All Music Department Programs
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Venue
Morgan Theatre, Chase Fine Arts Center.
Pieces
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4 (1806); LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 (1812)
Performance Date
Fall 12-9-2016
Type
USU Symphony
Recommended Citation
USU Symphony Orchestra; Bernal, Sergio; and Nielson, Adam, "Victory and Poetry" (2016). All Music Department Programs. 2.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/music_programs/2
Comments
Pianist Adam Nielsen enjoys a diverse career as a soloist, chamber musician, vocal accompanist, and opera pianist. His recent performances at Juilliard’s Wilson Theater were praised as “deftly and sensitively played” (New York Times) and “a technically assured and highly expressive account of the score” (Musical America). A native of Layton, UT, he made his solo debut with the Utah Symphony under Joseph Silverstein at age 16, and is winner of the inau - gural Steinway National Collegiate Artist Competition, second-prize winner of the Kingsville International Piano Competition, and winner of the Stony Brook Concerto Competition.
Adam includes in his current season recital appearances with baritone John Brancy, mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford, French horn player Scott Brubaker of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, as well as performances at the Steans Institute of the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, IL where he has been a guest pianist for four seasons. In addition, he was the official pianist for the Joyce DiDonato Masterclasses that were live-streamed from Carnegie Hall, and also for the semi-finals of the Met National Council Auditions, held on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera.
In recent seasons, Adam has been presented as a soloist and collaborator at the Myra Hess Recital Series at the Chicago Cultural Center, the Harris Theater Chamber Music Series at the Aspen Festival, The Musée de Beaux Arts in Mon - treal, the Ethical Society of St. Louis, Boston’s Schubert Theater, the Missouri River Arts Festival, the Grand Cayman Arts Festival, and in New York City at Steinway Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall, and the 92nd Street Y.
Adam maintains a busy schedule as an opera pianist and coach. In the 2016 season, he joined the music staff at Virginia Opera, preparing their production of Gounod’s Romeo et Juliette. At Opera Theater of St. Louis, he prepared a production of Puccini’s La Boheme, and joined the St. Louis Symphony as keyboard player for that same company’s production of Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos. In November, he will be a guest on the music staff at the San Francisco Opera, playing for their production of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly.
Adam is currently an Associate Faculty Member of the Marcus Institute for Vo - cal Arts at the Juilliard School. There, he holds the position of Principal Coach and Music Advisor to the Undergraduate Vocalists, and is also a coach and assistant conductor for the Juilliard Opera. In the summer, he is on the music staff at Opera Theater of St. Louis. He has been a staff pianist at the Heifetz International String Institute, Aspen Opera Theater, and Harvard’s American Repertory Theater.
Adam has great affection for Utah State University; it was here that he studied piano during his teenage years, and earned a BM in Piano Performance under the expert tutelage of Professor Gary Amano, and with the invaluable mentor - ing of Professor Dennis Hirst and Dr. Cindy Dewey. In recent years, he has had the privilege of returning to Logan to collaborate in recitals with the Windscape woodwind quintet, soprano Cindy Dewey, violinist Andres Cárdenes, the Fry Street Quartet, and mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford. He is thrilled to return for this collaboration with the talented instrumentalists of the USU Symphony Orchestra.