News stories tagged with "piano"

(05/11/12) Award-winning New Zealand pianist Nicola Melville will give two concerts in Elizabethtown this weekend. On Saturday and Sunday, she'll perform piano rags of William Albright at the Hand House as part of the Piano by Nature music series. Melville has performed around the world and teaches at Carleton College in Minnesota. She's also a faculty member at the Chautauqua Summer Music Festival. Todd Moe has this preview.

(01/19/12) The Canadian play, 2 Pianos, 4 Hands, has played on five continents and in more than 150 cities since it first opened 15 years ago. Its success worldwide is due to its universal themes of dreams and discipline.

The set consists of two grand pianos, and the cast is just two actors. It's a simple show, ostensibly about piano lessons, that's moving, profound and lots of fun. It was written and first performed by Ted Dykstra and Richard Greenblatt, both brilliant actors and pianists. They're back on stage at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa this month for the farewell tour.

2 Pianos, 4 Hands continues through Saturday, January 28th at the National Arts Centre's English Theatre. NCPR's resident theater critic Connie Meng and Todd Moe share a review of the show.

(12/28/11) Crane School of Music professor of piano Paul Wyse has mastered two art forms. He's a classically trained concert pianist and also paints portraits. Earlier this month, he unveiled a full-length portrait of "piano man" Billy Joel in New York City. The artist joined the bestselling musician to unveil the painting at Steinway Hall. Paul Wyse was commissioned by Steinway and Sons to paint Joel's portrait. Two of Wyse's portraits of award-winning pianist and conductor Leon Fleischer are part of the Smithsonian's permanent collection in Washington D.C.

Wyse has performed at the piano on the concert stage around the world and his oil portraits hang in public and private collections and appear in national publications.

So, how does a classically trained concert pianist become an award winning visual artist? "It's hard to explain," says Wyse. But he adds that it's not uncommon for musicians who study the structure of a symphony to use those same skills in the visual arts.

During a visit to his portrait studio in his home near Prescott, Ontario, he told Todd Moe that the mystery of transforming cloth and pigment into something that is looking back at you is powerful, alluring, and part of the compulsion to paint.

(08/02/11) Crane School of Music professor of piano Paul Wyse has mastered two art forms. He's a classically trained concert pianist and also paints portraits. Two of Wyse's recent portraits of pianist and conductor Leon Fleisher have become part of the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian.

He's performed at the piano on the concert stage around the world, and his oil portraits hang in public and private collections and appear in national publications.

So, how does a classically trained concert pianist become an award winning visual artist? "It's hard to explain," says Wyse. But he adds that it's not uncommon for musicians who study the structure of a symphony to use those same skills in the visual arts.

During a visit to his portrait studio in his home near Prescott, Ontario, he told Todd Moe that the mystery of transforming cloth and pigment into something that is looking back at you is powerful, alluring, and part of the compulsion to paint.

(06/28/11) Italian pianist Francesco Attesti gives a benefit concert Wednesday night (7 pm) at the Clayton Opera House. The concert, sponsored by local Rotary clubs, will feature selections from Chopin, Liszt and Verdi. The recital will benefit ShelterBox, a worldwide disaster relief organization. Todd Moe spoke with Rotary volunteer Tom Deuson, of Henderson, who helped organize the concert. Deuson says ShelterBox was founded by Rotarians.

(03/09/11) A world-renowned jazz pianist with a strong North Country connection returns this weekend to give workshops in Keene, Canton and Potsdam as well as three live performances. Joel Hurd has a preview.

(02/11/11) One of the greatest pianists of the 21st century will give a recital of music by Schubert at SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music on Saturday night. Emanuel Ax is an internationally acclaimed seven-time Grammy Award-winning pianist known for his poetic temperament and unsurpassed virtuosity. Joel Hurd has a preview.

(09/10/10) 16 pianists from around the world are in Cape Vincent this weekend for the 8th annual Thousand Islands International Piano Competition for Young People. It's sponsored by the Cape Vincent Arts Council and the Chopin Society of the Thousand Islands. Co-chair Liz Brennan told Todd Moe that the competition will be held under a tent on the historic grounds of the Maple Grove estate.

(08/18/10) The Thousand Islands Playhouse, in Gananoque, Ontario is hosting a series of recitals and conversations with musicians on Tuesday nights (8 pm) this summer. It's an opportunity to listen to classical music as the sun sets over the St. Lawrence River. Todd Moe spoke with pianist Gilles Vonsattel about his favorite music and composers. Vonsattel is a rising star in the classical piano world and has performed solo recitals and chamber concerts from San Francisco to Warsaw. He's preparing for a recital on August 31st in Gananoque that will include music by Beethoven and Debussy.

(03/06/09) Lake Placid teen pianist Joey Izzo wowed the crowd at the Saranac Lake Winter Carnival last month. He's 14 and balances his time between home schooling, skiing, mountain biking and music. He joined us live in the studio for music and conversation.