International Tchaikovsky Competition finalist, Tianxu An will present a recital in Knoxville on Sunday, March 8th at 2:30pm. This concert is part of the Evelyn Miller Young Pianist series and will be the final performance in the 2020 season.
Mr. An is originally from Beijing, China and currently attends the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. Highlights from his 2019-2020 season include performances with the Mariinsky Orchestra under the direction of Valery Gergiev, performing Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini with the Philadelphia Orchestra, and winning fourth prize in the XVI International Tchaikovsky Competition. Additionally, he was awarded a special prize for "self-confidence and bravery." Tianxu made headlines when an administrative error during the final round of the prestigious competition led to the orchestra performing the wrong concerto. Mr. An expected to hear the long orchestral introduction of the Tchaikovsky concerto, but what the orchestra played instead were the first couple of measures of Rachmaninoff's Paganini Variations, where the pianist is required to play almost immediately. Tianxu says his muscle memory kicked-in immediately and he was soon able to regain his composure and finish performing the Rachmaninoff.
He will perform two Beethoven sonatas on Sunday's recital: No.4 and No.31. The second half of the program includes short pieces by Tchaikovsky, Franz Liszt's Ballade No.2, and La Campanella, also by Liszt. As usual, this concert will be presented in Powell Recital Hall in the Natalie Haslam Music Center at the University of TN. Tickets and information at http://youngpianistseries.com