Calendar

Jul
4
Wed
CLOSED @ Ruggero Piano
Jul 4 @ 9:30 am – 5:30 pm
Jul
6
Fri
Raleigh Symphony Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Jul 6 @ 9:30 am – 10:30 am
Jul
17
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Jul 17 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome PTG members!

Sep
8
Sat
North Carolina Music Teacher’s Association Fall Piano Workshop @ Ruggero Piano
Sep 8 @ 8:30 am – 5:30 pm
North Carolina Music Teacher's Association Fall Piano Workshop @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome North Carolina Music Teacher’s Association!

Sep
19
Wed
Raleigh Piano Teachers Association Board Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Sep 19 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Raleigh Piano Teachers Association Board Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome Raleigh Piano Teachers Association!

Sep
29
Sat
Special Concert: The Free Spirits Ensemble of the Raleigh Symphony @ Ruggero Piano
Sep 29 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Special Concert: The Free Spirits Ensemble of the Raleigh Symphony @ Ruggero Piano

Special Concert: The Free Spirits Ensemble of the Raleigh Symphony

Oct
11
Thu
Lanette Lind Studio Recital @ Ruggero Piano
Oct 11 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Lanette Lind Studio Recital @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome students of Lanette Lind!

Oct
14
Sun
Paderewski Festival Fundraiser featuring Concert Pianist Solomon Eichner, D.M.A @ Ruggero Piano
Oct 14 @ 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm

 

Equally at home with solo, chamber and concerto performances, American pianist Solomon Eichner has established himself as an exciting versatile young artist known for his commanding interpretations of the romantic keyboard repertoire.

Declared by the American Liszt Society as “A sensitive pianist, Solomon’s playing is poetic, beautiful and moving with deep feeling.”

Sponsored by the March of the Living Foundation, Solomon performed for the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz in April 2018 alongside Cellist Amit Peled and Violinist Yevgeny Kutik at the Krakow Philharmonic Hall in addition to a solo recital at the Krakow Jewish Cultural Center.

Solomon will debut this season on the Chamber Music Raleigh Series with North Carolina Symphony Concertmaster Brian Reagin and Principal Cellist Bonnie Thron hosted at the NC Museum of Art, as well as a solo recital on the Paderewski Raleigh Festival in October 2018 and recital on the Cherry Hill Plantation Concert Series in April 2020, among other recitals throughout North Carolina. Solomon will be performing Chopin 2nd Concerto with the Wilson Symphony, Conductor Mark Peterson in November 2018 and Mendelssohn 1st with the Salisbury Symphony, Conductor David Hagy in March 2019.

Solomon will be presented twice this season in his hometown of Baltimore with solo recitals by the Yale Gordon Trust and the Music in the Great Hall Series. Additional concerts include a November 2018 recital on the Trinity by the Cove Church Concert Series in Naples, Fl as well as recitals in Boca Raton.

During the 2016 season, Solomon performed multiple concertos with orchestras including the Western Piedmont Symphony under Conductor John Gordon Ross performing Rachmaninoff 3rd and Wilson Symphony with Conductor Mark Peterson, Liszt 1st.

In 2015, Solomon made his New Jersey debut with Conductor George Mariner Maull and the Discovery Orchestra.

Solomon debuted at Carnegie Hall in April 2016 after winning the “GoldenKey Debut” International Competition in New York City.

Solomon won 2nd prize in the 2016 Miami Music Festival’s Concerto Competition resulting in his Miami debut recital at the Steinway Piano Gallery Coral Gables.

Solomon participated in the 2017 Hastings International Piano Competition in England as well as the Virginia Waring International Piano Competition in Palm Springs, California.

Solomon won 2nd prize at the 2013 Liszt-Garrison International Piano Competition and 2nd prize and Chinese Award in the 2013 International Young Artists Competition at Catholic University in D.C.

Solomon made his D.C. debut recital at the Polish Embassy sponsored by the Paderewski Scholarship Foundation and General Edward Rowny in April 2015 and returned for his re-engagement this past September 2017.

