The American pianist Pnina Becher lives the life of a "regular" virtuoso: she performs in the US and abroad and has issued several successful CDs, but the arc of her professional career was highly unusual. Pinina was born to American parents in a small village, Moshav Beit Herut, in Israel. She was considered a prodigy in early childhood, and won medals and scholarships in piano competitions throughout Israel. After serving for two years in the Israeli army, she entered the Tel Aviv Rubin Academy of Music, studying with Emanuel Krasovsky. Although it was clear that a thriving musical career lay ahead, Pnina got married and moved to New York instead, and decided to stop playing the piano to concentrate on her family.
Eighteen years later, she moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, and started playing publicly again. She performed both as a soloist, and with orchestras in the United States, Europe, and Israel, and Australia, where she played at the prestigious Melbourne International Arts Festival and was enthusiastically received in her sold out concerts. Her first album, a recording of Bach's Goldberg Variations has been critically acclaimed, and Pnina's second album, with works of Scarlatti, Chopin, and Debussy, has been recently released.
We'll hear four pieces performed by Pnina Becher. First, the Cat's fugue, a one-movement sonata by Domenico Scarlatti, Kk 30; then three excerpts from Pour le Piano by Claude Debussy: Prelude, Sarabande, and Tocatta. To listen, click here.
May 16, 2011
The American pianist Pnina Becher lives the life of a "regular" virtuoso: she performs in the US and abroad and has issued several successful CDs, but the arc of her professional career was highly unusual. Pinina was born to American parents in a small village, Moshav Beit Herut, in Israel. She was considered a prodigy in early childhood, and won medals and scholarships in piano competitions throughout Israel. After serving for two years in the Israeli army, she entered the Tel Aviv Rubin Academy of Music, studying with Emanuel Krasovsky. Although it was clear that a thriving musical career lay ahead, Pnina got married and moved to New York instead, and decided to stop playing the piano to concentrate on her family.
Eighteen years later, she moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, and started playing publicly again. She performed both as a soloist, and with orchestras in the United States, Europe, and Israel, and Australia, where she played at the prestigious Melbourne International Arts Festival and was enthusiastically received in her sold out concerts. Her first album, a recording of Bach's Goldberg Variations has been critically acclaimed, and Pnina's second album, with works of Scarlatti, Chopin, and Debussy, has been recently released.
We'll hear four pieces performed by Pnina Becher. First, the Cat's fugue, a one-movement sonata by Domenico Scarlatti, Kk 30; then three excerpts from Pour le Piano by Claude Debussy: Prelude, Sarabande, and Tocatta. To listen, click here.