LEWISBURG W.Va. (WVDN – Pianist Barbara Nissman returns to Carnegie Hall on Saturday, May 17, at 7 p.m., for “Chopin, the Beautiful, the final concert in this season’s Carnegie Classics series. Barbara will be joined by five-musician friends, all members of the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, for a chamber performance of Chopin’s Second Piano Concerto for piano and string quintet.
This is the third successful season of Carnegie Classics, a three-part concert series, hosted by Steinway “legend” and recent 2023 West Virginia Music Hall of Fame inductee, Barbara Nissman and designed to introduce classical music to new audiences, as well as inspiring and entertaining all music enthusiasts.
Barbara combines great music with informal chat and takes us on a magical voyage. Nissman invites the listener to travel with her to explore the composers’ world. She makes listening easy and music meaningful, as she shares her joy and passion for her composer “friends” and their great masterworks with all of us. No education is required— just a set of ears to listen and an open heart to receive the joys of music!
The final concert Chopin, the Beautiful! begins with Barbara’s introduction to some of Chopin’s popular melodies that many of us already might know and concludes with the chamber performance of his Second Piano Concerto. Chopin was only 19 years old when he wrote this masterpiece. He arranged it for piano and string quintet so he himself could play it with several musician friends in the elegant living rooms of his Parisian patrons. Barbara will be joined by five West Virginian musicians for this special premiere performance. She will also share with us some scenes from Chopin’s life and his beautiful music.
“What a joy for me to perform for friends on the beautiful Steinway at our wonderful Carnegie Hall! exclaims Nissman. “With this series we are expanding the audience for classical music, and it is so gratifying for me to share with my community the music that I love so much. We all need more joy in our lives these days, and music has the power to transport us into a magical world. Celebrate with me the beauty of Chopin’s music and let your heart open wide to embrace the joy!”
A “West Virginian by choice,” Barbara Nissman moved to a farm in Greenbrier County in 1989. A member of the inaugural class of “12 Steinway Legends” chosen from over a century of Steinway Artists, Nissman is celebrated as “one of the last pianists in the grand Romantic tradition of Liszt, Rachmaninoff, and Rubinstein.” Nissman’s career was launched by conductor Eugene Ormandy, and she has performed with major orchestras on nearly every continent. Her recordings of Liszt, Prokofiev and Ginastera are considered “definitive.” Also, in demand as a writer, lecturer, guest artist and clinician worldwide, her music lecture series, “Barbara & Friends,” was carried on the BBC. She performed with Don Henley and Billy Joel at a fundraiser at Jazz at Lincoln Center and at the Kennedy Center’s 25th Anniversary Gala. Since 2002, she has been involved with the Robert James Frascino AIDS Foundation, raising more than $2 million dollars for AIDS organizations worldwide. Recently Barbara returned to Amsterdam to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Prinsengracht concerts that she helped initiate. She holds the Governor’s Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award from the State of West Virginia and was awarded an honorary Doctorate from West Virginia University in 2024. For more information, go to www.barbaranissman.com.
Tickets are $25/adults. Thanks to the Carnegie Cardinal Fund, Greenbrier County Students attend for free, but still must reserve a seat.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.carnegiehallwv.org, call 304.645-7917, or stop by 611 Church Street, Lewisburg, WV.
The Carnegie Classics Series is made possible with support from the James F.B. Peyton Fund, the National Endowment for the Arts and the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, with approval from the West Virginia Commission on the Arts. Additional funding is also provided by Eugene and Annie Jeffus.
Carnegie Hall WV is a nonprofit organization supported by individual contributions, grants, and fundraising efforts such as TOOT and The Carnegie Hall Gala.
