Byron Janis Conducts Master Classes at Carnegie Mellon and Performs at The Children's Institute

MANHATTAN, N.Y. - Oct. 27, 2016 - PRLog -- Byron Janis, renowned as one of the world's greatest concert pianists, continues to celebrate his 88th birthday this year with special gatherings the week of October 31st in his native town of Pittsburgh at Carnegie Mellon University School of Music to teach master classes and a meaningful visit to The Children's Institute. In China, the number eighty-eight conveys good fortune. For ham radio operators, "88" is shorthand for hugs and kisses. There are 88 constellations in the sky. But for Byron Janis, it hits closer to home as March 24, 2016 marked his 88th birthday. With one more significant tie, there are eighty-eight keys on the piano, with which comes an infinite amount of musical possibilities. A number worth celebrating for years to come for this virtuoso, indeed.

Mr. Janis will begin a series of events. On Tuesday, November 1st, he will kick-off with a recorded session in the studio on WQED-FM Morning Show hosted by Artistic Director and long time friend Jim Cunningham. He will discuss his week's exciting itinerary and to announce new CD releases including, "Byron Janis - The RCA Recordings 1950-1959", as well as another CD, "Byron Janis Live - Volume 1" to be released in early 2017, which is the begnning of a series of never before heard live recordings over the span of his career. Their conversation will also include his recent historic return to a changed Moscow via the Yamaha Disklavier live remote technology master class with two students from the Moscow Conservatory. Mr. Janis helped to establish lasting cultural ties between the United States and Russia, and has been hailed by The New York Times as "an ambassador in breaking down 'cold war' barriers." He has made three separate appearances in the former Soviet Union, beginning in 1960, marking the historical re-opening of the U.S.A./U.S.S.R. cultural exchange during the Cold War, followed by return invitations in 1962 for an extensive tour and again in 1988.

He will then host master classes in Kresge Theatre (College of Fine Arts Building) at Carnegie Mellon University on Wednesday, November 2nd and Thursday, November 3rd. Mr. Janis will work with a total of seven CMU students. Each master class is free and open to the public. Sergey Schepkin, Associate Professor of Piano, Carnegie Mellon University Faculty, School of Preparatory and Continuing Education, New England Conservatory Emerson Instructor MIT, has worked with Mr. Janis to select outstanding students to work with Mr. Janis and play works by artists such as Chopin, Liszt, and Brahms. He will be performing with the same piano that was used in an historic musical and pedagogical event on September 28, 2016 as Maestro Byron Janis conducted the first-ever international remote piano master class to link an instructor in the U.S. with students in Russia at the Moscow Conservatory, live and in real-time, while located at Yamaha Artist Services - more than 4,600 miles away in New York City. This master class represented the ultimate expression of Mr. Janis' cultural exchange between the two countries, using cutting-edge technology to enhance long-distance learning and the advancement of the highest musical standards globally. He is proud to share this experience with the CMU students in the very same room. The Yamaha Disklavier is a special acoustic piano built from the ground up with a sophisticated system of sensors that record every aspect of a performance, including pitch, dynamics, phrasing and pedaling. The performance information can be stored and recalled for later playback. The latest models of Disklavier can also be connected to one another via the Internet. Once connected, the performance information can be transmitted from one instrument to the others – and be immediately reproduced with perfect precision, even on the other side of the globe.

On Friday, November 4th, Mr. Janis will visit The Children's Institute of Pittsburgh to present a Yamaha Upright Keyboard that has been generously donated by Yamaha Artist Services. Students have been studying about famous pianists for several weeks and are excited to meet a living legend in person - and the feeling is reciprocal. Mr. Janis will perform a few songs along with a Q & A from the children. The Children's Institute is an independent, licensed nonprofit organization that provides a comprehensive approach to pediatric rehabilitation: The Hospital, The Day School and Project STAR. The Hospital includes a 62-bed inpatient unit and numerous outpatient rehabilitation services for children and young adults. The Day School is an Approved Private School for children ages 2 to 21 with neurological impairments, including autism. Project STAR promotes the right of all children, especially those with physical, emotional and intellectual disabilities, to grow in safe, nurturing, lasting families.

About Byron Janis: Byron Janis is internationally renowned as one of the world's greatest pianists. He made his orchestral debut at age 15 with Toscanini's NBC Symphony Orchestra and the following year was chosen by Vladimir Horowitz as his first student. At 18, he became the youngest artist ever signed to a contract by RCA Victor Records. Two years later, in 1948, he made his Carnegie Hall debut which was hailed as an unparalleled success. His many recordings appear on the RCA, Mercury, Phillips and EMI labels. In the Spring of 2012, EMI released a Byron Janis "Chopin Collection," a compilation of his Chopin recordings featuring, for the first time on one CD, two unknown Chopin waltz manuscripts which he discovered at Yale University (the other two versions he discovered in France). In 1973, he developed Psoriatic Arthritis in both hands and wrists yet he continued his performing career and made two highly acclaimed CDs. He kept it secret until 1985 when, after a performance at the White House, Nancy Reagan made his condition public when she announced that he would become a spokesperson for the Arthritis Foundation as its National Ambassador to the Arts. His memoir, "Chopin and Beyond: My Extraordinary Life in Music and the Paranormal", was released in November 2010. He has also been appointed as the first Presidential Advisor to the Yamaha Music and Wellness Institute. He is married to Maria Cooper, daughter of Hollywood legend Gary Cooper, and he has a son, Stefan.

About Carnegie Mellon University: Carnegie Mellon is a private, internationally ranked research university with programs in areas ranging from science, technology and business, to public policy, the humanities and the arts. More than 13,000 students in the university's seven schools and colleges benefit from a small student-to-faculty ratio and an education characterized by its focus on creating and implementing solutions for real problems, interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation.

About Yamaha: Yamaha Corporation of America (YCA) is one of the largest subsidiaries of Yamaha Corporation, Japan and offers a full line of award-winning musical instruments, sound reinforcement, commercial installation and home entertainment products to the U.S. market. Products include: Yamaha acoustic, digital and hybrid pianos, portable keyboards, guitars, acoustic and electronic drums, band and orchestral instruments, marching percussion products, synthesizers, professional digital and analog audio equipment, Steinberg recording products and NEXO commercial audio products, as well as AV receivers, amplifiers, MusicCast wireless multiroom audio systems, Blu-ray/CD players, earphones, headphones, home-theater-in-a-box systems, sound bars and its exclusive line of Digital Sound Projectors. YCA markets innovative, finely crafted technology and entertainment products and musical instruments targeted to the hobbyist, education, worship, music, professional audio installation and consumer markets.

For a list of upcoming events and tributes, press information or to schedule interviews, limited public appearances and engagements, please contact Susan Belfer or Bettina L. Klinger 732.239.1559 or email sbelfer@belfercom.com.
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