bronze medalist at the Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 28 in Mary Moody Northen Recital Hall on WT’s Canyon campus.

Admission is $20 for adults, $10 for non-WT students and free for festival participants and WT students, faculty and staff with a Buff Gold Card. They may be purchased online here: cur8.com/22281/project/129721.

“We are thrilled to welcome Andrey Ponochevny to campus and know that his all-Rachmaninoff program will be a profound and memorable experience for all,” said Dr. Sarah Rushing, assistant professor of piano.

Ponochevny has received prizes at numerous international piano competitions, including first prize at the William Kapell International Piano Competition in Maryland and first prize at the Tomassoni International Piano Competition in Cologne. His other competition accolades include awards at international competitions in Prague, Warsaw (Chopin), Dublin, Hong Kong, Riga and New Orleans.

In the concert hall, Ponochevny has garnered equal success having performed extensively in North America, South America, Europe and Asia. He has given solo recitals at major venues including Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall in New York City, The Kennedy Center and Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., Preston Bradley Hall in Chicago, the Cleveland Institute of Music, Beethovenhalle in Bonn, Philharmonie in Cologne, City Hall in Hong Kong, Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria in Santander, Salle Alfred Cortot in Paris, National Philharmonic Hall in Warsaw, Stadtcasino in Basel and the Harbin Opera House in China.

The festival, which dates back around 60 years, was named in 2016 in honor of Grace Hamilton, an influential area piano instructor who cofounded the Amarillo Symphony and was its first pianist.

“The festival provides a supportive performance and adjudication opportunity for pre-college pianists. These types of experiences are so important for young musicians, as studying the piano involves many hours spent practicing alone,” Rushing said. “We are pleased to welcome festival participant to campus for this experience.”

Nearly 100 students from around the Panhandle and Eastern New Mexico perform throughout the day March 1, concluding with an honors recital at 3 p.m. in the recital hall inside the Sybil B. Harrington Fine Arts Complex.

The festival is preceded by the annual Piano Teachers’ Workshop on, Feb. 28. The workshop features guest clinician Dr. Ivan Hurd, assistant professor of piano pedagogy at the University of Texas at San Antonio. 

To register for the workshop, click here.

Fostering an appreciation of the arts and meeting regional needs are key components of the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign’s new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised more than $160 million.

About West Texas A&M University

WT, a Regional Research University, is redefining excellence in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus, as well as the Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center in downtown Amarillo. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of more than 9,000 and offers 66 undergraduate degree programs, including eight associate degrees; and 44 graduate degrees, including an integrated bachelor’s and master’s degree, a specialist degree and two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men’s and women’s athletics programs.

—WT—