Georgia Hart; Marina Lomazov, artistic director of the Southeastern Piano Festival; Leslie Wrenn, director of development of the festival; and Susan Robinson gather after the first performance of the Southeastern Piano Festival, June 8, 2008. The festival, sponsored by Rice Music House June 8- June 12, provides a rigorous training platform for aspiring young pianists and presents outstanding piano concerts by celebrated and new artists. This year featured Olga Kern, "one of the brightest stars on the world concert scene, whose meteoric rise to fame began when she won the Gold Medal at the 2001 Van Cliburn Piano Competition;" rising pianists Hong Xu and Eric Zuber, who performed solo concerts; and master teachers Douglas Humphreys and Paul Pollei, who lectured, judged, and taught at the festival.

Photo by Jim Covington