A piano festival hosted by West Virginia University June 1-3 will bring with it four free, open to the public concerts.
The Intersection of Jazz and Classical Music Piano Festival is in its eighth year at WVU, and is the only festival of its kind to explore jazz and classical music that offers artist performances, masterclasses, workshops, and panel discussions.
The free concerts will be performed by visiting artists and featured ensembles from WVU. The concert schedule is:
WVU Showcase Concert
4 p.m. June 1
Bloch Hall, Creative Arts Center
The WVU Showcase Concert will feature WVU students, faculty and ensembles including the Lyon Piano Trio, Ching-Wen Hsiao, Erin Ellis, Lucy Mauro, Jacob Bumgarner, Jared Sims, James Miltenberger, Hooi Yin Boey and Sun Jung Lee.
Denny Euprasert Jazz Recital
7 p.m. June 1
Bloch Hall, Creative Arts Center
Dr. Denny Euprasert is the dean of Rangsit University Conservatory of Music and the director of RSU Jazz Orchestra.He earned a Doctor of Arts degree in Music Theory and Composition with a secondary emphasis in Jazz Pedagogy from University of Northern Colorado. He is the recipient of the Silpathorn Contemporary Artist Award from the Ministry of Culture of Thailand, one of the country’s most prestigious honors in the arts, for his notable contributions to fine arts and culture. As pianist, he has performed with David Liebman, Nicholas Payton, Maria Schneider, Bob Brookmeyer, Deborah Brown, Kenny Wheeler, Mike Stern, Benny Golson, and Lee Ritenour, among others.
The Intersection of Jazz and Classical Music Concert
4 p.m. June 2
Bloch Hall, Creative Arts Center
The Miltenberger Jazz Ensemble, comprised of Lillian Green, Barbara Green, Scott Green and James Miltenberger, will headline the Intersection of Jazz and Classical Music Concert. They will be joined for jazz selections by Phil Wyatt, Keith Jackson, Yana Tyulkova and Kevin Lloyd.
Chih-Long Hu Recital
7 p.m. June 2
Bloch Hall, Creative Arts Center
A native of Taiwan, pianist ChihLong Hu‘s performance career was launched after receiving honors including the Taipei National Concert Hall Arising Star, the ChiMei Artist Award, and prizes from the Mauro Monopoli International Piano Competition in Italy, the Concurs International De Piano D'Escaldes-Engordany in Andorra, the Takamatsu International Piano Competition in Japan, and the International Russian Music Piano Competition in San Jose, California. An active performer, Hu performs extensively in Asia, Europe, and America appearing as a concerto soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician. His recent performance highlights include concerto performances of Rachamninov’s Paganini Rhapsody, Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3, Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No. 2, solo and chamber
recitals in China, Taiwan, Korea, Canada, and throughout the U.S. Hu’s performances have been broadcast in "Performance Today" through NPR stations across the country and televised in Taiwan, China and Japan.
For more information on the performances and the festival, visit: https://bit.ly/2HOyCD6