Ithaca College's annual Rachel S. Thaler Concert Pianist Series will bring eminent pianist Stewart Goodyear to campus for a free concert on Friday, September 12. Beginning at 8:15 p.m. in Ford Hall in the James J. Whalen Center for Music, the program will offer a Mozart sonata, Ravel's "Gaspard de la Nuit," Samuel Barber's "Excursions," and Rachmaninoff's second sonata. Goodyear will also present a master class on Saturday, September 13, at 11:00 a.m. in the Hockett Family Recital Hall in the Whalen Center.
Known for imagination, exquisite technique, and a graceful, elegant style, Stewart Goodyear is an accomplished young artist whose career spans many genres -- concerto soloist, chamber musician, recitalist, and composer. He has been called "a knockout" by the Cincinnati Post and "breathtaking" by the San Francisco Chronicle.
Goodyear has performed with many of the major orchestras of the world, including five separate appearances with the Philadelphia Orchestra. In addition to appearances with the New York Philharmonic and the Montreal, Chicago, and Pittsburgh symphonies, Goodyear has shared the stage with the San Francisco Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.
In addition to his talents as a pianist, Goodyear is a composer and frequently performs his own works. His solo piano work, "Variations on 'Eleanor Rigby,'" premiered at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in 2000, and his piano sonata has received continual acclaim by critics and audiences alike.
Established in 1991 in honor of a talented pianist and longtime Ithaca College supporter, the Rachel S. Thaler Concert Pianist Series has brought to the College such world-class virtuosos as Awadagin Pratt, Yefim Bronfman, Gilbert Kalish, and Garrick Ohlsson. For more information about Ithaca College School of Music concerts, visit www.ithaca.edu/concerts or call 607-274-3717.
