2026 Conference

The 2026 SDMTA Conference will be held November 5-7 at Augustana University in Sioux Falls, SD. This year’s conference will feature guest artist Mackenzie Melemed.

American pianist Mackenzie Melemed brings audiences closer to classical music through world-class performance, personal storytelling, and thoughtfully shaped recital experiences. His concerts place core repertoire alongside rare works and newcommissions, with spoken introductions that help listeners hear familiar music freshly and unfamiliar music with curiosity. Designed to deepen listening and spark discovery, each performance offers audiences a more personal way into the music - and something memorable to carry with them long after the final note.

2022 Avery Fisher Career Grant recipient, Steinway Artist, Juilliard Artist Diploma, Laureate of the American Pianists Awards and China International Music Competition, Soloist with The Philadelphia Orchestra, Helsinki Philharmonic, Edmonton Symphony, Polish Radio Orchestra, and KBS Symphony, Finland-based since 2020; invited by nearly all of Finland's orchestras and many leading festivals

Keys Across America - Mackenzie's landmark USA250 recital project, with more than 50 performances scheduled in over 30 states, explores nearly two centuries of American piano music.
Featuring nine composers across generations, the program brings together familiar works by Copland and Gottschalk, under-the-radar beauty from Amy Beach and Florence Price, and new pieces written especially for Mackenzie by Laura Kaminsky and Avner Dorman. It invites audiences to hear American music not as a single style, but as a living conversation shaped by history, identity, imagination, and discovery. In partnership with universities and conservatories, Mackenzie will give 20+ masterclasses throughout the tour.

Here is the preliminary schedule:

• Evening recital featuring Matthew Whitaker, jazz pianist from Augustana University

• Competitions
• SDMTA Board Meeting
• Guest Artist Recital with Mackenzie Melemed

• Competitions
• Member Lunch and Membership Meeting
• Workshops with MTNA National President-Elect Beth Klingenstein