The Hamilton College Performing Arts will present a piano recital by Awadagin Pratt on Saturday, Feb. 10, at 8 p.m., at Wellin Hall in Schambach Center for Music and the Performing Arts. The program will feature the works of Bach, Beethoven and Liszt. Pratt will also present an open discussion and demonstration on Friday, Feb. 9 at 4:30 p.m. in Wellin Hall. The discussion/demonstration is free and open to the public.
Among the next generation of concert artists, pianist Awadagin Pratt is increasingly acclaimed as one of tomorrow's superstars. He was named one of the 50 Leaders of Tomorrow in Ebony Magazine's special 50th anniversary issue. His musical insight and intense performances have received tremendous audience response and press attention throughout the United States during the past several seasons.
Born in Pittsburgh, Pratt began studying piano at the age of six. At the age of 16, he entered the University of Illinois, where he studied piano, violin, and conducting. He subsequently enrolled at Baltimore's Peabody Conservatory of Music, where he became the first student in the school's history to receive diplomas in three performance areas.
In 1992, Pratt won the Naumburg International Piano Competition and two years later was awarded a 1994 Avery Fisher Career Grant. He has played numerous recitals throughout the U.S., including performances in New York at Lincoln Center, Washington, D.C. at the Kennedy Center, Los Angeles at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and Chicago at Orchestra Hall. His many orchestral performances include appearances with the New York Philharmonic, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Atlanta, Baltimore, National, Cincinnati, symphonies and the New York Chamber Symphony. He has also performed at the White House at the invitation of former President and Mrs. Clinton.
In addition to concert performances, Pratt has been featured on National Public Radio's Performance Today and Weekend Edition. He has performed on the Today Show, Good Morning America, and Sesame Street, appeared in a segment of CBS Sunday Morning, and was one of the featured soloists on PBS's "Live from the Kennedy Center - A Salute to Slava."
Tickets for the Saturday, Feb. 10 recital are $15 adult, $10 senior and $5 student. All seating is general admission. For reservations or for more information, call the Hamilton College Performing Arts ticket office at (315) 859-4331.
