Carnegie Hall is proud to present Barbara Nissman in concert on Sunday, Oct. 26, at 3 p.m. Join Nissman for an afternoon of powerful piano music through a sampling of works by some of the greatest composers who ever lived: Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Prokofiev, Liszt. There will be no Mainstage Lounge for this performance; however, there will be a free reception in the Old Stone Room immediately following the show with food and beverage provided by The Carnegie Hall Guild. All ticket holders are welcome to attend. Tickets are on sale now by calling 304-645-7917 or online at www.carnegiehallwv.org. Discounts are available for members, seniors, students and military.
Nissman made history in 1989 by becoming the first pianist to perform the complete piano sonatas of Sergei Prokofiev in a series of three recitals in both New York and London. Her recordings of this repertoire represented the first complete set of Prokofiev Sonatas made avail-able on compact disc.
Her recordings of Prokofiev, Bartók and Ginastera are considered “definitive,” and she has garnered praise for her series of recordings of 19th century composers, Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, Schumann, Brahms and also Rachmaninoff. She has also recorded ten volumes of her favorite recital programs. All of Nissman’s recordings are now available on her new record label, Three Oranges Recordings. (www.threeorangesrecordings.com)
Nissman’s international career was personally launched by Eugene Ormandy, who had previously engaged her as soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra. She has performed with the leading orchestras of Europe and America and has worked with some of the major conductors of our time including Eugene Ormandy, Riccardo Muti, Stanislaw Skrowaczewski and Leonard Slatkin.
Nissman also recently appeared on stage with Don Henley of the Eagles and Billy Joel, performing on the “Walden Steinway” in a gala fundraiser for the Walden Woods project, held at Jazz at Lincoln Center. She was also one of the participants with Leonard Slatkin at the Kennedy Center’s 25th Anniversary Gala Concert that was broadcast on PBS Television. Since 2002, she has been involved with the Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation benefit concert series, “A Concerted Effort.” To date these concerts have raised well over two million dollars for AIDS service organizations worldwide.
Performer, writer, lecturer, and frequent guest artist/clinician, Nissman has toured and given master classes throughout the United States, Europe, the Far East, New Zealand, and South America. At the invitation of both the Moscow and St. Petersburg Conservatories, she presented recitals and master classes on Prokofiev. Barbara Nissman received her bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Michigan. Born and raised in Philadelphia, she now calls West Virginia home and lives on a farm in the Allegheny Mountains. In 2008, she was the recipient of the Governor’s Arts Award from the State of West Virginia. (For more go to www.barbaranissman.com)