Solomon has performed at Steinway Hall and Merkin Concert Hall, New York City.  Concert series include Bluthner Concert Series in Adamstown, MD, “Our Lady of the Chapel Concerts at Charlestown” in Catonsville, MD; Steinway Piano Gallery, Charlotte NC, Greensboro NC, Atlanta GA; “The Lives of the Piano” Chopin Marathon Concert New York City and “Afternoon Concert Series” at the State Department in Washington DC; Music in the Great Hall Concert Series, MD; Hendersonville Chamber Music Concert Series, NC; Piccolo Spoleto Festival, Charleston, SC; Rogers Memorial Library Concert Series, Southampton, NY; Parrish Museum Salon Concert Series, Water Mill, NY, among others.

The summer of 2015 Solomon traveled to Italy to perform in the Perugia Music Festival.  In addition to solo performances in the famous Salla Notari Hall, Solomon performed the Grieg Piano Concerto with the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Universidad de Alicante under the baton of Israeli Conductor, Uriel Segal.

Before Italy, Solomon performed at the prestigious PianoFest in the Hamptons, NY.

Past music festivals Solomon has performed in include Montecito Summer Music Festival in Santa Barbara, CA; Atlantic Music Festival, Waterville, Maine; Vladimir Feltsman’s SUNY New Paltz Piano Program; Mannes International Keyboard Festival, NYC; American Fine Arts Festival in Weimar, Germany.

Originally from Baltimore, Solomon studied privately in Maryland with Irene Kreymer, Reynaldo Reyes and Virginia Reinecke.  Solomon graduated with his Bachelor of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music having studied with Arkady Aronov and Master of Music degree from the Peabody Conservatory studying with Alexander Shtarkman.

Solomon received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of South Carolina in May 2017.  He held a position as staff accompanist with a full-scholarship. Solomon studied with Dr. Marina Lomazov and Dr. Joseph Rackers. Solomon’s dissertation is on the Jewish Soviet repressed pianist/composer Samuil Feinberg.

Solomon and his wife Becky recently relocated to Raleigh where he is on staff at Campbell University and Wake Tech Community College.

Website: www.solomoneichnerpianist.com

              

Oct
16
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Oct 16 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome piano technicians!

Oct
17
Wed
Raleigh Piano Teachers Association Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Oct 17 @ 9:00 am – 11:00 am
Raleigh Piano Teachers Association Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome Raleigh Piano Teachers Association!

Oct
27
Sat
Carol Ann Barry Studio Recital @ Ruggero Piano
Oct 27 @ 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Carol Ann Barry Studio Recital @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome students of Carol Ann Barry!

Oct
29
Mon
Dowell Idol Studio Recital @ Ruggero Piano
Oct 29 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Dowell Idol Studio Recital @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome students of Dowell Idol!

Nov
2
Fri
Dottie Buster Studio Recital @ Ruggero Piano
Nov 2 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Dottie Buster Studio Recital @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome students of Dottie Buster!

Nov
4
Sun
NC Bach Festival Fall Benefit Gala Concert @ Ruggero Piano
Nov 4 @ 4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
NC Bach Festival Fall Benefit Gala Concert @ Ruggero Piano

Featuring NC Bach Festival Ensemble, Dr. Roman Placzek, Artistic Director. The ensemble is composed of the finest musicians Triangle has to offer and four talented young musicians representing Festivals’ mission of supporting, inspiring and rewarding young, dedicated musicians.

The program will include most beautiful music by J.S. Bach – violin double concerto and F minor keyboard concerto, and G.F. Handel – selected arias and Concerto Grosso in A minor, featuring

Florence Peacock, soprano, William Wolfram, piano, and NC Bach Festival Ensemble soloists.

The tickets are available here and at the door. All proceeds will support NC Bach Festival Youth Programs including its new addition the Young Artists Concerto and Aria Competition, Florence Peacock Awards.

Lavish reception will follow the concert and is open to all ticket holders.

Children and students up to high-school senior grade attend FREE with valid ID!

For more information about the event and NC Bach Festival, please visit www.ncbachfestival.org.

Nov
20
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Nov 20 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Piano Technicians Guild Meeting

Dec
2
Sun
Raleigh Symphony Orchestra presents the Free Spirits Ensemble @ Ruggero Piano
Dec 2 @ 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

fre

Feb
17
Sun
Annual Battens Disease Play-A-Thon Fundraiser @ Ruggero Piano
Feb 17 @ 12:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Feb
19
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Feb 19 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome piano technicians!

