MEET THE SOLOIST: Jeffrey Biegel

Pianist Jeffrey Biegel performs Peter Boyer's "Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue," & Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue"

March 14 at 6:30PM & March 15 at 7:30PM

Background:  Considered one of the world's most prolific pianists, Jeffrey Biegel, respected for his incomparable interpretations of standard repertoire, continues to make history by commissioning more than 25 works for piano and orchestra by living composers. In November 2024, Mr. Biegel's recording of Jake Runestad's  Dreams of the Fallen with True Concord Voices and Orchestra on the Reference Recordings® label, received a GRAMMY® nomination for Best Choral Performance, a work reflecting lives of surviving veterans, poems by Iraq War veteran, Brian Turner. Mr. Biegel's life takes its roots from age three, barely able to hear nor speak, until corrected by surgery. The 'reverse Beethoven' phenomenon explains his lifelong commitment to music, having heard only vibrations in his formative years. Recent premieres include Jim Stephenson's Piano Concerto, Daniel Perttu's  A Planets Odyssey for piano and orchestra, Farhad Poupel's  The Legend of Bijan   and Manijeh for piano, orchestra and chorus, and Christopher Marshall's  Thanksgiving Variations on We Gather Together. The 50-state 'Rhapsody National Initiative' was launched with the World Premiere by the Utah Symphony with Peter Boyer's  Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue, followed with the World Premiere recording with the London Symphony Orchestra on the Naxos Records label. The 2024-25 season brings Mr. Biegel to the Pacific Symphony with Music Director Carl St. Clair for the World Premiere of Adolphus Hailstork's Concerto no. 3, and the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra in fall 2025 for the World Premiere of James Lee III's Concerto in A celebrating the centennial of George Gershwin's Concerto in F. On the horizon is Melissa Manchester's  AWAKE!  for piano and orchestra, date tba.

Moravian College in Bethlehem, PA, conferred the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters upon Mr. Biegel in 2015, for his achievements in performance, recordings, chamber music, champion of new music, composer, arranger and educator. In 2019, Kenneth Fuchs's  Piano Concerto: Spiritualist with the London Symphony Orchestra led by JoAnn Falletta received a Grammy Award for Best Classical Compendium, featuring Mr. Biegel as its soloist. In 2019, the first digital recordings were released on Mr. Biegel's Naturally Sharp label:  Cyberecital: An Historic Recording, A Pianist's Journey, and the September 2021 release of George Gershwin's  Rhapsody in Blue 1924 version with the Adrian Symphony Orchestra, Bruce Kiesling conducting.

He studied at The Juilliard School with Adele Marcus, herself a pupil of Josef Lhevinne and Artur Schnabel, and is currently on faculty at the Conservatory of Music at Brooklyn College.

Tickets start at $20! Click HERE or call 401-248-7000 to purchase today!