Gualala Arts Chamber Music Series presents: Frank Wiens, piano Sunday, November 14, 2010 at 4:00 p.m. at the Gualala Arts Center

Critical acclaim has greeted the performances of pianist Frank Wiens, who will perform at Gualala Arts Center on November 14, 2010 at 4:00 p.m. Weins has concertized extensively throughout the United States and abroad, including highly praised recitals in New York and London. He has twice toured South Korea, and gave his recital debut on the European continent in Vienna in 1987. He was invited to tour the Soviet Union in 1991 as a featured soloist in concerts celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of Serge Prokofiev.

In 2006 Frank Wiens appeared as soloist with the "Orchestra Dinu Lipatti" in Romania, and gave recitals devoted to the music of Chopin at the Chopin Academy and at the Lazienki Palace on Water in Warsaw, Poland.

With an extensive concerto repertoire of thirty-five works, he has been a soloist with such orchestras as the Atlanta, Denver and Detroit Symphonies. A winner of major awards in prestigious competitions - North American Young Artists Competition, Southwest Pianists Foundation Competition, Three Rivers Piano Competition - he has given annual concert tours across the U.S. since 1974. His performances have been broadcast on National Public Radio and Public Television, and he has been a touring artist with the Iowa Arts Council and the California Arts Council. His compact disc recording "Rachmaninov," which includes that composer's Third Piano Concerto with the Slovakia National Orchestra, has been described by one reviewer as "dazzling, yet rich in solid detail... brilliant clarity and absolute conviction... truly suave and elegant playing."

A native of New Haven, Connecticut, Frank Wiens studied at the University of Michigan School of Music, where he was the recipient of the Stanley Medal, that school's highest honor for musical excellence.

He has been a student of Benning Dexter, Gyorgy Sandor, Harald Logan, and John Perry and a participant in master classes with Lili Kraus and Leon Fleisher.

He served on the piano faculty at Drake University and, since 1976, has held the position of Professor of Piano at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California. In 1997 he was honored with that University's Distinguished Faculty Award, and in 2000 with its Faculty Research-Lecturer Award.

In addition to his active concert schedule, Frank Wiens has gained renown for his master classes and lectures. He has adjudicated numerous piano competitions, and has served as a member of the international jury of the prestigious Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition.

Tickets are $20 for advance purchases; $5 more on the day of the concert (buy your tickets early!). Children and young people ages 7 through 17 are admitted free.

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The Gualala Arts Center, located at 46501 Gualala Road in Gualala, CA,
is open weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and weekends from noon to 4:00 p.m.
Please call (707) 884-1138 for more information, or email info@gualalaarts.org.

Serving the coastal communities of northern Sonoma & southern Mendocino Counties.