OXFORD, MS – With the purchase of seven new Steinway and Steinway-Designed pianos—including the remarkable Steinway Spirio | r high resolution player piano—Oxford School District has become the first district in Mississippi to achieve Steinway Select status.

The seeds for the district to achieve this unique designation were sown upon the completion of Oxford High School’s new performing arts center in 2020. The new two-story, 42,000 square-foot space features state-of-the-art facilities, equipment, classrooms, and technology. District administrators and school staff quickly recognized that the school’s existing piano inventory was sub-par, and upon examining the pianos in the district’s other K-12 schools, district leadership was quickly on board to support the growing school district with a commitment to acquire high-quality pianos.

“The Spirio | r is a particularly exciting addition to the district’s music programs.”

Oxford School District worked with Amro Music Stores, Inc., in Memphis to identify and purchase six new Steinway-Designed Boston grand and upright pianos as well as the showstopping Steinway Spirio | r for Oxford High School’s new facility.

The Spirio | r is a particularly exciting addition to the district’s music programs, noted Amro’s Institutional Sales Director Gabe Statom. “Students in music and choral programs at the high school now have more resources than ever before,” he said. “With the Spirio | r functioning as an accompanist, faculty are free to move around the room and engage more productively with students. Faculty and students can also access Spirio’s extensive library of music and videos.”

“Faculty are free to move around the room and engage more productively with students.”

“Having the ability to record accompaniments and introduce my students to wonderful performances in my classroom every day has been amazing,” said Thomas Ardrey, Choral Director at Oxford High School. “Our new Model B Spirio | r has elevated the quality of our performances, and it will remain one of the greatest aspects of our program for years to come.”

“The Oxford School District has a long history of supporting the arts in any discipline,” said Brian Harvey, Oxford School District Superintendent. “It is a pleasure to partner with Steinway and Amro on the purchase of new pianos for all of our schools. We will forever cherish our designation as a Steinway Select School District.”