A giant among Canadian pianists, Robert Silverman promises to captivate the audience at his Coast Recital Society concert at 2:30 p.m., Sunday at the Raven's Cry Theatre in Sechelt.
Prior to his recital, at a 1:30 pre-concert chat, Silverman will discuss his program, which includes works by Franz Liszt, Johannes Brahms and Robert Schumann.
In a career spanning more than five decades, Silverman has reached milestones of musical achievement, with lauded performances and recordings of the complete sonata cycles by Ludwig van Beethoven and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; concerts in prestigious halls throughout North America, Europe, the Far East and Australia; orchestral appearances on three continents, under the batons of such renowned conductors as Seiji Ozawa, John Eliot Gardiner, Neeme Järvi, Sergiu Comissiona and the late Kiril Kondrashin. Critics praise Silverman's playing, noting his polished technique, extraordinary range of tonal palette and probing interpretations of the most complex works in the repertoire.
Born in Montreal, Silverman is a long-time resident of Vancouver. He taught at the University of British Columbia for 30 years, serving a five-year term as director of the School of Music in the 1990s. UBC awarded him an honourary doctor of letters in 2004. He now devotes himself full-time to concerts and recording, with frequent broadcasts on CBC's English and French radio networks.
While on the Coast, Silverman will also participate in events at Shorncliffe Care Home in Sechelt and Christenson Village in Gibsons as part of the CRS's Artists in the Community program.