Mar
10
Sun
NC Bach Festival 2019 Winners Concert with Featured & Guest Artists @ Ruggero Piano
Mar 10 @ 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm
NC Bach Festival 2019 Winners Concert with Featured & Guest Artists @ Ruggero Piano

The final event of the NC Bach Festival Year ONE season!

Young Artists Concerto & Aria Competition – Florence Peacock Awards Winners Concert with our final Featured Artists and The NC Bach Festival Ensemble will conclude this year’s festival on a truly celebratory note. We will present the winners of the inaugural year of our newly developed competition aimed at young artists playing and singing music by Johann Sebastian Bach, his family, and contemporaries. For more information about the competition, please visit – http://www.ncbachfestival.org/concerto-aria-competition.html.

This most anticipated concert of our new existence will open with the appearance of two excellent pianists – our very own Elena Nezhdanova and her mentor and friend Ida Tili-Trebicka from Syracuse University in New York. Their performance is not only the manifestation of excellence and unique musicianship but also the real reflection of NC Bach Festival’s mission of sharing and inspiring young generations when the former student and the teacher meet on one stage to share their love for piano and music by sharing with us the magnificent Concerto for Two Pianos in C Major, BWV 1061 by Johann Sebastian Bach.

The afternoon will also include a formal award ceremony and a festive reception at which we will acknowledge our patron, all participants, judges, and all NC Bach Festival 2019 featured artists.

This event, as many others are free, but we need your help and support in form of any kind of contribution. All proceeds go to benefit our excellent Youth Programs.

Mar
19
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Mar 19 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome local piano technicians!

Apr
7
Sun
The Free Spirits Ensemble of the Raleigh Symphony @ Ruggero Piano
Apr 7 @ 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm
The Free Spirits Ensemble of the Raleigh Symphony @ Ruggero Piano

Concert Program

 

Sea Pieces for clarinet and piano

Richard Faith

The Peaceable Kingdom or The Ugly Duckling

Lanette Lind

Dog Tales for flute, clarinet and piano

Adrienne Albert

Three Dog Night, The Artful Dodger, Mutt and Jeff

Apr
16
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Apr 16 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome local piano technicians!

May
8
Wed
Raleigh Piano Teachers Association Board Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
May 8 @ 9:30 am – 12:00 pm

Welcome Raleigh Piano Teachers Association board!

May
15
Wed
Carolina Ballet Piano Sale @ Ruggero Piano
May 15 @ 10:00 am – May 22 @ 6:00 pm

May
21
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
May 21 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Welcome piano technicians!

May
27
Mon
CLOSED @ Ruggero Piano
May 27 @ 9:30 am – 5:30 pm

We will be closed in observance of Memorial Day!

Jun
18
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Jun 18 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Welcome piano technicians!

Jun
30
Sun
Overtones Summer Chamber Music Series featuring The Mile-End Trio @ Ruggero Piano
Jun 30 @ 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Overtones Summer Chamber Music Series featuring The Mile-End Trio @ Ruggero Piano
The Mile-End Trio
Sunday, June 30th, at 3:00PM
Doors open at 2:30PM
Bösendorfer Hall, Ruggero Piano
Program
Piano Trio in D Major Op. 70 #1 “Ghost” L. Van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Allegro vivace e con brio
Largo assai ed espressivo
Presto
Other assorted works to be announced
Jeff Multer, Violin
Julian Schwarz, Cello
Marika Bournaki, Piano
Jeffrey Multer (violin), Julian Schwarz (cello), and Marika Bournaki (piano) have banded together in a new year-round artistic venture – The Mile-End Trio. The three are familiar faces at Eastern Music Festival each summer.
Multer, who is recognized worldwide for his passionate performances, depth of musical understanding and technique, is head of EMF’s violin faculty and is beginning his 21st season as EMF’s concert master. Jeff serves as concertmaster of the Florida Orchestra and performs frequently with orchestras and chamber ensembles around the globe.
Schwarz, who was born to a multigenerational musical family and is the son of EMF’s Music Director Gerard Schwarz, won first prize at the 2016 Boulder International Chamber Music Competition’s “The art of Duo” with Canadian pianist Marika Bournaki. 2018 will mark his sixth season with EMF. Julian is newly-appointed to the faculty of the Shenandoah Conservatory of Music and he maintains a very busy concert and teaching calendar.
Bournaki, well known as a world-class performer and a brilliant pianist, has appeared as guest soloist with symphonies across the globe. The award-winning documentary I am not a rock star features Bournaki’s evolution as an artist from the age of 12 to 20. Bournaki is looking forward to her third season with EMF in 2018.
The Mile-End Trio’s name is simple – this trio was rehearsing in Bournaki’s native Montreal Canada in the colorful and charming Mile-End neighborhood. Thus, their moniker. Hailed as “richly satisfying” by Classical Voices of North Carolina, The Mile-End Trio made their EMF debut in July 2017.
Jul
21
Sun
Overtones Chamber Music Summer Series featuring Nezhdanova-Placzek Duo @ Ruggero Piano
Jul 21 @ 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Overtones Chamber Music Summer Series featuring Nezhdanova-Placzek Duo @ Ruggero Piano

