Renowned Chinese pianist Jie Yuan joins School of Music for Faculty & Friends concert on Feb. 20
Grace Mestad |
Lipscomb University’s School of Music welcomes renowned Chinese pianist Jie Yuan to campus on Monday, Feb. 20, at 7:30 p.m. in Ward Hall as part of the schools Faculty & Friends Concert series.
During the concert, entitled "Midnight in 1838: A journey to Schumann and Chopin's music," Yuan will perform four works by composers Chopin, Ligeti and Schumann.
Appointed the National Arts Youth Ambassador of China and Artist of the Year by the China State Council, Yuan has performed on five continents with more than 30 orchestras. He has performed for the Chinese president, was recognized as one of the Top Ten Chinese Pianists by China Central Television Company and is a recipient of the prestigious Artist Diploma from the Julliard School in New York.
Yuan has close ties to Lipscomb’s School of Music through Jerome Reed, professor and chair of piano at Lipscomb. The pair met at the first 
East/West International Piano Festival in Weihai, China, this past summer.
“When I found out that Jie would be close to Lipscomb on his tour, I invited him to perform in our Faculty & Friends concert series,” Reed said. “We are pleased to have him on campus to be a part of this series.”
Reed said he is working to strengthen ties between professors and students from around the world, especially those who work in the area of piano, to create deeper connections for Lipscomb’s music students.
“Our students have been able to take advantage of opportunities for summer piano study in Italy, France and China,” said Reed. “I've given master classes in the UK, Taiwan and Belgium, and in addition to these places, performed in Hungary, Germany, Austria, Uruguay and Japan. All of these connections have helped to broaden opportunities for our students both educationally and professionally.”
Yuan and Reed will work together again this summer at the East/West International Piano Festival in China, which also gives students the opportunity to attend and learn from other renowned Chinese pianists.
This year, Yuan is scheduled to perform 128 concerts throughout 12 countries and over 82 cities, in addition to solo recitals and concerts in cooperation with 20 plus orchestras over the world.