Sunday, December 8, 2013

John Malveaux: When George Walker was 14 years old, he gave his first public performance on the piano at Howard University.

George Walker has a website at http://georgetwalker.com/ and is featured at AfriClassical.com

John Malveaux of www.MusicUNTOLD.com writes:

When George Walker was 14 years old, he gave his first public performance on the piano at Howard University. In 1945, George Walker was presented in a debut recital in Town Hall to became the first black instrumentalist to perform in that hall. As the winner of the Philadelphia Youth Auditions, he played the 3rd Piano Concerto of Rachmaninoff with the Philadelphia Orchestra with Eugene Ormandy conducting two weeks after his New York debut in November of 1945. He was the first black instrumentalist to appear with this orchestra. The following year, he played the 2nd Piano Concerto of Brahms with the Baltimore Symphony, Reginald Stewart conducting and the 4th Beethoven Concerto with Dean Dixon and his orchestra. Further piano study in France helped prepare him for several years as a touring virtuoso in Europe and America. Numerous piano recordings may be found on Albany Records including GEORGE WALKER: Sonato No. 2 for Piano. See/hear http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4MXPBKxTG4
 
John Malveaux
 


George Walker's composition Overture: In Praise of Folly’s was chosen by Zubin Mehta and the New York Philharmonic for its 1981 premier in New York at Lincoln Center.  The sixth performance was included in the first concert the New York Philharmonic Orchestra gave in Harlem. The Lincoln Center concert was televised on PBS Great Performances and may be viewed at the Paley Center for Media. John Malveaux, founder/president of MusicUNOTLD was in attendance during the premiere at Lincoln Center. See http://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item/?q=live+from+lincoln+center&p=4&item=T:78661
 
John Malveaux

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