Clemson recently became an All-Steinway School, adding 17 new state-of-the-art instruments to its inventory to complete the transition and earn the title.

For many years, the faculty at Clemson have been interested in upgrading the piano program at Clemson.

“It’s the one instrument that is played every day,” Linda Li-Bleuel, a professor of music, stated.

No part of this story can be told without giving thanks to Bob and Kaye Stanzione, who made a substantial donation to make sure Clemson could afford the transformative upgrade.

Upon hearing the dean of students and the chair of the music department float the idea, Bob and Kaye jumped at the opportunity. Clemson now has plans to offer a Kaye Stanzione scholarship, fostering excellence among aspiring musicians here at Clemson.

Along with 14 Steinway pianos, Clemson also added three Spiro High-Resolution player pianos. These pianos allow for artists to replay their performances for practice or rehearsal purposes, as well as reproductions of pieces by other performers with unparalleled precision. Li-Bleuel noted that artists can now record their jazz improvs and be able to replay them, making the development of a personal style and a perfected original recording much more accessible.

Steinway & Sons, who have been hand-making world-class pianos since 1853, selected Clemson as a candidate for their Steinway School program because of the prestige of the university as well as their belief in the university to use Steinway pianos to foster excellent music students and projects.

Clemson now joins only 250 other institutions worldwide that can claim the distinct honor of being a Steinway School. This gives an opportunity not just to the student body at Clemson but also to the guests it attracts.

“Before, we’ve had situations… where we were trying to get a Steinway artist to come down and didn’t have the means to have the piano that they needed,” Hazen Bannister, a music lecturer at Clemson, said.

The partnership between Clemson and Steinway & Sons gives Clemson a significant leg up in its attractiveness to other artists and institutions who understand the gravity and quality associated with those instruments.

With this addition, the University is able to reach new heights with teaching, presenting and performing across the entire music department.