Comstock Children's Chorus belt out historic songs

The din and confusion of students assembling resounds once again in Virginia City's Fourth Ward School as the Comstock Children's Chorus gathers on the hall stairs.

But their shyness and insecurities fade as they break into a familiar old chorus of the song, "School Days."

At the head of the class a petite, energetic blonde in Victorian garb prompts, urges and instructs. This teacher, composer and piano player has been gracing Virginia City's musical scene for 10 years now. Squeek Steele LaVake is a fixture on the Comstock.

Originally from Philadelphia, she and husband Roger lived in Jackson Hole, Wyo., but when the millionaires moved in and attitudes changed they decided to pull up roots. They were drawn to Virginia City by the history and its thriving artistic community.

"There are more pianists per capita in Virginia City than any place else in the U.S.," she noted, saying the same goes for pianos.

Another draw was the small-town atmosphere.

"Everyone knows everyone else," Squeek said. "The community isn't stratified. Young and old mix, and there is no newcomer prejudice here."

She berates the fact that there are a few too many hot dogs rolling on C Street, but then again that rustic quality is part of Virginia City's charm.

Another rub is the loss of the music program in the Storey County schools.

"I feel very proprietary about the children of Virginia City," she said, noting she teaches about 30 fourth-grade students through a grant from the Fourth Ward School, but the children need a broader background from the school system.

She calls it a tragedy that budgetary restraints that have forced the closure of the school music program in Storey County schools.

"Music does a lot to reinforce other academic skills such as reading, language, math, and even physical education," Squeek said, noting that there is documentation that test scores improve when children have a solid musical background.

But benefits evolve slowly over a number of years, so it's important musical training is provided for these children on a long-term basis through the school system.

She also noted that children's choirs were once a tradition on the Comstock.

"There were many children's choruses during the heyday of the Comstock era in the mid-nineteenth century," Squeek said.

She tries to give the children a feel for their historical culture by structuring her music programs around songs from the past.

She began her career as a pianist at the age of 3 with the help of her parents' player piano, pumping the rolls to the tunes of the twenties and thirties. Formal lessons didn't start until age 8, but by then she had developed the ability to play without benefit of written music.

She made her way into the Guinness Book of Records in 1988 by playing 1,852 songs from memory in a three-week period. She calls it ancient history, but the record still stands.

She describes herself as an "old hippie," but that can be amended.

Classically trained with a bachelor's in music from the Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio, Squeek acquired her master's in music from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. She also studied piano one year at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria.

Beyond that, her list of credits is exhaustive.

Dividing her time among teaching, performing, composing and accompanying, she is employed as an artist in residence with the Storey County school system. She teaches private piano lessons in Virginia City and Carson City and art appreciation at UNR. She was musical director for the local production of "Annie Get Your Gun" with Lacey J. Dalton at Piper's Opera House, and performs at the Gold Hill Hotel and Bucket Of Blood Saloon.

Her other free-lance occupation, writing compositions for documentaries, brought her the 1992 National Park Serivce Award for the video soundtrack that accompanies the documentary "Canyon Song."

Squeek will be performing with pianist Jane Theiss at the Brewery Arts Center on June 22 at 7 p.m. The two pianists will be performing their All American Program, which highlights the works of Barber, Copland, Joplin, Gershwin, and Gottschalk.

What: Squeek Steele LaVake at the Brewery

When: Thursday, June 22 at 7 p.m.

Where: The Brewery Arts Center