Fairfield University's Orin Grossman reprises SRO Gershwin evening at the Quick Center for the Arts April 20 | Press Releases

Image: Oran Grossman In anticipation of leaving his academic post as Fairfield University Academic Vice President and prior to a planned global Gershwin launch, acclaimed pianist Orin Grossman will reprise his sold-out lecture on George Gershwin on Monday, April 20 at 8:00 p.m. at the Quick Center for the Arts. He will cap the evening with a performance of the full Gershwin masterpiece, "Rhapsody in Blue."

Grossman's fascination with Gershwin spans decades and as an artist and a scholar his insights have great depth. He possesses an enormous body of knowledge about the American master composer gained over a lifetime of lecturing and performing concerts of his song transcriptions and classical pieces.

"It was Gershwin's special contribution to create concert works out of melodies and rhythms that come out of the popular music of his day - Broadway ballads, ragtime, Latin dance rhythms and the Blues," Grossman stated. His lecture-recital demonstrates just how this process works in Gershwin's first and perhaps most popular concert work, "Rhapsody in Blue." Grossman continued, "By understanding the musical sources of this most beloved of American concert pieces, we gain insight into the multicultural nature of American musical traditions and into the compositional genius of one of our greatest composers."

This concert serves as a springboard for Grossman to rekindle and pursue his passion for performing the music of George Gershwin. When he leaves his academic post after this year's commencement, he plans to resume his music career sharing his insights on Gershwin and friends in many more lecture-recitals.

Dr. Grossman has performed to critical praise around the world, including recent performances in Cairo, Florence, New York and St. Petersburg, Russia.

Tickets are $35 and are available online at fairfield.edu/quick or by calling the Box Office at (203) 254-4010. The toll free number is 1-877-ARTS-396. Sign up at quickcenter.com to receive e-mails for special offers and discounts for Quick Center shows.