Today and tomorrow, catch pianist Jeremy Denk as he is featured on public radio and television. First, hear him in conversation today with Terry Gross on NPR’s Fresh Air (check local listings for original air times; the audio will be available for streaming here after the broadcast). Tomorrow, at 8 PM EDT, an in-depth profile of Denk airs on WNET Thirteen’s NYC-ARTS program. Following Denk’s career arc from his early days at Oberlin to his meteoric rise in 2012, including a successful debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and a debut CD release on the Nonesuch record label, the profile promises to be a comprehensive look at the life and career thus far of one of today’s most exciting and fascinating performers. After the first airing tonight, subsequent broadcasts will be aired throughout the weekend on Thirteen, WLIW21 and NJTV.
2012 has proven to be a red-letter year for Jeremy Denk, with high-profile debuts and celebrated performances, as well as two very well-received CD releases. Since the beginning of the year, Denk has debuted with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and performed under Nicholas McGegan, Roger Norrington, and Michael Tilson Thomas. Now a Nonesuch recording artist, Denk released his first solo recording for the label, Ligeti/Beethoven, on May 15, 2012; he celebrated the release of the CD with a concert at (le) poisson rouge on May 21. The response to Ligeti/Beethoven has been extremely enthusiastic; the Observer called the disc “dazzling,” while NPR’s Anastasia Tsioulcas praised the album, writing “Denk plays masterfully, opening up each puzzle box in turn with vitality, wit and absolute assurance. He cares deeply and passionately about these pieces, however impenetrable they may seem at first listen – and, through him, so do we.” The release concert was similarly well-received, with ConcertoNet.com extolling Denk’s “almost incomprehensible mastery of the keyboard in almost every region of serious music.”
Denk has always received high praise for his self-written liner notes, as well as his blog, Think Denk, but 2012 has seen his writing horizons broadened significantly. He was published in the New York Times Book Review in February as well as the New Yorker and NPR’s Deceptive Cadence in April, and an essay on Denk’s “Favorite Mistake” ran in this week’s issue of Newsweek (and can be read here). Also this week, a Q&A interview with Denk that offers insight into Ligeti/Beethoven, as well a sneak peek into potential future plans, was published on the Well-Tempered Ear blog.
More information on tomorrow’s PBS broadcast, as well as subsequent broadcasts, is below.
PBS broadcasts:
May 24
8 PM EDT, Thirteen
May 25
7 PM EDT, WLIW21
May 26
1:30 AM EDT, Thirteen
May 27
12 PM EDT, Thirteen
8:30 PM EDT, NJTV
Upcoming Performances:
June 3
Chicago, IL
Symphony Center Presents
More info
June 21, 22, 23
San Francisco, CA
San Francisco Symphony / Tilson Thomas
Liszt: Piano Concerto No. 1
Bellingham, WA
Western Washington University Performing Arts Center
Bellingham Festival of Music
More info
July 18
College Park, MD
Gildenhorn Recital Hall
University of Maryland
Kapell Competition
Solo Recital
July 28
New Paltz, NY
PianoSummer at New Paltz
Festival Recital
More info
August 3
Aspen, CO
Benedict Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony / Spano
August 16
Santa Fe, NM
The Lensic Performing Arts Center
Beethoven, Haydn, Neikrug
More info
August 18
Santa Fe, NM
The Lensic Performing Arts Center
Bach Plus
More info
August 19
Santa Fe, NM
The Lensic Performing Arts Center
Zdenek Fibich, Elgar
More info
August 20
Santa Fe, NM
The Lensic Performing Arts Center
Schubert
More info