Nezhdanova-Placzek Duo

Sunday, July 21st, at 3:00PM

Doors open at 2:30PM
Bösendorfer Hall, Ruggero Piano

Program

Dumka for Cello and Piano, Op. 1 (1988) Roman Placzek
Sonata for violoncello and piano No. 3, H.340 Bohuslav Martinu
Siciliene, Op. 78
Pavane, Op. 50 Gabriel Urbain Faure
Sonata for violoncello and piano (1915) Claude Debussy
Prologue
Serenade et Finale
Roman Placzek, Cello
Elena Nezhdanova, Piano
Nezhdanova-Placzek Duo was formed in the Spring of 2016 as the result of the invitation to perform at the North Carolina Bach Festival in February 2016. Russian pianist and Czech cellist met at UNC-Greensboro, NC during their doctoral studies. The mutual artistic and personal agreement, and the success of their collaboration meant the beginning of the newly established ensemble. It is the mission of the Duo to honor and to sustain the great tradition of the outstanding performing heritage of their homelands.
Executive Director of The North Carolina Bach Festival, Inc. and published composer Dr. Roman Placzek is an internationally recognized soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player as well as a sought-after cello teacher and music educator. He has performed for and with many distinguished artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, James Buswel, Konstantin Lifschitz, Corin Redgrave, Roberta Flack, Jose Lezcano, John Salmon, and numerous ensembles and orchestras across Europe and the East Coast of the United States. Roman’s performances are highly praised for their ingenuity, stylistic authenticity, crystal clear intonation, and the beauty of his sound. He was the founding member of Golden Mountain Chamber Ensemble.
Dr. Placzek is also a founder and former Artistic and Executive Director of Golden Mountain Summer International Chamber Music Festival in Zlate Hory, Czech Republic. During its existence, the festival welcomed students and distinguished performing artists from all around the world including South Korea, Iran, Great Britain, USA, Czech Republic.
Roman received his musical education from Janáček State Conservatory in Ostrava of Czech Republic, Mozarteum Salzburg in Austria, The Boston Conservatory, and the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. In May 2014, Roman received his Doctorate of Musical Arts in Cello Performance with cognate in Music History and Literature degree from University of North Carolina at Greensboro. His dissertation theses Importance and pedagogical value of three sonatas for two cellos, Op. 43 by Bernhard Romberg is available for academic purposes at ProQuest, or in a book form for purchase at  www.amazon.com.
Before music, Roman’s greatest love and passion is his beautiful daughter Ella. Born in Czech Republic, Dr. Placzek now lives with Brownie, his beloved yellow Labrador Retriever in Raleigh, NC. He is teaching, composing, and performing as a soloist, a chamber musician with his newly established piano and cello duo with pianist Elena Nezhdanova.
Born into a musical family in Kazan, Russia, Elena Nezhdanova made a debut with an orchestra at the age of eight and is a recipient of several prizes and awards. Since finishing her Doctorate in Piano Performance and Collaborative Arts from UNC Greensboro, she continues professional activities in United States and abroad. In October 2015, Elena performed Peter Tchaikovsky’s 1st piano concerto in B-flat minor with Sichuan Symphony Orchestra in Chengdu, China. Passionate advocate of new music, Elena’s Doctoral dissertation thesis is a performance guide to 24 Preludes for Piano, Op. 41 by Lera Auerbach. Her recent solo appearances include an invitation to participate in the Lives of the Piano concert series in the program “The Piano and Claude Debussy: Celebrating the Centennial of His Death,” held at Manhattan School of Music on February 8th, 2018. Her future projects include solo appearances in Prague, Czech Republic, and Dresden, Germany in Summer 2018.
An avid chamber musician, Elena is a co-founding member of the Nezhdanova-Placzek (piano/cello) Duo. The Duo’s recent professional engagements include performances across North Carolina, the East Coast, and a scheduled tour of Central Europe for Summer 2018. The Nezhdanova-Placzek duo were featured artists at the North Carolina Bach Festival (2016) and in 2017 they performed alongside with distinguished pianist, Bach & jazz expert, Dr. John Salmon. As a sought-after collaborative pianist, Elena was invited to collaborate with a guest virtuoso Morin Khuur (Horsehead fiddle) player from Inner Mongolia on his North Carolina tour, worked with students at the Richard Luby International Violin Symposium in Chapel Hill, and is currently an Adjunct collaborative pianist at Campbell University, NC since 2017.
A dedicated pedagogue, Dr. Nezhdanova’s many years of interest in and research on the physiology of piano playing gave her the opportunity of being commissioned to write a review of Irina Gorin’s piano method, “Tales of a Musical Journey” published by the Clavier Companion magazine in November 2017. Among her many pedagogic activities, Elena served as a vice-president of MTNA collegiate chapter at UNCG, presented at the Greensboro Music Teachers Association, and at the NCMTA conference at Meredith College. She is frequently invited to judge for the NC music organizations, such as Chapel Hill Music Association Piano Festival, NC Federation of Music Clubs Piano Competition, the RPTA Federation Contests and the Young Artist Auditions. She is currently the Program Director of the North Carolina Bach Festival in charge of its Annual Youth Concert, among others.
Elena Nezhdanova has participated in master classes with distinguished artists such as William Wolfram, Dmitri Shteinberg, John Perry, Natalia Antonova, Nelita True, Ann Schein, Jacques Ogg, Gilbert Kalish, Claude Frank, Joel Krosnick (Juilliard String Quartet). She attended University of Florida International Piano Festival and Aspen Music Festival and School. She received her DMA degree at UNC Greensboro, her Master of Music degree at Ithaca College, and her Bachelor of Music degree at Syracuse University.
Aug
11
Sun
Overtones Chamber Music Summer Series featuring Three For All @ Ruggero Piano
Aug 11 @ 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Overtones Chamber Music Summer Series featuring Three For All @ Ruggero Piano

