Peter Serkin joins The Brandenburg Ensemble at The Bushnell
Contact: Amanda Savio (860) 987-6068; e-mail: amanda_savio@bushnell.org
March 4, 2003; HARTFORD, CT - Pianist Peter Serkin will perform with The Brandenburg Ensemble at The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts' Belding Theater on Saturday, March 22, 2003, at 7:30 p.m. as part of the Webster Classical Series. The concert is part of a special project with conductor Jaime Laredo's Brandenburg Ensemble, with Serkin performing select keyboard concerti of J.S. Bach. Tickets are $28.00-$55.00 and can be purchased at The Bushnell Box Office, located at 166 Capitol Avenue in Hartford, or by calling (860) 987-5900. Tickets are also available through The Bushnell's website, www.bushnell.org. Groups of 10 or more may contact (860) 987-5959.
About Peter Serkin -Recognized as an artist of passion and integrity, American pianist Peter Serkin is one of the most thoughtful and individualistic musicians appearing before the public today. Throughout his career he has successfully conveyed the essence of four centuries of musical repertoire, and his performances with symphony orchestras, recital appearances, chamber music collaborations, and recordings are respected worldwide. Serkin's rich musical heritage extends back several generations: his grandfather was violinist and composer Adolf Busch, and his father pianist Rudolf Serkin. In 1958, at age 11, he entered the Curtis Institute of Music where he was a student of Lee Luvisi, Mieczyslaw Horszowski, and Rudolf Serkin. He later continued his studies with Ernst Oster, Marcel Moyse, and Karl Ulrich Schnabel. Serkin has performed with the world's major symphony orchestras and has collaborated with Alexander Schneider, Pamela Frank, Yo-Yo Ma, the Budapest String Quartet, Guarneri String Quartet, Orion String Quartet and TASHI, of which he was a founding member.
Ranging from Bach to Berio, Serkin's recordings reflect his distinctive musical vision. The Ocean that has no West and no East, released by Koch Records, contains compositions by Webern, Wolpe, Messiaen, Takemitsu, Knussen, Lieberson and Wuorinen. Other recent recordings include Peter Lieberson's piano concerto Red Garuda with the Toronto Symphony and his Rilke Songs with mezzo-soprano Lorraine Hunt Lieberson for Bridge Records, the Brahms violin sonatas with Pamela Frank for London Records and Dvorák's Piano Quintet with the Orion String Quartet for Arabesque.
About the Brandenburg Ensemble - The Brandenburg Ensemble was founded in 1973 by Frank Salomon to bring together some of the country's finest concert artists and chamber music players under the inspired direction of the late Alexander Schneider. Devoted to the performance of great music and the presentation of outstanding young soloists, the ensemble plays for only a few audiences each season, sharing with them their joy in making music.
The Brandenburg Ensemble has performed throughout the Northeastern and Midwestern United States, at the Bermuda Festival, and in Japan, where they presented four different programs in eight concerts during the opening season of the Pablo Casals Concert Hall in Tokyo in 1987. They have appeared regularly on Lincoln Center's "Great Performers" series and the BankBoston Celebrity Series, and in the 1999-2000 season made their first appearance at Carnegie Hall in a concert celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Jaime Laredo's Carnegie Hall debut, which followed his receipt of the gold medal at the Queen Elisabeth of Belgium Competition in Brussels at the age of 17.
The Brandenburg Ensemble has continued the tradition of introducing exceptional young soloists, presenting them in collaboration with master artists. Among the artists who have appeared as soloists with the Brandenburg Ensemble are pianists Rieko Aizawa, Emanuel Ax, Yefim Bronfman, Cecile Licad, Yoko Nozaki, Murray Perahia and Andras Schiff, as well as violinists Pamela Frank, Jaime Laredo and Scott St. John. Also featured have been wind and brass soloists including flutists Marya Martin, Paula Robison and Carol Wincenc, clarinetist Richard Stoltzman, and trumpeters Stephen Burns and Gerard Schwarz. Vocal soloists have included soprano Benita Valente and mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade.
About The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts - The Bushnell is Connecticut's premier performing arts center, hosting more than 450 events yearly, including major Broadway tours, symphony orchestras, family presentations, local arts and community events. In November 2001, The Bushnell completed a $45 million expansion project that added a second, 908-seat theater to the existing historic structure. The new, state-of-the-art performance hall allows for expanded arts, entertainment and community offerings. The Bushnell's nationally-recognized arts-in-education program, PARTNERS (Partners in Arts and Education Revitalizing Schools), is a cross-community educational effort serving 40 schools in 17 districts throughout the Greater Hartford area. The Bushnell opened in January 1930 and is a non-profit organization.