Thomas Prentice talks about his senior recital, history of playing

BY Ian Kahler

Thomas Prentice, a senior piano performance major and Psychology minor at UNK, is on his way to finishing his musical path at UNK.

“I’ve been playing the piano for about fourteen to fifteen years of my life and have been involved with multiple UNK theater and dance performances across my 5 years of being here,” Prentice said. “The benefit of playing for so long is that all the repertoire that you have played previously all of sudden becomes very easy. From there you can have an entire back catalog of knowledge to draw from various sources to apply to your new pieces.”

Prentice also said that the music department and staff have been an enormous help in the process of being involved in the Fine Arts building. 

“I’d say the biggest thing that the department has given me since coming here is the ability to learn how to handle a gigantic load of course-work and figure how to plan your schedule around that. In college it is very easy to get distracted,” Prentice said. “In music one must juggle even up to 9 classes at a time, including gen-ed classes while learning their music. This caveat can prove to be a challenge if one isn’t good with time management. So, the ability to learn how to handle a lot emotionally, physically, socially, has been probably the biggest benefit from the music department.”

The road to the actual performance of a senior recital isn’t anything short of difficult. 

“Preparing for a senior recital is unlike preparing for anything I have had before in any of my schooling. The list was decided on pretty much right after my junior recital in 2017,” Prentice said. “It was arguably the most time-consuming thing I’ve had to put effort into. One must practice 3 hours minimum to even get close to competent in their ability to play gigantic piano literature. Compound this with having to memorize the entire thing and that becomes another problem one must solve.”

The road to Thomas’ senior recital wasn’t an easy one. An injury in October and picking up a new minor were roadblocks on the way, but he powered through and made it more worthwhile at the end. 

“This provided an extra challenge, but in retrospect, I like to think that it happened for a reason,” Prentice said. “It teaches you a lot, such as how to practice in small segments, but in the end, it was all okay.”

While his time at UNK is almost over, playing piano and being involved in physical activities will keep Thomas busy for years to come. 

“I plan on playing in weddings and at the Alley Rose on weekends to keep my music drive in me going,” Prentice said.  “I’ve discovered that working out and personal training is something I enjoy a lot and it helps me keep in shape as well. It’s a win-win.”