FALL 2020
1. Beethoven's 250th Anniversary Concerts - 32 Complete Piano Sonatas
To celebrate Ludwig van Beethoven's 250th birth Anniversary, 19 pianists are going to perform his entire 32 Piano Sonatas during fall 2020.
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Performers residing in US, Germany and S. Korea
Kyu Butler, Dr. Deago Caetano, Dr. Chia-Ying Chan, Dr. Ian Gindes, Dr. Samuel Gingher, Dr. Bouna Kim, Dr. Anne Marie Kuhny, Dr. Frank Kuhny, Dr. Huiyun Liang, Bomin Park, Dr. Yoon-Wha Roh, Dr. Peter Ryan, Dr. Tatiana Shustova, Tugce Tari-Roth, Dr. Pei-I Wang, Dr. Amanda Marie Wilson, Dr. Jiafeng Yan, Dr. Hyunki Yoon, & Faith Zuniga
2. African-American Composers Series
The work of African-American Composers' will be performed in three concerts in the fall of 2020 (9/26, 10/03, & 11/07). Performers from different countries and backgrounds will unite and harmonize together to speak in one voice. All donations during the concerts will be donated to the "Castle of Our Skins", (www.castleskins.org) a music organization dedicated to Black artistry through music. Please join us in listening to the neglected works of African-American composers' works, and stand together with them in music.
3. Alfonso Rendano
World Piano Teachers Association USA-Missouri hosts a special concert on an Italian composer Alfonso Rendano, a friend of Franz Liszt.
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7 Italian born pianists are playing his piano works.
Daniela Roma, Roberto Galletto, Paola Del Negro Plano, Francesca Durante, Costantino Catena, Maria Perrotta, & Giuseppe Maiorca.
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ALFONSO RENDANO (Carolei, 1853 – Roma 1931)
A leading figure on the European music scene of the late nineteenth century, Alfonso Rendano was a very successful pianist and a composer. He was born in Carolei, a small village on the outskirts of Cosenza on April 5, 1853, and immediately displayed a great love for music. An enfant prodige, who played like an angel, (as Thalberg put it!), when he was 10 he left Calabria to land at the "San Pietro a Majella" Conservatory in Naples.
His innate abilities, in fact, immediately struck Francesco Saverio Mercadante and, soon afterwards, Sigismund Thalberg, who took him under his protection and then introduced him to Gioacchino Rossini.
The encounter with Rossini would prove to be decisive for Rendano’s career. As a matter of fact, the distinguished musician immediately expressed a deep respect for him, introduced him into Paris salons and strived to get him a scholarship that would allow him to perfect his studies at the Leipzig Conservatory.
But it is above all thanks to Rossini’s interest that the young Calabrian pianist was able to attend the classes taught by George Mathias, Chopin's favorite pupil, thus deeply absorbing the musical expression of the great Polish composer.
Queen Victoria remained so enthralled by his perfect art as a performer that, in his honor, she reopened the Royal Palace of Windsor for the first time since the death of the Prince Consort, for him to perform his Quintet for strings and piano, together with the already famous violinist Joachim. He entertained a sincere and affectionate friendship with Franz Liszt who, on his part, admired and esteemed the young Calabrian musician. Liszt invited Rendano to Weimar, where he arranged for the Quintet to be performed at the Court of the Grand Duchy, during the Court Quartet contest, with Liszt himself turning the pages for Rendano during his performance. And not only that: at the Belvedere, the summer residence of the Grand Ducal family, his Concerto was performed, transcribed in the rare version for two pianos. Rendano was a remarkable artist. He died in Rome on 10 September 1931. In addition to his wonderful piano production, he left us other works that deserve to be remembered: his quintet for piano and strings, the concert for piano and orchestra and Consuelo, an opera inspired by French writer George Sand’s novel. The opera was performed in Italy for the first time at Turin’s Regio Theater in 1902 and critics described it as "masterly work with top-class musical content".
Alfonso Rendano invented the "independent pedal", or "Rendano pedal", which increased the piano's interpretative resources.
