Southeastern Piano Festival to host Russian virtuoso Olga Kern June 8-14

Since its inception in 2003, the Southeastern Piano Festival has grown in both prestige and popularity, establishing itself as one of the premier cultural events in the region.

Now in its sixth year, the festival is moving into the Koger Center to bring Olga Kern, winner of the 2001 Van Cliburn Competition and one of the world’s most renowned pianists, to a large audience in the Southeast.

The festival will include open lessons and an array of concerts, open panel discussions and lectures. The highlight will be two concerts by Russian virtuoso Kern.

Kern began studying piano at the age of five. She attended the Moscow Central School, the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory and Accademia Pianistica Incontri col Maestro in Imola, Italy. Kern won the Rachmaninoff International Piano Competition when she was 17, and she first competed at the Van Cliburn in 1997 at the age of 22. After failing to medal at her first Van Cliburn, she reinvented herself and returned a new artist. In 2001, Kern became the first woman to win the Van Cliburn in more than 30 years. Since winning the Van Cliburn, Kern has become one of the piano world’s biggest stars, receiving acclaim across the globe.

“When my manager asked if I was interested in participating in the Southeastern Piano Festival, I thought it sounded interesting,” Kern said. “The festival is different. It has the whole package: concerts, master classes and a competition. This is the first time that I will fill the role of performer, teacher and judge at one event, and I am excited to share what I know with the students.”

The first opportunity to see Kern perform will be at 7 p.m. Monday, June 9. Kern will perform an intimate solo recital in the School of Music’s recital hall. A reception will follow. Seating is limited, so advanced ticket purchase is essential. Tickets are $50 for adults, $30 for MTNA members and senior citizens and $20 for students.

Tickets for the concert are available by contacting Jesseca Smith at 803-576-5763 or jesmith@mozart.sc.edu or through the School of Music, located at 813 Assembly St.

The Koger Center for the Arts will host Kern’s second performance on Thursday, June 12. The artist showcase concert will begin at 8 p.m. and will feature the School of Music’s Conductors Institute Orchestra under the direction of Maestro Donald Portnoy. The featured selection will be Rachmaninoff’s “Piano Concerto No. 2.” Tickets are $25 for adults, $15 for MTNA members and senior citizens and $10 for students. Tickets for this concert are available through the Carolina Coliseum box office or by calling 803-251-2222.

The festival also features Douglas Humphreys, chairman of the piano department at the Eastman School of Music and director of the Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition and Festival. Two winners of the Hilton Head International Piano Competition also will participate in the festival. Hong Xu won second place in the 2004 competition, and Eric Zuber won the competition in 2007.

Paul Pollei, founder and director of the Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation in Salt Lake City, Utah, will be the guest lecturer of the new Marian Stanley Tucker Lecture Series. This lecture series recognizes a piano teacher in Columbia who has taught for 60 years. Tucker’s students total in the thousands, including many sons and daughters of governors and prominent South Carolina residents. The series, honoring Tucker’s legacy, is intended to offer piano professionals and connoisseurs free educational workshops taught by some of the top piano authorities in the country.

The festival offers its young participants the rare opportunity to interact and learn from some of the world’s great piano talents. A select group of young musicians, grades 8 - 12, are selected to train with festival guests and University of South Carolina piano faculty. Throughout the week, the students participate in rigorous technical and performance training and interact with their mentors through concerts and discussions.

“The Southeastern Piano Festival is truly remarkable. The phenomenal faculty and outstanding students create an environment of professionalism, great music and fun. I can think of nothing better,” said Jon Nakamatsu, gold medal Van Cliburn winner and quest artist for the festival in 2006.

The students also gain experience in the rigorous world of piano competition, competing in the Arthur Fraser International Piano Competition. Participants compete for cash prizes and the opportunity to perform with the South Carolina Philharmonic.

For more information on the Southeastern Piano Festival, contact Marina Lomazov at mlomazov@mozart.sc.edu or 803-777-1209.