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This Sunday at 2:30pm at St. Andrews River Heights United Church Virtuosi concerts is presenting a concert called Café Music. This concert will feature the fabulous Borealis Trio. A piano trio made up of Faculty from the University of Manitoba’s Desautels Faculty of Music.
Opening up the concert on Sunday as part of Virtuosi’s Young Artist Program will be pianist wonderful young pianist Georg Neuhofer.
Neuhofer is currently a student at Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) where he has been studying with pianist Shirley Elias. During his studies at CMU Neuhofer won the very prestigious Verna Mae Janzen Competition that is held at CMU yearly. He has also premiered a piano concerto written specifically for him by Manitoba composer Liam Berry, and this year he will graduate with a Bachelor of Music Degree in Performance and Education.
Neuhofer has enjoyed his studies at CMU and credits much of his success as a pianist being a direct result of his studies with Professor of piano at CMU Shirley Elias. ”It’s been amazing! [studying with her] She’s the reason I actually came to CMU. It’s been a favorite part of my degree for sure, and she has pushed me so much…an allowed me to really take full advantage of a music degree at CMU.”
Neuhofer on Sunday will be joined by violinist Elizabeth Seale. Seale is a student of Oleg Pokhanovski, who is the violin teacher at the University of Manitoba’s Desautels Faculty of Music and also a member of the Borealis Trio who will also be performing on Sunday.
Together, they will be playing the first and third movements to Debussy’s Violin Sonata. In describing the piece Neuhofer says, “There are some sections of the piece that are quite virtuosic, and also there are these many little snippets of melody… it’s never completely flowing from one section into the next. It’s lots of different tempos, so you have to keep that in mind while practicing and of course while rehearsing and actually performing it. Since it is a violin sonata… as a pianist I am always trying to create these colors that allow Elizabeth to flourish.”
After his studies at CMU Neuhofer is planning on taking a year off to work, and then he plans to go to the University of Manitoba to receive an After Degree in Education, with the hopes of teaching in the public school system.
The music education system in Manitoba will be lucky to have to have him as a colleague. Georg Neuhofer is a fabulous and passionate pianist and his desire to instill that passion with students is admirable.
You can hear Georg Neuhofer and violinist Elizabeth Seale this Sunday, April 7th at St. Andrews River Heights United Church as the pair open for the Borealis Piano Trio.
For more details visit Virtuosi’s website.
