American pianist Johnandrew Slominski enjoys a distinguished reputation as a performer and pedagogue. He has been hailed as “a remarkable, brilliant, and gifted pianist” (Chautauquan Daily), commended for performing with “a great deal of intellect” (89.9 KBPS Portland), and recognized for his communicative performance: “I was profoundly moved by his performance… He has a musicianship that transcends his youthfulness.” (Eye on Sun Valley). Slominski has earned praise from composers and critics alike and will open the 30th anniversary season of the College of Charleston International Piano Series. Slominski’s program will include an impressive body of repertoire featuring works by Liszt, Mozart, Brahms and Glass. This concert is generously sponsored by the Remington Master Artist Series.
The concert will take place on Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2019 at 7:30 p.m., in the Emmett Robinson Theatre in the Simons Center for the Arts, 54 Saint Philip St. General admission is $20 and FREE for College of Charleston students and employees. Tickets may be purchased online at the door, by email, or by calling (843) 953-6315. Season subscriptions ($70) are available for all four concerts listed below. More information available at go.cofc.edu/ips.
Slominski also will offer a master class, free and open to the public on Wednesday, September 11, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., in the Cato Center for the Arts Room 237. Students from the Music Department at the College of Charleston will perform.
Listen to samples of Slominski at the piano.
Johnandrew Slominski seamlessly navigates the landscape of a varied and thriving career as a soloist, chamber musician, music theorist, author, pedagogue and speaker. Highlights of his current season include performances of concerti by Schumann and Mozart, two concert tours of California, recordings for Oxford University Press, a recently released CD of solo piano music on the Centaur label, performances with tenor Robert Swensen, two lieder CDs (an all-Schumann disc with tenor Robert Swensen and an all-Schubert disc with soprano Kayleen Sánchez — Slominski’s fortepiano debut recording), and more than a dozen teaching and speaking engagements in the United States and Asia. His 2016 San Francisco solo debut, presented by the New Piano Collective, earned praise as “awe-inspiring” and “ear-opening” from Stephen Smoliar of the San Francisco Examiner.
A child prodigy, Slominski gave his first public performance at age five, won his first piano competition at age six, and entered college at age 15. By age 21, Slominski had earned three degrees from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y., including a Master of Music in Performance and Literature, a Master of Arts in Pedagogy of Music Theory, and a Bachelor of Music in Performance; his first professorship followed two years later. He was unanimously nominated for (and received) Eastman’s coveted Performer’s Certificate in recognition of outstanding concert artistry — the youngest individual to have received such an honor. Slominski holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree, also from the Eastman School of Music. In 2009, he was awarded the Prize for Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student, and in 2010 he received the Jerald C. Graue Musicology Fellowship in recognition for his research in the field of 19th-century performance practice. His innovative performance and pedagogical research has been supported by institutions including the Classics Abroad Society and the Andrew Mellon Foundation. Slominski is the founder and director of “Classical Music on the Spot,” an intensive summer institute at the Eastman School of Music, dedicated to the study and practice of 18th-century style improvisation.
Slominski is a frequent solo performer, collaborative pianist, masterclass clinician and lecturer. Praised in print for his virtuosity, innovative programming, and broad repertoire, he performs worldwide. He has been recently featured as a guest artist at the Chautauqua Institution for Fine and Performing Arts (N.Y.), Sarasota Music Festival (Fla.), Dakota Sky International Piano Festival (S.D.), Sunderman Recital Series at Gettysburg College (Pa.), Sun Valley Artist Series (Ind.), St. Petersburg College Piano Series (Fla.), Jan Deyl Conservatory (Czech Republic), Tel Aviv Early Music Festival (Israel), Salle Cortot (France), and Cecil Arts Hall (South Korea). As a competition laureate, Slominski was awarded first prize in the Chautauqua International Piano Competition and was the silver medalist in the International Keyboard Odyssiad Piano Competition. His recordings have been broadcast domestically by National Public Radio and are published by Oxford University Press, Centaur Records, and Soundset Recordings. His principal studies at the Eastman School were with Rebecca Penneys; additional teachers have included Robert Levin, John Perry, Steven Laitz, Dorothy Fahlman, Malcolm Bilson, Joseph Silverstein, and Jean-Francois Antonioli.
Slominski has held teaching positions at the University of Rochester, the Sunderman Conservatory at Gettysburg College and Virginia Commonwealth University. He also has served as a joint faculty member at the Eastman School of Music in both piano and music theory. His students (both pianists and theorists) have been accepted to prestigious undergraduate and graduate programs at schools including Indiana University, the Eastman School of Music, the Manhattan School of Music, the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami and the North Carolina School for the Arts. Slominski teaches during the summer months at the Rebecca Penney’s Piano Festival at the University of South Florida, and served from 2012-2017 as an Assistant Professor of Music Theory at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. He joined the faculty of Linfield College as a pianist and music theorist in 2017. Slominski is a New Piano Collective artist.
Housed within the College of Charleston School of the Arts, the International Piano Series is Charleston’s longest running, year-round program with a pure focus on piano. Consistent with the School’s mission, the series plays a distinctive role in the lives of students and the community by implementing excellence in the arts and education and cultivating piano music appreciation.
For the rest of the 2019-2020 season, Artistic Director Paul Sánchez has assembled a variety of performances celebrating piano music and more:
Oct. 29, 2019: “Rodrigo: A Life in Music” is a program celebrating the life and music of Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo in sound, narration, and images, in honor of the 20th anniversary of the composer’s passing, written by Paul Sánchez and Michael O’Brien. Artists include Cahill Smith and Paul Sánchez, piano; Yuriy Bekker, violin; vocalists Amanda Castellone, Saundra DeAthos-Meers, Kim Powell, Kayleen Sánchez, David Templeton; and College of Charleston Theatre faculty.
Jan. 14, 2020: Adam Golka
“In Golka’s hands, the work was stunning, a revelation of the composer’s soul” (Chicago Sun-Times). Born and raised in Texas to a family of Polish musicians, pianist Adam Golka has won widespread critical and popular acclaim with his “brilliant technique and real emotional depth” (The Washington Post). A recipient of the Gilmore Young Artist Award and a fellowship from the American Pianists Association, he has performed with dozens of orchestras, from Seattle and Atlanta to BBC Scottish and Shanghai Philharmonic, and in recital at renowned venues and festivals.
March 3, 2020: ZOFO Piano Duo
ZOFO, which is shorthand for 20-finger orchestra (ZO=20 and FO=finger orchestra), also performs heart-pumping duet arrangements of famous orchestral pieces such as Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, exploring the realms in which many composers first experienced their symphonic visions. They believe that the piano duet is the most intimate form of chamber music, with two musicians playing individual parts on one instrument in a complex, often beautiful choreography of four hands.
For more information about the season, visit: go.cofc.edu/ips.