Washington International Piano Festival: Schedule

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WIPF is proud to present internationally acclaimed pianists as part of its concert series. The cost of tickets is included in the participants' tuition. The concerts are open to the community, and tickets to individual concerts can be purchased at the door or reserved by emailing us at washingtonpianofest@gmail.com.

Ticket Prices:
Adults: $20; Seniors and students: $10; CUA's students with a valid student ID: free admission

In addition, there will be three concerts (free and open to the public) presented by the 2010 WIPF participants - at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage on Thursday, July 29 and Friday, July 30 at 6:00 pm (auditions will be held on Wednesday, July 28) and the closing concert by WIPF participants on Saturday, July 31 at 11:00 am on campus of the Catholic University of America.


Boris Berman	Nikita Fitenko and Katerina Zaitseva Piano Duo	Thomas Hecht	Selected WIPF Participants' Concerts	Frederic Chiu
July 26, 7:30 pm Ward Recital Hall, Catholic Univeristy	July 27, 6:00 pm Kennedy's Center Millennium Stage (Free admission)	July 28, 7:30 pm Ward Recital Hall, Catholic Univeristy	July 29 & 30, 6:00 pm Kennedy's Center Millennium Stage (Free admission)	July 31, 4:00 pm Ward Recital Hall, Catholic Univeristy

Boris Berman
Monday, July 26, 7:30 pm
Ward Recital Hall on Campus of the Catholic University of America

click here to view the recital program

The artistry of Boris Berman is well known to the audiences of over forty countries on six continents. His highly acclaimed performances have included appearances with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Gewandhaus Orchestra, The Philharmonia (London), the Toronto Symphony, Israel Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, Houston Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, St. Petersburg Philharmonic, and the Royal Scottish Orchestra. A frequent performer on major recital series, he has also appeared in important festivals, such as Marlboro, Waterloo, Bergen, Ravinia and Israel Festival, to name a few.

Born in Moscow, Boris Berman studied at Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory with the distinguished pianist Lev Oborin and graduated with distinction as both pianist and harpsichordist. He performed extensively throughout the Soviet Union as a recitalist and appeared as guest soloist with numerous orchestras, including the Moscow Philharmonic and the Moscow Chamber orchestras.

In 1973, Boris Berman left a flourishing career in the Soviet Union to immigrate to Israel. He quickly established himself as one of the most sought-after keyboard performers, as well as one of this country's more influential musical personalities. Presently, he resides in USA.

Boris Berman has been the Founding Director of the Music Spectrum concert series in Israel (1975-84) and of the Yale Music Spectrum series in the USA (1984-1997). These concert series were hailed by the critics for the inventiveness of their programming.

Mr. Berman is an active performer of chamber music. He had appeared in numerous concerts and festivals with such artists and groups as Misha Maisky, Heinz Holliger, Aurele Nicolet, Shlomo Mintz, Gyorgy Pauk, Ralph Kirshbaum, Frans Helmerson, Natalia Gutman, Tokyo Quartet, Vermeer Quartet, The Netherland Wind Ensemble and many others.

A dedicated teacher of international stature, Boris Berman has served on the faculties of the world's finest schools, such as Indiana (Bloomington), Boston, Brandeis and Tel-Aviv universities. Currently, he heads the Piano Department at Yale School of Music . He also conducts master classes throughout the world. He has been the Founding Director of the Yale Summer Piano Institute (1990-92) and of the International Summer Piano Institute in Hong Kong (1995-97).

Mr Berman's ability to recognize and commitment to nurture young talents are obvious reasons for him being invited to join panels of jurors of various national and international competitions, such as those in Leeds, Dublin and the Artur Rubinstein Competition in Tel-Aviv.

