Bruce Levingston, Pianist

September 17, 7:30 pm

Pianist Bruce Levingston is one of today's leading figures in contemporary music. Many of the country's most important composers have written works for him including Philip Glass, Sebastian Currier and Pulitzer Prize winners William Bolcom, David Del Tredici, George Perle and Charles Wuorinen. His Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center world premiere performances of their works have won notable critical acclaim. The New Yorker describes him as "elegant and engaging", "a poetic pianist who has a gift for inventive - and glamorous - programming" while The New York Times calls his performances "graceful", "sensuous" and "hauntingly serene."  His CD "Portraits" received international critical praise. Classics Today lauded his "transcendent virtuosity and huge arsenal of tone color" while Germany's Klassic Magazin noted his "warm playing, deep understanding and intimate, richly colored sound."

Mr. Levingston's solo program for the Bologna Performing Arts Center will include works by Schubert, Beethoven, Debussy, Rachmaninoff and Liszt as well as a new work composed by the acclaimed 2009 Rome Prize winner Lisa Bielawa commissioned in honor and memory of Barbara Levingston.

In 2005, Mr. Levingston gave the world premiere of Philip Glass's acclaimed A Musical Portrait of Chuck Close at Lincoln Center, and, in 2006, the West Coast premiere at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. He has appeared as a soloist and chamber musician in many international music festivals and his recordings and performances have been broadcast throughout the world. His recent CD Portraits received international critical praise. Classics Today lauded his "transcendent virtuosity and huge arsenal of tone color" while Germany's Klassic Magazin noted his "warm playing, deep understanding and intimate, richly colored sound."

Noted for thoughtful programming, Mr. Levingston has performed and collaborated with some of the most interesting artists of our time including painter Chuck Close, actor/author Ethan Hawke, authors Michael Cunningham, Nick McDonell, and George Plimpton, composer/performers Lisa Bielawa and Philip Glass