Pleyel Piano Recital Series featuring Michael Coonrad and Hyemin Kim

About this Program:

These Incredible artists from the Interlochen Arts Academy will present both solo works and duos on the Pleyel Piano.

Michael Coonrad had an illustrious career at the Interlochen Arts Academy where he taught for 46 years. He received his doctorate from the Peabody Conservatory. He has performed all over the world and premiered two concerti and has recorded several cds.

Hyemin Kim is the Collaborative Piano Faculty at the Interlochen Arts Academy. Her career spans multiple roles, including soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, and educator. She has performed extensively across the US, Korea, and Austria. She holds a dual Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance and Collaborative Piano from Michigan State University.

About our Pleyel Piano:

Our Pleyel Piano is a vintage instrument built in 1879. It is a particularly special piano that offers a unique and intimate recital experience. The Dixon family kindly donated this piano.

Pleyel et Cie. ("Pleyel and Company") is a French piano manufacturing firm founded by composer Ignace Pleyel in 1807. This company provided pianos to the renowned composer Frédéric Chopin, who considered Pleyel pianos to be the "non plus ultra" (the highest point to be obtained). Pleyel et Cie. also operated a concert hall, the Salle Pleyel, where Chopin performed his first and last Paris concerts.

Pleyel's major contribution to piano development was the first use of a metal frame in a piano. Pleyel pianos were the preferred choice of composers such as Chopin, Debussy, Saint-Saëns, Ravel, de Falla and Stravinsky. Pianists and teachers such as Alfred Cortot, Philip Manuel, and Gavin Williamson also preferred Pleyel pianos.

Host or Publisher The Scarab Club