 The career of pianist Jeffrey Biegel has been marked by bold, creative achievements and highlighted by a series of firsts.
He performed the first live internet recitals in New York and Amsterdam in 1997 and 1998, enabling him to be seen and heard by a global audience. In 1999, he assembled the largest consortium of orchestras (over 25), to celebrate the millennium with a new concerto composed for him by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The piece, entitled 'Millennium Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra', was premiered with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. In 1997, he performed the World Premiere of the restored, original 1924 manuscript of George Gershwin's 'Rhapsody in Blue' with the Boston Pops. Charles Strouse composed a new work titled 'Concerto America' for Biegel, celebrating America and honoring the heroes and events of 9-11. Biegel premiered the piece with the Boston Pops in 2002. He transcribed the first edition of Balakirev's 'Islamey Fantasy' for piano and orchestra, which he premiered with the American Symphony Orchestra in 2001, and edited and recorded the first complete set of all '25 Preludes' by Cesar Cui.
Currently, he is assembling the first global consortium for the new 'Concerto no. 3 for Piano and Orchestra' being composed for him by Lowell Liebermann for 2005-06-07. The World Premiere will take place with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Andreas Delfs on May 12-14 2006, followed by the European Premiere with the Schleswig Holstein Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Gerard Oskamp, February 6-9, 2007.
Biegel is currently on the piano faculty at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music at Brooklyn College, at the City University of New York (CUNY) and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY).
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Monday, May 23, 2005
Why do we bother?
In recent times, with the exception of horrific attacks in key parts of the world against our military and allies, at home, we have had relative peace. This could explain why we have delved deeper into commissioning new works for the future, learning new music, planning for future schedules, writing new music that will wait to be published and then performed in two years--but there's always the bug in the back of the mind--what if?? What if something else happens close to home? Then there's the guilt--how can we do these new projects for the future--while there are people sacrificing their lives on the other side of the world? How can we compose a beautiful melody--and perform works of beauty while faced with daily news of strife, death and always wondering when something else might happen closer to home? Tough questions to answer, perhaps. Perhaps we continue to challenge ourselves as human beings, no matter what.
posted by Jeffrey Biegel
6:27 AM
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