THE UNIVERSITY OF MOBILE’S ALL-STEINWAY JOURNEY AND THE GROWTH OF ITS MUSIC PROGRAMME

The University of Mobile’s relationship with Steinway & Sons reaches a significant milestone in 2026. Ten years after achieving All-Steinway Institution status, the Alabama School of the Arts (ASOTA) has reported substantial growth in its music programme, alongside increased national recognition. The university is currently ranked 79th among Best Colleges for Music in America in Niche’s 2026 rankings, placing it within the top 100 nationally.

The development is rooted in a longer institutional commitment to music. Founded in 1961, the University of Mobile is a Christ-centred university in Mobile, Alabama, established with an emphasis on preparing students academically, professionally and spiritually. Its performing arts provision has grown considerably over the decades, with the Alabama School of the Arts becoming an important part of the university’s identity.

The decision to pursue All-Steinway status in 2016 represented a particularly consequential step. The designation requires an institution to make a substantial commitment to Steinway instruments across its music facilities, giving students and faculty consistent access to professional-quality pianos for teaching, practice and performance.

For ASOTA, the project was not simply about acquiring instruments. It became part of a wider effort involving faculty leadership, fundraising, donors and a regional Steinway partnership. The university’s “All Steinway, All Together” campaign reached its fundraising target within 12 months, helping make the transition possible. Steinway Piano Gallery Spanish Fort, the authorised Steinway representative serving the central Gulf Coast, played an important role in the planning, fundraising and acquisition process.

At the centre of that effort was Dr Kadisha Onalbayeva, Professor of Music and Director of Piano Studies at the University of Mobile. A Steinway Artist and international pianist and composer, Onalbayeva has helped shape the university’s piano programme while advocating for the wider role of music education across the Gulf Coast.

Her connection with Steinway began long before her appointment at UM. Born in Kazakhstan, Onalbayeva began musical training at the age of five and later moved to the United States, completing advanced studies at the University of New Orleans and Louisiana State University. In 2013, she became the first Steinway Artist from Kazakhstan, and in 2021 she was inducted into the Steinway & Sons Teacher Hall of Fame.

Her presence has helped give ASOTA’s Steinway commitment a distinctly educational character. The instruments are not treated simply as prestigious additions to the campus; they form part of the environment in which students learn technique, interpretation and performance.

That distinction matters because the piano occupies a particularly broad role within music education. For students studying performance, composition, accompaniment or other musical disciplines, access to a high-quality instrument can influence daily practice as much as formal concert performance. The consistency of an institution-wide collection also allows students to become familiar with the same standard of instrument throughout their education.

The results can be seen in the wider development of ASOTA. According to Steinway, the university’s music programme has doubled in size since it became an All-Steinway Institution. The school now offers more than 16 ensembles across classical, contemporary, commercial and sacred music traditions, giving students opportunities to work across different performance environments.

The programme’s public-facing performances have also become an important part of the university’s cultural presence. Its annual Christmas Spectacular attracts thousands of attendees and has developed into a major event on the campus calendar. Such productions require musicians to work across large ensembles and demanding performance settings, providing students with experience that extends beyond the classroom.

The relationship between UM and Steinway has also encouraged activity beyond the university itself. In 2014, Onalbayeva and other Gulf Coast music advocates established the Gulf Coast Steinway Society (GCSS), a non-profit organisation dedicated to expanding music education and performance opportunities for young musicians across Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.

The Society’s annual music competition has become a central part of that mission. Young musicians compete for scholarships, awards and performance opportunities, with winners receiving the chance to perform at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York. The programme has also incorporated visits to the Steinway factory in Queens, connecting students not only with performance but with the history and making of the instruments they play.

The Society’s work extends further through recitals, concerts, workshops and master classes, including programmes delivered through schools, colleges and universities. Its stated aim is to broaden access to high-level musical experiences at a time when reductions in arts funding have affected music education in many communities.

For participating students, the Carnegie Hall performances offer a particularly tangible progression from regional competition to an internationally recognised concert venue. In 2022, for example, 18 students were selected from 78 participants representing five Gulf Coast states and travelled to New York to perform at Weill Recital Hall.

The relationship also reflects Steinway & Sons’ own long history within music education and performance. The company was founded in 1853 by German immigrant Henry Engelhard Steinway in a Manhattan loft on Varick Street. Over the following decades, Steinway and his sons developed piano-making techniques that helped establish the company as one of the most influential names in concert pianos. The company continues to manufacture handmade instruments in New York and Hamburg.

Steinway’s heritage is closely connected to the professional music world. The company has maintained relationships with leading performers and educators for generations, while its instruments have become familiar fixtures in concert halls, conservatoires and music schools internationally. Its All-Steinway programme extends that philosophy into higher education by giving institutions a framework for equipping their music departments with Steinway instruments.

At the University of Mobile, the impact of that relationship extends beyond the piano studios. The university’s investment has coincided with the expansion of its music programme, the development of regional educational initiatives and greater opportunities for students to perform in professional settings.

Yet the most meaningful measure may be found in the culture surrounding the instruments rather than in the instruments themselves. An All-Steinway designation provides a standard, but sustaining that standard requires faculty commitment, institutional support, and students willing to work towards it. At UM, those elements have developed alongside one another over the past decade.

The story of the University of Mobile and Steinway & Sons ultimately illustrates how an institutional partnership can become part of a much larger educational ecosystem. The pianos provide the physical foundation, but teaching, performance, competition, and community outreach give that investment its wider purpose. Ten years into the All-Steinway chapter, ASOTA’s growth suggests that musical excellence is not created by an instrument alone; it develops through the people and opportunities that surround it.