Southwestern College junior Deborah Martin won the Kansas Music Teachers Association Collegiate Piano Competition on Sunday, Nov. 9, at Washburn University in Topeka.  Martin competed against other juniors and seniors from colleges and universities from around the state of Kansas.  She performed the Chopin Etude op. 10, no.3 and Bartok Suite op.14, no. 3.

Martin is from Penang, Malaysia, and is the daughter of Dave Martin and Katherine Ung.  She is a graduate of Penang Chinese Girls' High School.

Tim Shook is Deborah’s piano teacher as well as chair of the performing arts division at Southwestern, and emphasizes the high quality of performers in this competition. Typically the state’s large universities send their most talented and accomplished pianists to represent their schools, he says, and to have a student from a small, private liberal arts college take the top prize shines the spotlight on the quality of artistry at Southwestern.

“We were delighted with Deborah’s third place finish last year and what is impressive is that she is at the younger level of this competition,” Shook adds.

“I'm very thrilled to have won because that means I've not only made my school proud, I've made my country proud and most of all I've made my family proud,” Martin says.  “I started piano lessons in a music school when I was four. Then I switched to private lessons at about age seven. Every now then, there would be performance opportunities available through my instructors and usually I would be invited to be a part of those performances.”

Shook says that Martin’s work ethic paved the way to her victory.

“This was a team effort,” Shook says.  “She played often for her colleagues and they provided valuable feedback.  Deborah has a work ethic, first and foremost, and there is talent and when those two things are combined, many good things happen.  She has an artistic sense in many ways; visually she is a great photographer; she has a wonderful ear; and she sings beautifully.  But what she does is she works and she practices and she develops that talent that she has been given.”

Martin is happy that she participated in the competition.

“I chose to do it again this year because it was a great opportunity to gain someone else's insight on my technique and musical interpretations,” Martin says.  “I'm also certain that this opportunity is going to facilitate my growth as a musician.”

Although she is just a junior, Martin has an eye on her future.

“Right now, I aspire to become a choral conductor and a private lesson instructor on the side,” Martin says.