Tuesday, October 8, 2024 @ 7:00pm – 9:30pm (CDT)
Dixon Concert Hall at Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, United States
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart — Selected works
Maurice Ravel — Selected works
Franz Liszt — Selected works
Faina Lushtak — Selected works
Jennifer Margaret Barker — Selected works
Nikolai Kapustin — Selected works

Our season opens with a unique performance: five alumni—former students of Tulane's own Faina Lushtak who have gone on to pursue a Doctor of Musical Arts—return to the Dixon Hall stage in a joyful celebration of music and artistry.

Featuring Ben Batalla, Scott Cohen, Francesca Hurst, Michael Rigney, Anna Savelyeva, and Faina Lushtak.

Founded and directed by Faina Lushtak, the Tulane Concert Piano Series seeks to present great music literature through performances by artists of the highest caliber.

The Concert Piano Series offers performances to the public completely free of charge. We are proud to bring internationally recognized performers such as Sergei Babayan, Vladamir Viardo, Ian Hobson, Alexander Korsantia, Angela Cheng, and Seho Young to the Dixon Hall stage for the education and enrichment of Tulane students and the New Orleans community at large.

About Francesca Hurst, piano

Dynamic and engaging, pianist Francesca Hurst delights audiences with a mix of classical and contemporary music. Listeners have described her playing as "moving and compelling" and "powerful yet sensitive." Classically trained, she fell into the new music scene in 2013, when a last-minute gig with Great Noise Ensemble turned into a decade-long engagement as their pianist. At ease with a wide range of repertoire, she makes sense of the music regardless of style and period, is passionate about communicating with audiences, and has a special interest in performing music by women.

As a new music pianist, Francesca has appeared as a solo and collaborative guest artist at festivals like the Wintergreen Music Festival, Atlantic Music Festival, New Music Delaware, New Music Gathering, Charlotte New Music Festival, and the Bang on a Can Music Marathon. Equally versatile in the classical repertoire, she has played in such venues as the Kennedy Center, the National Gallery of Art, and the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, DC, and internationally in Bulgaria, Italy, Portugal, and France. During the pandemic, she created the 100-day online video series Daily Dose of Piano, which featured music from the Baroque to today, including 14 premieres. She was recently named to the Performing Artist Touring Roster of the Virginia Commission for the Arts, and her debut album of women composers will be released soon.

Francesca teaches piano and piano pedagogy at The Catholic University of America and piano at the University of Virginia, and maintains a thriving private piano studio in Northern Virginia. She is an MTNA Nationally Certified Teacher of Music and holds a DMA in Piano Performance.

https://www.francescahurst.com