A Woven Tapestry - Piano

 A Woven Tapestry
 

“A splendid pianist—refined, searching and expressive, and her playing is loaded with insight and interpretative detail.” So wrote The Washington Post, after Alexandra Mascolo-David’s performance at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Ms. Mascolo-David has performed and led workshops and master classes in Europe, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas, including a New York debut recital at Carnegie Hall (Weil Recital Hall) in May 2004, which received a glowing review in The New York Concert Review.  
Dr. Mascolo-David is a native of Portugal and has devoted the last three decades to exploring and unearthing the music of Portuguese and Brazilian composers, especially that of António Fragoso and Francisco Mignone. She is in the forefront of presenting Mignone’s piano music and her performances, especially of his Valsas brasileiras (Brazilian Waltzes), have been widely acclaimed. Her compact disc recording of Volume One of the Valsas brasileiras (2001) was highly praised by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Volume Two was released in 2007, and of both discs, the widow of the composer stated: “Alexandra interprets Mignone with great sensitiveness, wonderful taste, and full knowledge of Mignone’s compositional legacy. Undoubtedly, her musical contribution is important, of enormous beauty, possessing both a captivating sonority and a complete affinity with the romantic atmosphere of the waltzes.” Dr. Mascolo-David’s continuing research on Mignone’s music earned her a Research Excellence Grant from Central Michigan University (CMU) --where she currently serves as tenured Professor of Piano-- to record his Fantasias Brasileiras (Brazilian Fantasies) for piano and orchestra with the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Maestro Raymond Harvey, for the White Pine Music recording label in a 2010 release. In addition to performing traditional solo and chamber literature, Dr. Mascolo-David has championed works by numerous contemporary composers, especially those of the late David Maslanka. Her performance in Maslanka’s “Piano Concerto No. 1 for Piano, Winds and Percussion,” released by Albany Records in 2005, received accolades from the American Record Guide. She also co-commissioned David Maslanka’s “Piano Concerto No. 3 for Piano and Wind Symphony,” as part of a consortium of universities. The world premiere of this work took place at CMU in February 2017. Dr. Mascolo-David is a founding member of Yara Ensemble (www.yaraensemble.com), with mezzo-soprano Sarah Stone, director Annette Thornton, and media artist Eric Limarenko, devoted to exploring the rich landscape of Iberian-American culture and heritage through music, videography, and movement. 
Dr. Mascolo-David is a most sought out and devoted teacher. American and international pianists attend CMU to study under her guidance. Her students consistently win prizes in auditions and competitions and achieve success in their career paths. She is also an active participant in the movement devoted to performance anxiety management. Her contributions to this cause include the development and implementation of a successful performance anxiety management course at CMU, as well as presenting lectures and workshops on the subject throughout the U.S.A. and abroad.
Prior to her appointment at CMU, Dr. Mascolo-David taught at the Interlochen Arts camp (1994, 1995) and at Iowa State University (1993-1995). She holds a piano diploma from the Oporto Conservatory of Music, Portugal, and the Doctor of Musical Arts in piano from the University of Kansas. She is the recipient of numerous prizes and awards, including the First Prize in the Piano Competition of Braga, Portugal, CMU’s 2001 Provost’s Award for Outstanding Research and Creative Activity, the 2007 President’s Award for Outstanding Research and Creative Activity, and a 2021 Excellence in Teaching Award. She is the ecstatic survivor of an unruptured brain aneurysm craniotomy (2010). Ever since her miraculous recovery, she has lectured throughout the U.S. on the vital role that music played in her full rehabilitation. For additional information regarding her life, career, and recordings, please visit the following Internet address: www.mascolodavid.com.

Lecture: An Overview of Piano Music from Portugal
Saturday, September 10 at 10:00 AM
Martha-Ellen Tye Recital Hall (Simon Estes Music Hall Room 140)

This lecture will focus on the evolution of Portuguese piano music, since its origins in organ, harpsichord, and clavichord music of the 16^th century, all the way to the present day. Repertoire selections from main Portuguese composers of the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Modern, and Contemporary periods will illustrate the stylistic aspects addressed during the presentation. Information regarding publishers and recordings of the works mentioned in the lecture will also be provided.

Piano Recital
Saturday, September 10 at 4:00 PM
Martha-Ellen Tye Recital Hall (Simon Estes Music Hall Room 140)
 

Brazilian composer Francisco Mignone was highly acclaimed during his lifetime. In Brazil, he is considered to be at the artistic level of Heitor Villa-Lobos and Camargo Guarnieri, but his name is seldom heard outside of his home country. Mignone was a prolific composer, who wrote in all the major genres and for a wide variety of instruments. There are over 100 pieces for piano, including 4 sonatas, 9 sonatinas, and several sets of waltzes that reflect the influence of Brazilian popular idioms, African rhythms, and Iberian music. The 24 Valsas Brasileiras (Brazilian Waltzes) were written between 1963 and 1984. These waltzes are mature and intimate works in which Mignone recalls both the happiness of a life rich in experiences and the profound melancholy of a man anticipating the end of his life. Although these waltzes are of considerable musical substance and worthy of performance, they are still relatively unknown outside of Brazil. Mignone deserves much more recognition for his compositions than he currently receives, and I hope that this performance will contribute towards a positive change in the regard for his music. My recordings of the 24 Valsas Brasileiras of Francisco Mignone can be found on Amazon.com and Cdbaby.com. I hope you enjoy tonight’s performance!        ~ Alexandra Mascolo-David