 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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Thursday, September 14, 2006
Creating Bridges
Upstate New York in Glens Falls. Charles Peltz, music director, has been doing some wonderful things here. We first met when we did a concert on Long Island several years ago with the Merrick Symphony--Prokofiev Third Piano Concerto. We've stayed in touch, and when I read that his orchestra was doing the World Premiere of Joan Tower's "Made in America", I thought instantly that he might be interested in the Lowell Liebermann Third Concerto Project--and he was. That's what brings us together for this weekend's opening season concert in Glens Falls.
Last night, one of the integral parts of the prelude to the orchestra concert was a chamber music concert of various players in different combinations ie flute/piano, clarinet solo and w/piano, cello/piano, horn trio, piano trio--to musically illustrate the bridge between two composers. It was illuminating, and I must say the Liebermann Piano Trio was played splendidly as was everything else on the program. Lowell admitted that since his files for some works were gone from his PC back in 2001, he had to re-write everything, then spent a few days on one new work and going full speed ahead for one week in writing his Piano Trio--no food, hardly any sleep--finished the double bar at 4am the morning of 9-11, and finally fell asleep. He remembered three days after 9-11 going outside on the Upper West Side and smelled a very strange odor, and went back to his aprtment. He then declined to compose for a period of time--it just didn't seem appropriate to him to reflect in musical terms of what had happened.
So composers out there, Charles Peltz is a strong advocate for new music.
posted by Jeffrey Biegel
10:18 AM
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
The Great Escape
While driving upstate New York today, I put a cd on of Ignaz Friedman, and another of various legendary pianists playing what they played best. It was awesome--the sheer magic of their pianism and the liberties they took in phrasing was so refreshing. What it reminded me most was that we are living in a world which is so troubled, and freedom is restrained--however troubled the world was during these pianists' lifetimes, as a whole, artists had complete freedom--and the media was not as 'in-your-face' as it is today. It was a wonderful escape to drive and listen to beautiful music--a missed note here and there--it didn't matter. The subtlety and freedom was something wonderful to embrace.
posted by Jeffrey Biegel
4:37 PM
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