Elizabeth SchumannThis month’s String Theory should be twice as nice with two shows shared among three pianists, two of whom are sisters.
Follow that?
The common denominator in that equation is guest artist Elizabeth Schumann, who is making her Chattanooga debut at the chamber concert tonight, Jan. 14. She’ll join pianist Gloria Chien, String Theory’s founder and artistic director, to perform works by Schubert, Stucky and Stravinsky.
Then on Saturday, Jan. 16, Sonya Schumann will join her sister for a family concert. Known professionally as the Schumann Piano Duo, Elizabeth and Sonya will present “Pianimal,” an animal-inspired multimedia show that integrates literature, music and art.
The afternoon performance, which showcases the music of Dvorák, Grieg, Rimsky-Korsakov, Debussy and Saint-Saëns, will be followed by an instrument petting zoo hosted by the String Theory Youth Initiative and a hands-on project for children to create works of art.
The family concert culminates a week in which the Schumanns are presenting “Pianimal” at eight schools in Chattanooga and Cleveland, Tenn.
Both performances in this seventh season of String Theory take place at the Hunter Museum of American Art, 10 Bluff View, which co-produces the series with Lee University.
* Tonight’s chamber performance starts at 6:30 p.m. It will be preceded at 5:30 p.m. by Art Connection in the museum galleries. Former chief curator Ellen Simak and maestro Robert Bernhardt will discuss works from the Hunter collection that relate to the music featured in the concert. Tickets are $40 for adults, $30 for donors and Hunter members, $25 for groups, $10 for students. Purchase tickets at stringtheorymusic.org or call 423-267-0968.
* Saturday’s family concert starts at 1 p.m. No advance tickets are being sold. Cost is the price of regular admission: $15 for adults, free for children 3-17. Hunter members and String Theory season ticketholders get in free.
ABOUT THE PERFORMERS
* Elizabeth Schumann: Her diverse career portfolio of projects, recordings and performances has taken her all over the world as recitalist, chamber musician and concerto soloist. The Washington Post Magazine noted her playing as “deft, relentless and devastatingly good – the sort of performance you experience not so much with your ears as your solar plexus.”
She has earned more than 25 prizes and awards in national and international competitions, including first place in the Bosendorfer International Piano Competition and the Pacific International Piano Competition. She was honored with the prestigious Gilmore Young Artists Award and was highlighted in a PBS television documentary on the Gilmore Festival.
She is the founder of Piano Theatre, an artist group formed to engage audiences with innovative combinations of classical music, theater, literature, art and technology. In 2012, she became president of Project Classical Inc., a nonprofit supporting artist-led initiatives that encourage public education and appreciation of classical music. She also devised and directed Piano Carnival, a project to introduce free, high-quality classical concert music to children in areas without arts education.
* Sonya Schumann: She is known as an expressive and imaginative pianist, both in solo and collaborative performance. She holds top prizes from many competitions, including the Bartok-Kabelevsky-Prokofiev Competition, Williamsburg Symphony Concerto Competition, South Carolina Music Teachers Association Competition and Southeastern Piano Festival.
She is internationally recognized for her involvement in Piano Theatre, an interactive experience of music and words. In addition to performing, she is passionate about teaching and has appeared as a guest lecturer and masterclass presenter at several festivals and colleges. She has taught at Madonna University and Schoolcraft College and recently joined the faculty at the Levine School in Washington, D.C.
* Gloria Chien: An artist-in-residence at Lee University, she has presented solo recitals around the world and is a prize winner of the World Piano Competition, Harvard Musical Association Award and the San Antonio International Piano Competition.
She was appointed director of the Chamber Music Institute at Music@Menlo, a chamber music festival and institute in the San Francisco Bay Area, and has participated there for six years. She has been a member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center since 2012 and frequently plays at Alice Tully Hall in New York as well as other venues around the country with CMS on Tour.