Three For All

Sunday, August 11th, at 3:00PM

Doors open at 2:30PM
Bösendorfer Hall, Ruggero Piano
Program
Trio in B Flat Major, Opus 11 L. van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Allegro con brio
Adagio
Thema: Pria ch’io l’impegno – Allegretto
Fantasy Trio R. Muczynski (1929-2010)
Allegro energico
Andante con espressione
Allegro deciso
Introduction and Finale
Trio in D Minor, Opus 120 G. Faure (1845-1924)
Allegro, ma non troppo
Andantino
Allegro vivo
Oblivion A. Piazzolla (1921-1992)
Libertango
Bonnie Thron, Cello
Fred Jacobowitz, Clarinet
Anatoly Larkin, Piano
Bonnie Thron joined the North Carolina Symphony as principal cellist in 2000. She currently is a member of the piano quartet Quercus and frequently plays with the Mallarmé Chamber Players. In the summers, she performs at the Sebago-Long Lake Music Festival in Maine.
Previously she was a member of the Peabody Trio, in residence at the Peabody Institute, during which time the group won the Naumberg chamber music competition. Early in her career, Thron was assistant principal cellist of the Denver Symphony for a season, and played and recorded with the Orpheus Chamber Ensemble. She has had a long history with the Apple Hill Chamber Players, as a guest artist and chamber music coach, and was involved in the group’s first Playing for Peace tour to the Middle East in 1991.
Thron has performed concertos with the North Carolina Symphony, the Orpheus Chamber Ensemble, the Juilliard Orchestra, the Panama National Orchestra, the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, and various other orchestras in North Carolina and her original home state of New Hampshire. She received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from The Juilliard School. Her teachers include Lynn Harrell, Harvey Shapiro, Norman Fischer, and Elsa Hilger.
Thron also received a BSN from Johns Hopkins School of Nursing and worked as a nurse for several years, at Johns Hopkins Hospital and as a case manager in home care nursing, during which time she was a cello teacher at the Baltimore School for the Arts. Thron and her husband, clarinetist Fred Jacobowitz, have a son—pianist, clarinetist, and computer whiz Louis.
Fred Jacobowitz is a graduate of the famous New York City High School of Performing Arts (featured in the movie “Fame”). He received his Bachelors and Masters degrees from the Julliard School, where he studied with the late Leon Russianoff. Later, he pursued doctoral studies at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University where he studied with Loren Kitt. He likes to joke that he got his Clarinet degrees from Julliard and his Sax and Flute degrees from the famous ‘School of Hard Knocks’.
Fred made his New York debut at Carnegie Hall (now Weill Hall) as winner of the Artists International Competition. He was a featured soloist on radio stations WBAI and WQXR in New York City, with the Goldman Band, and in recital throughout the Metropolitan New York area. In addition, he played in and soloed with (and even conducted) the Kingsborough College (Brooklyn, NC) symphonic band. As a chamber musician, he has participated in the Marlboro Music Festival and played in the Verrazano Winds Woodwind Quintet in Brooklyn, New York. Other chamber music projects include the Apple Hill Center for Chamber Music (Keene, NH) and most recently Washington Musica Viva in Tacoma Park, Maryland.
