Celebrated pianist Orin Grossman and friends play Copland and Bernstein at Fairfield University's Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts | Press Releases

Dr. Orin Grossman, an accomplished pianist and Fairfield University's academic vice president, will join several noted musicians in "Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein: A Friendship in Music," an American classical concert on Sunday, April 23, at 3 p.m. Part of the ongoing Leonard Bernstein Festival, the concert will musically consider how 20th century composers created the quintessential American Classical sound.

Over the course of the past century, several American composers broke the music mold of European masters, forging a distinctive truly American sound. Among those who led the pack were Leonard Bernstein and one of his main influences, Aaron Copland.

The concert begins with three Copland classics, including "Nocturne" and "Sonata for Violin and Piano," both of which will feature Grossman on piano and Netta Hadari, co-founder of the Quick Center's Live Music Project, on violin. Grossman will follow that with the piano solo, "El Salon Mexico," a piece by Copland that has been arranged by Bernstein.

After intermission, the performers will turn their full attention to Bernstein, beginning with his "Sonata for Clarinet and Piano," featuring Grossman with Julie Asuma on clarinet. The concert finale is "Arias and Barcarolles," a 1988 collection of pieces performed by mezzo-soprano Janna Baty and baritone Richard Lalli accompanied by Grossman and William Braun on piano.

The Quick Center's season-long focus on American artists continues with "America," a concert by The Live Music Project scheduled for Friday, April 28, at 8 p.m. The program includes Copland's beloved " Appalachian Spring" and Bernard Herrmann's evocative music from Hitchcock's "Psycho."

The Leonard Bernstein Festival concludes with a screening of "Candide," a film of the New York Philharmonic's semi-staged production including many memorable tunes by The Maestro. The film will be shown on Sunday, April 30, at 3 p.m. Richard Regan, Ph.D., assistant professor of English, and Mark McGregor, S.J., assistant professor of film, will introduce the film and discuss Bernstein's involvement at 2:15 p.m.

Tickets to the April 23 concert are $20. For tickets, call the Quick Center box office at (203) 254-4010 or toll free at 1-877-ARTS-396. For more information on this and other events, visit www.quickcenter.com.