Pianist continues celebration of College's Centennial
Connecticut College turned 100 last year and celebrations of the Centennial have continued into 2012. The next Centennial event is "The Centenarian Piano: Music Around 1911," featuring Adjunct Assistant Professor of Music Kumi Ogano, performing pieces written around 1911 by various composers from all over the world working in a variety of styles. The concert is at 8 p.m. on Friday, April 13, in Evans Hall of Cummings Arts Center. Among the artists Ogano selected for her diverse program are Ravel, Debussy, Bartok, Rachmaninoff and Joplin. "Bartok compositions are considered modern works but the piece I'll be performing shows late Romantic color," she explained. "Debussy and Ravel are French Impressionist composers whose two works in the program are both written in waltz form, which will make an interesting comparison. Rachmaninoff was considered a late Romantic composer and his 'Etudes Tableaux' are samples of his gorgeous pianism. And Scott Joplin is an African-American composer who is popular for his various ragtime pieces." The New York Times has praised Ogano's playing as "gracefully voiced, sensitively shaped and richly emotional." She has appeared with major orchestras including the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony, the Tokyo Philharmonic, the Japan Philharmonic, the Bergen Philharmonic and the Budapest Philharmonic, and frequently appears on radio and television programs throughout Japan, Belgium, Norway, Hungary, Poland and the U.K. Tickets are $10 for general admission, $5 for seniors and other students, and free to Connecticut College students, staff and faculty. A reception will follow the concert.
April 10, 2012