Fans of traditional and very untraditional piano music will be able to hear both in a concert at Piedmont College by artist-in-residence Dr. Jeri-Mae G. Astolfi at 4 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 29, 2017, in the college Chapel.
The concert is free and everyone is invited. The Piedmont Chapel is located at 992 Central Avenue, Demorest.
Astolfi will perform sonatas by Baroque composer Domenico Scarlatti, as well as Frederic Chopin’s “Sonata No. 3 in B Minor, Op. 58,” and three sonatas from “Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano” by American musical pioneer John Cage.
“The prepared piano is a 20th century innovation in which individual notes are altered by securing various objects above or between the strings,” Astolfi said. “Materials are chosen depending on what sound you are looking for, whether it be a muted, more percussive attack, a chime-like effect, or anything between!” For his “Sonatas and Interludes,” Cage specified a series of metal screws, bolts, nuts, plastic and rubber tabs that are attached to the strings at precise locations. Following the concert, listeners can examine how the piano was prepared, Astolfi said.
Originally from Canada, Astolfi has previously served on the music faculty at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and at Henderson State University. She frequently serves as a piano clinician, coach, and master class instructor. An active member in various local, state, and national music associations, she is on the governing board of PianoArts, a North American piano competition, festival, and fellowship organization.
Piedmont College is an independent liberal arts college of more than 2,260 students, with campuses located in Demorest and Athens, Georgia. Founded in 1897, the college offers undergraduate degrees in more than 50 major areas, master’s degrees in education and business, and doctoral degrees in education.
