 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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Saturday, October 13, 2007
South Dakota--one amazing orchestra!
Many years ago, I had been in contact with the South Dakota Symphony. I had heard very nice things about their conductor, Henry Charles Smith. Although we had not had the pleasure to work together, I was able to connect with their current music director, Delta David Gier. I initially met Maestro Gier in Bridgeport, CT, when he was assisting his teacher, Gustav Meier. We kept our contacts up, and when it came time to approach orchestras and conductors to join the Lowell Liebermann Third Piano Concerto consortium, David was a natural fit.
The South Dakota Symphony has grown enormously from what they have shared with me. Their Executive Director, Tom Bennett, is a very experienced executive director and a really nice fellow, who has helped to raise this orchestra to new heights throughout the city, along with David in his musical aspirations. I had the special pleasure to get to know Mary Sommervold. Mary has helped enormously to bring the orchestra where it is today. The relatively new Washington Pavilion, is quite a stunning hall. Native quartz rock juxtaposing woods create a wonderful ambience along with purple seating. A former high school, they dug out the center of this building, added two stories and made it soundproof from the rest of the building. The orchestra has excellent musicians, and David has been able to maintain their excellence with standard repertoire, and introduce new works to the orchestra and the community. Sioux Falls is quite a lovely city, with some wonderful sculptures adorning the streets.
I am eagerly awaiting our performances this evening and tomorrow, and will report about it shortly thereafter.
posted by Jeffrey Biegel
3:35 PM
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