By Ryan Downs

Staff Writer

It could be said that there is only one thing more pleasant than a recital by a talented and dedicated pianist, and that is a free recital by the very same talented and dedicated pianist. Fortunately, CSUSM will be showcasing the latter at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 26 in Arts 111.

Last year, CSUSM’s very own music professor, Dr. Ching-Ming Cheng, mesmerized the school with a fantastic showcase of her talents, backed by a life of extensive experience in solo and collaborative concerts all over the globe.  Her career has also involved multiple teaching positions at schools across America, ultimately leading to her incredibly welcome arrival at CSUSM in the fall of 2011.

The recital is one of the many ways Dr. Cheng’s involvement at the school goes beyond teaching; she also has plans to develop a complete music department, separate from the music and theater department.

“We want to expand, and take this program onto a different level,” Dr. Cheng said, mentioning how few students at the school major in instrumental music. In fact, majors in specific instruments, such as piano, were not previously available until Dr. Cheng’s arrival.

“Now that they have me, we are trying to recruit more music majors,” she said, emphasizing the focus on piano.

She hopes the set-up can involve one-on-one instruction, so she can have a hands-on interaction with students who are interested in piano and other music.

Dr. Cheng hopes to get a music department up and running at the school at least by the next semester, but she believes the primary obstacle to this goal is the fact that students who may be interested may not be aware of her efforts. She hopes the recital can raise awareness of what she is trying to do, and hopefully draw students who may be interested in becoming music majors and helping to establish a department on campus.

As for the concert itself, Dr. Cheng enjoys playing music from several major historical musicians in chronological order, beginning with the seventeenth century and moving to modern day, in a show that will cover music from Chopin, Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, and Brusoni.

“He actually arranged a piece written by Bach,” she said excitedly of Brusoni, the most modern of the featured musicians, “so it kind of brings it full circle.”

The recital will go for about ninety minutes, and, of course, it is free.