If you are looking for a unique event on Friday night, July 13, 2007, I advise you to attend the concert at Westport Town Hall featuring world renowned classical pianist Frederic Chiu and internationally acclaimed jazz pianist Bob James. This unusual partnership will feature Beethoven's Piano Sonatas, Symphony #6, and Improvisations.
You may remember that Mr. Chiu was the Artist-in-Residence for the Westport Art Center's “Mozart Project” and was instrumental in bringing his friend and musical collaborator, violinist Joshua Bell, to Westport for a memorable evening of music-making and discussion. His unusual piano playing and technique stems from his interest in artificial intelligence and psychology. He has received the Avery Fisher Career Grant, the Petscheck Award of the Juilliard School, and was a fellow of the American Pianist Association.
His recordings, which may be sampled from the Westport Library's collection, include his own Virtuoso Piano Transcriptions, Franz Liszt's Annees de Pelerinage, Sergey Prokofiev's Complete Music For Solo Piano, and Gioacchino Rossini's Piano Music.
Bob James' long illustrious jazz career involved great artists like Quincy Jones, Hank Crawford, Grover Washington, Jr., Earl Klugh, David Sanborn, and Lee Ritenour. He is the recipient of Grammy Awards, a Soul Train Award, and an Oasis Lifetime Achievement Award.
The Library invites you to listen to his albums Grand Piano Canyon and Straight Up.
