University Artist Series presents international pianist Frederic Chiu
Janel Shoun |
To see CDs by Frederic Chiu, click here.
Lipscomb University welcomes one of classical music’s most innovative and ingenious performers, pianist Frederic Chiu, to dedicate the university’s new nine-foot Steinway concert grand piano in October.
The concert is free for Lipscomb students, faculty and staff. Tickets are available for pick-up at the Allen Arena box office, Monday through Friday 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Those interested are advised to come by the Arena box office and get their tickets early, as the show is expected to sell out. For more information, contact Marilyn Smith at 615.966.5929.
Cost of the performance for the public is $15 for adults and $7 for students. Tickets can be purchased through Ticketmaster.
Chiu, who has collaborated with Tennessee’s own Grammy-nominated bassist Edgar Meyer and popular classical violinist Joshua Bell, is known for bringing a wealth of non-traditional interests and influences into his intriguing style. His playing and music education draws on his Asian-American background, his love of cooking, an abiding interest in artificial intelligence and the ancient tradition of meditation.
This exciting and daring pianist has gained a lasting reputation for making old music new again, by playing well-known classical works through the lesser-known transcriptions of other music masters. His debut recording, for instance, featured Rachmaninoff’s transcription of Bach and Liszt’s transcription of Schubert, among others.
At the Lipscomb concert, Chiu will play Liszt’s notoriously difficult transcription of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, as well as etudes from Chopin's op. 25 and op. 10; Debussy's Cloches à travers les feuilles; Ravel's Une barque sur l'océan; and Prokofiev's op. 11 Toccata.
“For me transcriptions are a combining of personalities,” Chiu said in a 2006 article by Allan Kozninn. “There's always an added layer of interest. So when I was asked to play a Bach and Brahms recital at the Met, I wanted to include a Bach transcription of a Vivaldi concerto as well as some straight Bach… It's just very interesting to me to see what Bach chose to keep and what he chose to change.”
Jeremy Eichler wrote in the New York Times in February 2004: “(Mr. Chiu) demonstrated an impressive clarity of articulation and an ability to find lively colors and smart harmonic contours within the rapid stream of notes... Mr. Chiu met the demands for virtuoso display with his special combination of robust technique and pianistic intelligence.”
Chiu has toured in Europe and the United States with the Orchestre de Bretagne and Stefan Sanderling. In recital, he performs in the world's most prestigious halls including the Berlin Philharmonic, Kioi and Suntory Halls in Tokyo, Lincoln Center in New York and Kennedy Center in Washington DC. He has played with the Hartford Symphony, BBC Scottish Symphony, BBC Concert Orchestra and China National Symphony, among others.
With over 20 CDs on the market, his repertoire includes the complete work of Prokofiev as well as popular classics of Chopin and Liszt, with a special place for the piano transcription. Many have been singled out, such as "Record of the Year" by Stereo Review, "Top 10 Recordings" by the New Yorker, with raves from the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times.
Chiu will be the first Artist Series performer to play on Lipscomb University’s new nine-foot concert grand piano from Steinway. Lipscomb’s new addition “has a deep, rich and warm sound, particularly in the middle register,” said Professor of Music Jerome Reed, Lipscomb’s artist-in-residence who selected the piano at the Steinway factory in New York.
Lipscomb officials spent several months raising funds to purchase the concert grand piano. Only 2,500 Steinway grand pianos are created each year in America, and of those, only 500 are nine-foot concert grand pianos, said Bill Metcalfe, president of the Steinway Piano Gallery of Nashville.
The new Steinway will be just the latest in a string of major enhancements of the music program. In addition to the Ward Hall renovation last summer, a new music wing is under construction, with new rehearsal rooms and faculty offices, and another performance venue, Willard Collins Alumni Auditorium, is being renovated.