Arts Advocacy

Arts Awareness and Advocacy Award

This award is presented to a UMTA member, UMTA chapter, community member, or organization who has exemplified exceptional dedication to the betterment of music and the arts culture.

2025 Arts Awareness and Advocacy Award
Juliet Gamero Preston

Juliet Gamero Preston grew up in Utah in a home filled with music – from her father’s Spanish guitar playing to her mother’s Chopin waltzes, practiced in the early hours of the morning while a student of Solveig Madsen. Juliet would also become a student of Solveig’s and graduate from the U of U in Piano Performance where she balanced preparing Prokofiev sonatas while playing Sondheim musicals for Pioneer Theater productions where she worked. As a graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin, she performed classical recitals and played with rock and jazz bands around Texas. 

Juliet joined UMTA as a teenage piano teacher and has since served as president of local chapters and on the state board as AIM Chairman and Collegiate Chapter Chairman, producing events such as the Utah Valley Monster Concert and the Duet Derby. She has been a presenter at conferences for MTNA, NCKP and other workshops around the country. As a composer, she recently launched her website JulietPrestonMusic.com to distribute her works for solo piano, 6-hand piano, and sacred choral music. Active as a performer, she has performed with Missoula Symphony Orchestra, Great Falls Symphony, Timpanogos Chamber Music and First Night Missoula, and co-formed the Collaborative Pianists Guild of Utah (cpgu.org)  to promote excellence in accompanying and provide educational resources for the collaborative community in Utah.

Juliet teaches piano at Utah Valley University while maintaining a recording studio in Orem with her husband Billy Preston. They have released albums of original music for the band memoryfield (memoryfield.net), and you can see her “rock alter ego” in videos on their YouTube channel. 

2024 Arts Awareness and Advocacy Award
Skip Daynes

Gerald Rich “Skip” Daynes has made a profound and positive impact on the local and regional community in Utah. It is said that he sold more Steinway Pianos than any other person in history. He had a passion for the arts, music in the schools, and civic responsibility. He was an avid supporter of the Utah Symphony, Utah Opera and Ballet West. He was the major sponsor of the Gina Bachauer Piano Competition and the Moab Music Festival. Both likely would not exist without Skip’s patronage. He was a lifelong member of Rotary and served as it’s president. He served on multiple boards and committees throughout the Salt Lake Valley.

Skip was a great advocate of UMTA donating space and pianos at Daynes Music Store for chapter meetings, competitions, performance evaluations, and State Board meetings. He understood the importance of music education and was always on the forefront of any action that supported the private music teacher as well as state music organizations. Daynes music has supplied the two Steinway pianos needed for the UMTA State Conference, free of charge, for decades. This also included covering the cost of transporting and tuning the pianos, a considerable donation of time and revenues.

Skip came from a pioneer heritage. His Grandfather was Brigham Young’s watch maker. Skip’s Grandfather opened up Daynes Music store, which was the oldest retail business in Utah and the oldest Steinway piano dealer west of New York City. Opening and running the business gave Skip’s Father, a very talented musician, the opportunity to start selling musical instruments. When Skip got older, he was sent to work with his Uncle Tom Jeremy, on the Jeremy Ranch, up in Park City, to learn how to work hard and to discourage Skip from entering the piano business. Skip learned to ride horses and keep track of cows.

While Skip attended the University of Utah, Skip purchased the Daynes Music store, from his Father. At that time the business was in the red and it took Skip a lot of drive and ability to make it a productive going enterprise again. Skip was probably the best salesperson his co-workers had ever known in their lives. “He wouldn’t take no for an answer and if Skip feels somebody needs a piano, he would go out of his way to make sure that person gets a piano.” Skip sold band instruments and guitars for a while, and also stereo and TVs to help the retail store “get back on it’s feet.” Skip made friends with everybody who came into the store. He helped his employees to prepare and deliver the pianos. He liked to stay involved with every aspect of his business.

Skip has personally been involved with musical art organizations throughout the State. He felt that music is therapeutic, and is the foundation of every city. He helped numerous schools obtain pianos, including the University of Utah. “He seldom broke even, but put those tools and resources into those schools, so students can be more successful!” “Skip was somebody that loved people, loved the arts, loved music, and that is a wonderful combination.” “It’s easy to make a living, but it’s tough to make a difference. Skip Daynes made a difference everyday of his life.”

2023 Arts Awareness and Advocacy Award
Christian Bohnenstengal

Pianist Christian Bohnenstengel feels equally at home in a wide range of musical genres.

Christian just performed the Carnival of the Animals with the Orchestra of Southern Utah for their Children’s Jubilee concert (an afternoon outreach concert with many activities for kids such as an instrument petting zoo; the other pianist was one of his college students). He also provides and plays the harpsichord for the annual Messiah performances of the Orchestra of Southern Utah.

A couple of former students and Christian planned and performed in a benefit concert for Allies2Refugees this past spring in the 900 seat Heritage Center Theater. Last spring, Christian also took their piano ensemble to perform at the Saint George Tabernacle.

Dr. Nancy Allred from Utah Tech University and Christian have been organizing and hosting the annual Southern Utah Piano Pedagogy Conference (alternately at Utah Tech and Southern Utah University). Their goal has been to offer the “conference experience” to local teachers who are otherwise not able to travel to major conferences.

Christian regularly performs for the Cedar City Art Walks during the summer and frequently provides jazz music for show openings and other special events at local art galleries. These are all service activities and free of charge.

Praised as “a master of contrasts” (Aalener Nachrichten) and for his ability to “put the audience into a state of sheer awe” (Gmünder Tagespost), Christian’s performances have taken him all over the United States, to South America, Asia, and to Europe. Christian is a founding member of Southern Utah University’s faculty jazz combo Kind of Blue, and he frequently performs with different jazz ensembles and combos.

Christian has performed on public radio, and he has presented at state, regional, national and international conferences. David DeBoer Canfield (Fanfare Magazine) remarked about his Albany Records CD Set No Limits with clarinetist Dr. Jessica Lindsey that the “piano parts are superbly rendered by Christian Bohnenstengel, whose artistry also greatly impresses me.” His latest recordings are Jazz Hands II with the Shawn Owens Project Trio and Southern Utah Jazz Collective.

Christian has been Director of Keyboard Studies at Southern Utah University since 2011. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Missouri Western State University, and he earned Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Christian founded the MTNA collegiate chapter at SUU, and he served as chair for collegiate programs on the UMTA state board.