Mr. Jacobowitz was Principle Clarinetist in the Annapolis (Maryland) Symphony Orchestra from 1989-2002. While living in Baltimore, he also taught clarinet and saxophone at Peabody’s Preparatory Division. He is equally at home in the worlds of Classical, Jazz and Folk, having performed and recorded with his Kol Haruach Klezmer Band and his duo, Ebony and Ivory. Other records include 2 CDs with the Machaya Klezmer Band in Maryland. He has even played in a South Serbian Gypsy Band. He has performed as recitalist and soloist throughout the US, Canada, and Panama.
Fred now resides in Raleigh, NC, where (when not performing out of town) he is a machinist. He teaches woodwinds and freelances, and he can often be heard playing concerts with his wife, North Carolina Symphony Principal Cellist, Bonnie Thron. In addition, he performs as half of the Jacobowitz-Larkin duo with pianist Anatoly Larkin. He runs his own business, Case Closed, fixing musical instrument cases and is a professional Little League Baseball Umpire.
Born in 1979, Russia, Anatoly Larkin has been studying and making music from around the age of 4. After studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in UK, Anatoly completed his doctoral studies in Piano Performance at the University of Minnesota under the advice of Alexander Braginsky. In Minnesota, he was a member of the new-music ensemble, Zeitgeist, fulfilling his passion for contemporary and avant-garde music. With Zeitgeist, Anatoly had premiered works by Paul Dresher, Scott Miller, Amy Wurtz, Jerome Kitzke, Bill Banfield, Anthony Gatto, Kathy Jackanich, Justin Rubin, Michael Wittgraf and many others. He continues to be an active improviser, having collaborated with trombonist Patrick Crossland, clarinetist Pat O’Keefe, violinist Yuri Merzhevsky and other artists.
In 2005, he moved to Raleigh, NC, to join Zenph, a music technology company. There he developed a software/manual process, subsequently trademarked as Re-Performance®, that made it possible to hear performances of golden age pianists in famous audio recordings (such as those on wax cylinders, or from 78s) live again, with the help of state-of-the-art reproducing piano technology. He oversaw the recordings of critically acclaimed albums such as, for example, “Bach: The Goldberg Variations 1955 Performance”, “Rachmaninoff Plays Rachmaninoff” or “Oscar Peterson: Unmistakable”. He also oversaw the use of this technology in collaborations with live artists, like violinist Joshua Bell and HK Philharmonic. Currently, he is involved in creating Re-Performances of “Steinway Immortals” for Steinway and Sons in New York.
Anatoly continues to perform, teach, and, occasionally, compose music. In his teaching studio, he employs the successful ear-training methods of his first music teacher, Nadezhda Matsayeva. He also teaches music courses at the North Carolina State University. His recent projects include a presentation of piano works by “Russian Composers In Their Early 30s” (featured as a radio special on “The Classical Station”, 89.7FM), piano recordings with piano technician Marc Wienert, chamber performances with musicians Jonathan Kramer, Fred Jacobowitz, Alex Gorodezky and various members of NC Symphony Orchestra, as well as the continuing collaboration with living composers, including John Starosta and Craig Bove.
Aug
20
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Aug 20 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome local piano technicians!

