Renovated piano lab honoring Ron Sprunger gifted to Department of Music
ASHLAND, Ohio – A chance meeting at a local coffee shop has led to the Ashland University Department of Music receiving a major facelift. The department’s Piano Lab—a classroom featuring 17 pianos on the third floor of the College of Arts and Sciences—received a complete renovation in 2025 to honor Ron Sprunger, a beloved professor emeritus of Ashland Theological Seminary.
Annette Hruby, owner and founder of The Hruby Group, was in awe when she first heard Sprunger playing his keyboard at a Biggby Coffee location in Ashland. Inspired by his songs “full of grace and blessing,” she boldly struck up a conversation with Sprunger and they, along with Ron’s wife Linda, quickly formed a special bond over music.
After getting to know the Sprungers, a devoted music ministry team, for just a few months, Hruby wanted to pay tribute to them in some way.
“(Ron’s) just inspirational, started talking about his whole career. It’s just amazing,” reflected Hruby. “Then, I decided I’d like to give back and asked him what I could do. It’s about his inspiration of giving.”
Hruby connected with Ron Blackley, a longtime colleague of Sprunger and current director of choral activities and professor of music at AU, and the concept of the Sprunger Piano Lab was born.
Thanks to a generous gift from The Hruby Group, the Sprunger Piano Lab now has 17 new pianos – 16 Yamaha Clavinova CLP-825’s for students to practice on and a Yamaha Clavinova CVP-701 for faculty. These top-of-the-line digital pianos offer grand piano sound and touch, natural key action and feel, Virtual Resonance Modeling sound technology, smart connectivity and many more features.
“This is the perfect honor for someone like Ron who has been a friend and colleague to me for almost 30 years. His mind is that of a 17-year-old who always wants to do something new and something new and something new,” remarked Blackley at the recent Sprunger Piano Lab dedication event. “Ron has been just a tremendous support for me, positive, encouraging, honest, irrepressibly excitable.”
While the new pianos are certainly the highlight, the classroom has a complete fresh look with bright new lighting, paint and carpeting.
“It was mainly about these (pianos) because they were way past their shelf life … it also became ‘Oh well, let’s get new carpet,’ ‘Oh well, let’s paint it,’ ‘Oh well, let’s do this and this and this,’ so the total effect of the improvement is complete,” Blackley added.
Blackley also noted the technological upgrade is a game changer for the faculty.
“These pianos have variable sound output capabilities. Each can be heard by everyone in the room, or just the student playing it or just the teacher, for example,” he explained. “Classes aimed at both music majors and non-music majors will use this piano lab as they hone their keyboard skills at any level.”
And, that was the motivation for Hruby’s gift – to give students the opportunity to enhance their talent using state-of-the-art digital pianos.
“For you students, I’m so excited for you,” she said. “Music is just amazing … what love it brings … so I just want to give back. It’s a gift you’ll have forever. I’m so envious. The beauty and the love that you share with friends and family … having that talent, you’ll have it forever.”
As for Sprunger, who taught worship design, hymnology and other church music-related courses at Ashland Theological Seminary and still writes original composition for piano and organ, he is thankful to be the inspiration behind the renovated Piano Lab.
“I’m humbled, I’m grateful,” said Sprunger. “It’s a gift from God, and it’s to his Glory and honor.”
Blackley believes the named classroom is the perfect way to recognize Sprunger’s dedication and service to AU and the broader Christian community.
“He is, at heart, a teacher, and this is a teaching room. It’s not a performance room,” commented Blackley. “He’s a musician, but also a guy who understands worship and how Biblical studies influences worship, how theological strains of different denominations would blend. There aren’t many people like him.”
