Re-imagining Sondheim September 21 at the Clarice Smith Center

Monday, September 10, 2012

Pianist ​Anthony de Mare performs inspired interpretations of Sondheim’s work on September 21 at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Missy McTamney
mmctam@umd.edu
(301) 405-8102

September 10, 2012 – College Park, MD – Pianist Anthony de Mare reveals new layers of power and complexity in familiar works by Stephen Sondheim on September 21 at 8:00 p.m. in Liaisons: Re-imagining Sondheim from the Piano. The performance is part of de Mare’s multi-year project in which 36 of the world's foremost contemporary composers each reimagine a Sondheim song of their choosing, scored for solo piano. The 20-song program will include a Center-commissioned work by Frederic Rzewski entitled "The News," inspired by "I'm Still Here" from Follies. Other works include "Epiphany" from Sweeney Todd, re-imagined by John Musto; "Being Alive" from Company, re-imagined by Gabriel Kahane; and "Send in the Clowns" from A Little Night Music, re-imagined by Ethan Iverson.

About Liaisons: Re-imagining Sondheim from the Piano

In Liaisons, de Mare has created an artistic showcase of the true magnitude of Sondheim’s works. The composers were chosen in consultation with Stephen Sondheim himself, who has given his blessing to the project and who attended the sold-out New York City premiere of the project in April 2012. He remarked from the stage, “To hear composers take my work and take it seriously… it’s a thrill.”

Anthony de Mare presented the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center premiere of Liaisons in the 2010-2011 season, featuring Center-commissioned works by composers Jake Heggie, Bernadette Speach and Kenji Bunch.

About Anthony de Mare

Anthony de Mare is internationally recognized as one of the world’s most versatile pianists, and one of its foremost champions of contemporary music. His provocative and engaging programs have led critics to declare he has “transformed the recital format” enlivening them with “a theatrical twist… more akin to a show than to a recital.” (New York Times). Having been awarded First Prize and Audience Prize at the International Gaudeamus Interpreters Competition (The Netherlands) and The International Competition of Contemporary Piano Music (France), de Mare debuted under the auspices of Young Concert Artists and gave his Carnegie Hall debut at Zankel Hall.

Tickets

More information can be found on our web site. Tickets for this performance are $35/$10 (Students/Youth), and can be purchased online or by calling (301) 405-ARTS (2787).

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The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center is supported by a grant from the Maryland State Arts Council, an agency dedicated to cultivating a vibrant cultural community where the arts thrive. An agency of the Department of Business & Economic Development, the MSAC provides financial support and technical assistance to nonprofit organizations, units of government, colleges and universities for arts activities. Funding for the Maryland State Arts Council is also provided by the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. Learn more about the Clarice Smith Center's donor support.