Cellist Evan Drachman and pianist Doris Stevenson will perform in Magale Recital Hall at Northwestern State University Thursday, Oct. 12 at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public.
The concert will include works by Robert Schumann, Frederic Chopin, and Edvard Grieg.
Drachman has combined musical talent with artistic vision to create a rich and varied career. He is increasingly sought after for his solo and chamber music performances, and as founder and artistic director of the Piatigorsky Foundation, he has become one of the most respected authorities on the presentation of live classical music for diverse audiences everywhere. In 1999, Drachman recorded his first CD, “A Frog He Went a Courting,” with pianist Richard Dowling. Following this success, Drachman and Dowling released two more recordings titled, “Infinity” in 2004 and “Romance and Revelation” in 2007.
Drachman has appeared regularly as soloist with orchestras, and in recitals and chamber music performances across the United States and abroad. Born in Boston, Drachman studied at the Peabody Conservatory, the New England Conservatory and received his BMA from the Curtis Institute of Music. He has spent his summers performing at music festivals in the United States and abroad.
Stevenson has won lavish praise from critics and the public alike for her solo and collaborative performances. She has soloed with the Boston Pops, played at Carnegie Hall in New York, the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., Salle Pleyel in Paris and Suntory Hall in Tokyo. In addition, Stevenson has performed with the leading lights in string playing such as Gregor Piatigorsky, Ruggiero Ricci and Paul Tortelier. Early in her career, she was invited to play with Heifetz and Piatigorsky together. Stevenson is a founding member of the Sitka Summer Music Festival in Alaska, and has participated in numerous chamber music festivals throughout the United States.
Drachman established the Piatigorsky Foundation in 1990 in honor of his grandfather Gregor Piatigorsky. Piatigorsky deeply believed in the healing and inspiration power of classical music. He once said, “Music makes life better. Music is a necessity. It is rich. It is imaginative. It is magnificent. And it is for everyone.” The Piatigorsky Foundation is committed to carrying on Piatigorsky’s mission by evoking cultural curiosity through educational and accessible live performances.
For more than 27 years, the Piatigorsky Foundation’s commitment to artistic excellence and public outreach has fascinated many avid concert goers as well as curious first-timers. It is this combination of complimentary access, flamboyant performances and human warmth that makes Piatigorsky Foundation concerts so appealing to diverse audiences. Last season, The Foundation presented a tour of North Louisiana, performing seven concerts and reaching people in Vidalia, Monroe, Ruston, and Alexandria. Again this year, the Piatigorsky Foundation aims to reach hundreds of people across North Louisiana to increase awareness and appreciation of classical music in communities throughout the state.