In the field of recordings, Mr. Berman's acclaimed releases on Philips, Deutsche Gramophon and Melodia labels were followed upon with 2 CDs of all piano sonatas by Alexander Scriabin for the Music and Arts label and a recital of Shostakovich piano works (Ottavo recordings), which received the Edison Classic Award in Holland, the Dutch equivalent of the Grammy. The recording of three Prokofiev Concertos with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Neeme Jarvi conducting (Chandos) marked the beginning of an ambitious project of recording the complete Prokofiev solo piano works. The first pianist ever to undertake this task, Mr Berman has released it on nine Chandos CDs to great critical acclaim. In addition, Chandos has issued Mr. Berman's recitals of works by Debussy, Stravinsky, and Schnittke, as well as chamber music of Janacek, and - together with Orchestre de la Suisse Romande under Neeme Jarvi - Concerto by Stravinsky. Berman's most recent discography shows the breadth of his repertoire: a disc "Debussy for Children" (Ottavo); two releases of works for prepared piano by John Cage (Naxos), which was named the Top Recording by the BBC Music Magazine; the Grammy-nominated Piano Quintets of Shostakovich and Schnittke with Vermeer Quartet (Naxos); and, quite unexpectedly, a recording of Scott Joplin's Ragtimes (Ottavo). In the recently issued Naxos collection of complete Sequenzas by Luciano Berio, Berman plays Sequenza IV for piano. For the recording of Brahms Sonatas with the cellist Clive Greensmith (Biddulph label) he used a 1867 Bechstein piano.

In 2000, the prestigious Yale University Press has published Boris Berman's "Notes from the Pianist's Bench". In this book, Professor Berman draws on his vast experience as a performer and a teacher to explore issues of piano technique and music interpretation. The book has been translated to several languages. Mr. Berman is often invited to give lectures on these subjects in various universities and conferences around the world.

In the spring of 2008, Yale University Press has published Boris Berman's new book "Prokofiev's Piano Sonatas: A Guide for the Listener and the Performer". This book complements and is based on his highly praised recordings of this repertoire.

In 2007-2008, Mr. Berman appeared with orchestras, as well as in festivals and recitals, in USA, Japan, China, Thailand, Taiwan, Germany, Israel, Australia, Latvia, Italy, Bulgaria, Poland, England, Portugal, Spain, and Holland. Among the highlights of the season was his performance in the Carnegie Hall in New York on May 4, 2008 with Yale Philharmonia. This all-Prokofiev concert inaugurates the new Prokofiev Society of America, of which Mr. Berman is the Founding Co-President.

Nikita Fitenko and Katerina Zaitseva Piano Duo
Tuesday, July 27, 6:00 pm
Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage (FREE ADMISSION)

click here to view the recital program

Nikita Fitenko and Katerina Zaitseva have been playing as a duo since 2001. Hailed by critics for their "superlative sound, superlative interpretation, and superlative pianism…" (European Piano Teachers Association Journal), the duo has performed and presented masterclasses worldwide with most recent appearances at the Yamaha Hall (NYC), Piano Duo Festival (Tokyo, Japan), Nancyphonies Music Festival (Nancy, France), University of Florida Young Pianists Festival, Berkeley University (California, USA), as well as at Seocho District Hall and Yonsei University (South Korea). In the review of their performance of the Hungarian Dances by Brahms and Slavonic Dances by Dvorak at Nancyphonies Festival, the music critic wrote: "Zaitseva and Fitenko created music that breathed without extravagance…the four hands putting clarity between the notes which made ribbons fly, lace dance, and wooden floors crack" (L'EST REPUBLICAIN, France). The duo's wide and diverse repertoire includes works of different styles ranging from the Classical to the music of the twentieth century. Their critically acclaimed CD featuring works for piano four hands by Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms was released internationally by the Classical Records label and available through Amazon.

Thomas Hecht
Wednesday, July 28, 7:30 pm
Ward Recital Hall on Campus of the Catholic University of America

click here to view the recital program

American pianist Thomas Hecht has appeared on five continents as soloist, chamber musician and as a member of the internationally acclaimed duo-piano team of Hecht & Shapiro, winners of the Munich International Two Piano Competition and the USA National Duo Piano Competition. He has performed in many of the world's cultural centers, appearing with leading orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony, Stuttgart Symphony Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Orchestra, Johannesburg Festival Orchestra, Singapore Symphony Orchestra and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. Highlights of recent tours include performances at the Lincoln Center in New York, the Berlin Philharmonic Hall, the Kennedy Center in Washington, and recitals in Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Italy, Serbia & Montenegro, South Africa, and throughout all the major centers of Australia and New Zealand.

Dr. Hecht is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory where he won first prize in the concerto competition and the Kaufmann Award for excellence in chamber music. Later he was accepted for graduate studies at the Peabody Institute as a student of Leon Fleisher, who was so impressed with the young pianist's abilities that was soon asked to become his mentor’s teaching assistant, an honor which Fleisher - one of the great pianists of our time - had never before bestowed on any pianist. His merits and many noteworthy achievements were recently celebrated at Peabody where he was presented with the coveted Young Maestro Award, honoring alumni who have distinguished themselves in their performing careers.