Sep
2
Mon
CLOSED for Labor Day @ Ruggero Piano
Sep 2 @ 9:30 am – 5:30 pm
CLOSED for Labor Day @ Ruggero Piano

Closed for Labor Day!

Sep
7
Sat
NCMTA Fall Workshop @ Ruggero Piano
Sep 7 @ 9:00 am – 5:30 pm
NCMTA Fall Workshop @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome NCMTA!

Sep
17
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Sep 17 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome local piano technicians!

Oct
5
Sat
The Free Spirits Ensemble of The Raleigh Symphony @ Ruggero Piano
Oct 5 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
The Free Spirits Ensemble of The Raleigh Symphony @ Ruggero Piano

This program will explore Latin music from different points of view including American composer Adrienne Albert’s Ode to Piazzolla and Cuban Stories; John Williams’s interpretation of Por Una Cabeza by the famous Argentine composer, Carlos Gardel; two trios by Astor Piazzolla; and Pacific Serenade, inspired by an evening on the West Coast by Miguel del Aguila from Uruguay. Teresa Fernandez will round out the program with a selection of Latin songs.

Por Una Cabeza   for Violin & Piano

Carlos Gardel/John Williams (arranger)

Ode to Piazzolla   for Violin, Cello & Piano

Adrienne Albert

Invierno Porteno   for Violin, Cello & Piano

Astor Piazzolla

Primavera Portena   for Violin, Cello & Piano

Astor Piazzolla

Pacific Serenade   for Clarinet & Piano

Miguel del Aguila

Latin Songs

Teresa Fernandez (vocalist)

Cuban Stories   for Flute, Cello, Violin & Piano

Adrienne Albert

Oct
15
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano
Oct 15 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting @ Ruggero Piano

Welcome local piano technicians!

Dec
5
Thu
NC Bach Festival Gala Benefit Concert featuring Florence Peacock and Dr. Roman Placzek @ Ruggero Piano
Dec 5 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Jan
21
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting
Jan 21 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Feb
1
Sat
Yamaha Rebate Promotion @ Ruggero Piano
Feb 1 @ 9:30 am – Feb 29 @ 5:30 pm
Feb
9
Sun
Annual Battens Disease Play-A-Thon Fundraiser @ Ruggero Piano
Feb 9 @ 12:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Feb
15
Sat
The Free Spirits Ensemble of the Raleigh Symphony Orchestra @ Ruggero Piano
Feb 15 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Feb
18
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting
Feb 18 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Mar
17
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting
Mar 17 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Mar
21
Sat
The Free Spirits Ensemble of the Raleigh Symphony Orchestra @ Ruggero Piano
Mar 21 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Apr
21
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting
Apr 21 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
May
11
Mon
Piano Guild Auditions @ Ruggero Piano
May 11 @ 9:30 am – May 16 @ 5:30 pm
May
19
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting
May 19 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Jun
9
Tue
Hal Leonard Workshop @ Ruggero Piano
Jun 9 @ 9:00 am – 5:30 pm
Hal Leonard Workshop @ Ruggero Piano

More information coming soon!

Jun
16
Tue
Piano Technicians Guild Meeting
Jun 16 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Nov
9
Mon
You’re Invited to our Annual Holiday Piano Sale – November 9th-15th @ Ruggero Piano
Nov 9 @ 9:00 am – Nov 15 @ 6:00 pm
You're Invited to our Annual Holiday Piano Sale - November 9th-15th @ Ruggero Piano

You’re Invited to our Annual Holiday Piano Sale Event – discounted pricing and special financing offers on our entire inventory of new and used pianos – limited time only – November 9th through 15th, open by appointment!

Customer Reviews

Amazing piano shop!! They have quite a great selection of beautiful pianos. The staff here are very knowledgeable and kind. You can truly tell they love piano. I suggest this place to any one interested in getting a piano. - Riley Garrett

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