Enrique Graf
Enrique Graf
September 8
10 a.m. — Noon
Steinway
Joint Meeting with SLAMTA
South American Miniatures and a Masterpiece
Enrique Graf, piano
Pianist Enrique Graf will perform works of Villa Lobos, Gilardoni, Mores, Tosar, Fabini and Liszt.
Internationally acclaimed pianist Enrique Graf is one the world’s premiere virtuosos, equally sought after as a soloist, chamber musician and teacher. He has been variously described as an “assured and technically complete pianist” (The Washington Post) and “one of the best interpreters of his generation” (El País), who plays with “fiery virtuosity” (The New York Times).
Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Graf began studying piano at the age of 4 with his mother. After winning all of the national competitions in Uruguay, he was awarded a full scholarship from the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University and the Organization of American States to study with Leon Fleisher.
He has given recitals all over the world and has been featured as soloist with dozens of orchestras in the United States, Central and South America, Eastern Europe, Russia and Ukraine. Additionally, he has appeared many of the prestigious halls and festivals throughout the world.
As a chamber musician, Graf has toured with Cuarteto Latinoamericano, the Ives Quartet, the Baltimore Wind Ensemble, the American Chamber Players, the Prague Wind Quintet and the Apollo String Quartet.
He has performed concertos by Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Mendelssohn, Franck, Liszt, Tchaikovsky, Grieg, Rachmaninoff, Ravel, Poulenc, Gershwin, De Falla, Turina, Shostakovich and Lee Hoiby. He gave the world premiere of Florencia Di Concilio’s Piano Concerto No. 1, Edward Hart’s Tidal Concerto and performed and recorded for Naxos a concerto by Leonardo Balada.
His recordings include an all-Poulenc CD with the Charleston Symphony; his debut recording, Enrique Graf Plays Bach; recordings of Mozart sonatas, Mendelssohn and Bach variations, Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition,” the Liszt Sonata, the Grieg Concerto, Edward Hart’s “Tidal Concerto,” Gershwin’s Concerto in F and two Beethoven concertos.
Graf has taught at the Peabody Preparatory, where he was chair of the piano department. the College of Charleston and Carnegie Mellon University.
Graf was founder and artistic director of the International Piano Series in Charleston and the Young Artist Series in the Piccolo Spoleto Festival and co-founder of Music Fest Perugia in Italy and is now the artistic director of the Festival Internacional de Colonia in Uruguay.