Dr. Hecht also enjoys a well-deserved reputation as one of the leading teachers of his generation, having produced a multitude of first prizewinners in competitions throughout the United States, Europe, Russia, and now Australasia. He has served on the jury panels of the Geneva and Gina Bachauer International Piano Competitions in addition to the national piano competitions of Japan, Thailand, Australia and South Africa. He receives regular invitations to summer piano festivals, including performances in Sydney, Beijing, Wellington and Brasov (where he was recently named Honorary Professor of Piano at the University of Transylvania), and continues to be in frequent demand for guest lectures, workshops and music conferences throughout the world. Thomas Hecht is a Steinway Artist and records for the Azica, Elysium & Atoll Labels.

Selected WIPF Participants' Concerts at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage (FREE ADMISSION)
Thursday, July 29, 2010 at 6:00 pm
Friday, July 30, 2010 at 6:00 pm

Kennedy Center Both concerts, which will be directly webcasted online at www.kennedy-center.org, will be presented by the 2010 WIPF selected participants and will include both solo and piano ensemble music.

Auditions (free and open to public) will be held on Wednesday, July 28 at Ward Recital Hall on CUA's campus. Time TBA.

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO WIPF PARTICIPANTS: Due to time limitations, we recommend to select a piece (group of pieces) that is 5-10 minutes in length.

WIPF Participants' Closing Concert
Saturday, July 31, 2010 at 11:00 am
Ward Recital Hall on Campus of the Catholic University of America (FREE ADMISSION)

Frederic Chiu
Saturday, July 31, 2010 at 4:00 pm
Ward Recital Hall on Campus of the Catholic University of America

click here to view the recital program

Frederic Chiu Frederic Chiu's intriguing piano-playing and teaching springs from a diverse set of experiences and interests - his Asian/American/ European background, his musical training, and an early and ongoing exploration of artificial intelligence and human psychology, especially the body-mind-heart connection.

With over 20 CDs on the market, his repertoire includes the complete work of Prokofiev as well as popular classics of Chopin, Liszt and otheres, and lesser known masterpieces of Mendelssohn and Rossini, 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.

Frederic Chiu has toured in Europe and the US with the Orchestre de Bretagne and Stefan Sanderling. He has played with the Hartford Symphony, Dayton Philharmonic, Kansas City Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, BBC Scottish Symphony, BBC Concert Orchestra, Estonia National Symphony, China National Symphony, among others. 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. Mr. Chiu's musical partners include Joshua Bell, Pierre Amoyal, Gary Hoffman, David Krakauer, Matt Haimovitz and the St. Lawrence and Shanghai string quartets.

Frederic Chiu recently premiered Edgar Meyer’s Concert Piece with Joshua Bell. He has worked with many composers, including George Crumb, Frederick Rzewsky, Bright Sheng, Gao Ping, David Benoit.

He was the recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant, the Petscheck Award of the Juilliard School, and was a fellow of the American Pianist Association. He was also the "non-winner" of the 1993 Van Cliburn Competition, where his elimination from the finals caused an uproar in the press

Frederic Chiu is also committed to expanding the place of classical music. He has created unusual collaborations with personalities outside the world of Classical music, such as the Shakespearean actor Brian Bedford and psychologist/ writer/clown Howard Buten. He worked with the hip-hop artist Socalled in the Messiaen Remix project. He does extensive work with children through concert/lectures for schools, and has brought classical music to places where it is rarely heard.

Deeper Piano Studies, Frederic Chiu’s innovative workshop program, brings together pianists from around the world to study aspects of piano playing usually left uncovered. Artlces in Piano Today and the New York Times have featured his original approach to learning and performing that draws on ancient traditions of philosophy and meditation combined with the most recent discoveries in psychology and acoustic sciences, using non-traditional techniques such as cooking and learning without using the instrument. Frederic Chiu has been invited to many prestigious music schools and conservatories to present his DPS program, including the Juilliard School, New England Conservatory, Mannes College. He has also been guest artist at many state and national Teachers’ Conferences.

After 12 years spent in France, Frederic Chiu recently returned to the United States, where any free time he can find is divided between writing, painting and cooking.

Yamaha is the official piano of the Washington International Piano Festival