Department of Music

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville celebrates the life, career, and memory of Ruth Slenczynska, world-renowned concert pianist, SIUE Artist-in-Residence and music professor emerita. Slenczynska performed more than 3,000 recitals and concerts worldwide, appeared with the world's greatest orchestras, recorded music for multimedia and was the last known surviving student of Sergei Rachmaninoff. The SIUE community was sad to learn the news of Ruth’s passing in April this year.

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Southern Illinois University Edwardsville music professor emerita and world-renowned pianist, Ruth Slenczynska, died on Wednesday, April 22, 2026. She was 101.  Slenczynska was the last surviving pupil of composer-pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff.

Slenczynska began her SIUE career 61 years ago in 1964 when she accepted a full-time position as Artist-in-Residence. In 1967 Slenczynska married James Kerr, PhD, an SIUE professor of political science.&#16...

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s music ensembles, comprised of talented SIUE students and faculty, have scheduled a month of October performances.

Conducted by Michael Mishra, DA, Director of Orchestral Studies, this past Friday evening at Dunham Hall Theater, the SIUE Symphony Orchestra performed works by Sibelius and Rachmaninov. Angela Kim, DMA, associate professor, Director of the Keyboard Area, was featured on piano.

Performances still to come include choral music and j...

Students Listen to Chamber Project Saint Louis, Participate in Music and Dance Workshops

For the first time, the live sounds of classical composer Johann Sebastian Bach floated through the air in the Multipurpose Room of Building D on the Wyvetter H. Younge Higher Education Campus (WHYHEC).

Bringing the melodies of the German composer to life at 12 p.m. Wednesday, June 18, via the clarinet, double bass, viola, violin and cello was the partnership between the Southern Illinois University Edward...

 
The three-day symposium of the Ruth Slenczynska Centennial Celebration came to a close on Sunday, on Sunday, May 4, with a signature concert at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s Dunham Hall Theater. Preceding the closing event were retrospective lectures, a piano masterclass and an exhibit, “Ruth Slenczynska: Her 100 Musical Years,” which continues through May 12. All events were free to the public. The final piano concert presented exceptional musicians, whic...

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Opera Theatre presents Gilbert and Sullivan’s comic operetta The Pirates of Penzance for their spring production. Producers promise "a night of swashbuckling fun and delightful mischief” in a lively evening of family entertainment. Performances will be held on Friday, March 28 and Saturday March 29 at 7:30 p.m. in Dunham Hall Theater. 

The operetta, which premiered in 1879, follows the story of Frederic, a young man mistakenly appr...

SIUE’s Dunham Hall Theater resonated with vibrant sound of jazz as the SIUE Concert Jazz Band welcomed four celebrated alumni for the 2nd Annual SIUE Jazz Alumni Concert on Wednesday, Feb. 5. The evening brought together past and present Cougars in a dynamic showcase of jazz artistry, featuring a rotation of guest performances from four nationally recognized musicians who got their start at SIUE: Austin Cebulske, '12, saxophonist, Kara Baldus, '03, '05, pianist, Nick Jost, ‘08, &#8...

University Music Department announces May 4 Celebration in her honor 

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville announces the 100th birthday of Ruth Slenczynska, music professor emerita and pianist. Slenczynska is the last surviving pupil of composer-pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff. To honor Ruth Slenczynska's life, talent, and accomplishments, SIUE will host the Ruth Slenczynska Centennial Celebration Concert at Dunham Hall Theater, Sunday, May 4, at 3 p.m. &#160...

Expanding on its previous and current dramatic offerings and education, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville will present the inaugural SIUE Performing Arts Initiative on Wednesday, Jan. 22, according to Marc Schapman, DMA, professor of voice and chair of the Department of Music. 

The new series of performances and workshops will begin on Jan. 22 in the Dunham Hall Theater and will feature Chamber Project Saint Louis (CPSTL), with the University’s own Professor of Cello Marta Si...