Utah music teachers and students perform with concert pianist

Kalo Latu and other pianists perform at the Recital Hall in the Music Building. They played a variety of ensembles. (Clara Pierce)

On May 9, BYU adjunct professor Kalo Latu, a concert pianist, performed alongside an ensemble of local music teachers and students at the BYU Music Building.

The teachers were from the Provo-Orem chapter of the Utah Music Teachers Association. They played pieces that varied in both genre and difficulty-level.

"The concert is divided into three sections … elementary, intermediate and advanced repertoire," Latu said. "It's a way for teachers to share the latest music that has been published that they've found that works really well for students."

Latu is passionate about making music fun for everyone, regardless of experience level.

Two pianists perform together. One was a student and the other was a teacher. (Clara Pierce)

"When you're engaged in any kind of learning with musical instruments, sometimes the elementary or intermediate repertoire is very dissatisfying because it sounds easy," Latu said. "I think the genius of what has been done by the composers represented on this program is it doesn't sound easy. It sounds cool, which I think is a very difficult balance to strike."

The concert also benefited the music teachers who performed.

"Most of us stop performing very much to focus on a career of teaching," Emily Jorgensen, one of the performing teachers, said. "And so … you feel a little bit nervous coming back to perform."

Jorgensen added that the performance was special because of the "joy of getting to perform with others."

Kalo Latu performs duets with different pianists. She played songs with other pianists in the elementary, intermediate and advanced categories. (Clara Pierce)

"Kalo is amazing that she wanted everybody to feel that, and she gave us that opportunity," Jorgensen said.

The performance benefited other attendees as well, regardless of whether they were learning piano.

"Everyone swells coming out of this concert," Mafile'o Hafoka, a music teacher and performer, said. "This kind of music is uplifting, and this kind of connection with each other — with strangers — you know, it really is just a beautiful way to spend any evening."

Hafoka described how music connects people through shared experience, regardless of language barriers or sociocultural differences.

The performance included songs like "Allegro in E Minor," "Love at Home," "Fum Fum Fum" and "Ave Maria."