CONCERT 2 – Akiko Ebi
Saturday, November 29, 2008 8 PM, at Magee Theatre
Akiko Ebi, the Japanese pianist who is regarded as one of the most sympathetic and knowledgeable artists of French music and culture among all Japanese pianists.
In 1975, Akiko Ebi won the Grand Prix in the international Marguerite Long competition in Paris where she also won four special prizes awarded by Artur Rubinstein. She was a laureate of the Chopin competition in Warsaw where jury member Martha Argerich took note of her artistry and became her mentor.
Ms. Ebi toured Europe, the United States, South America, China, the Middle East and Japan.
Recently, she performed with such orchestras as L’Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, L’Orchestra Philharmonique de Radio France, Monte Carlo Philharmonic, NHK Symphony, Tokyo Metropolitan Orchestra, with such conductors as Skrowaczewski, Janowski, Guschulbauer, Foster, and Sado.
She also appears annually at many prestigious international music festivals, including La Roque d’Antheron, Menton, Echternach, Journee de Nantes, Lisbon, Toledo, and Tokyo.
The French government awarded her the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres distinction and in 1992 she received in Japan the prestigious Music Prize Exxon-Mobile. Invited to play in the world famous music festivals, Akiko Ebi has served on the juries of the world’s most important international piano competitions, including the Martha Argerich, Marguerite Long, Clara Haskil, Jose Iturbi, Vianna da Motta, and Gina Bachauer, as well as the competitions of Montreal and Panama City.
Programme
Beethoven – 32 Variations in C minor Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op.111
Intermission
Chopin – Impromptus No. 1 and No. 2
Two Nocturnes Op. 62
Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35