French pianist to perform in Whitefish
The creative and prolific French composer, pianist and conductor Michel Legrand will perform at the Whitefish Performing Arts Center Sept. 15 on the recently acquired Steinway concert grand piano.
Legrand will be joined on harp by his wife, Catherine Michel, one of the foremost harpists in the world.
Legrand has enjoyed a long and successful career. His musical studies began at age 10 when he entered the Paris Conservatory. As a young man, he was accompanist and musical director for Maurice Chevalier. His international tours with the famous French singer gave Legrand the opportunity to visit the United States for the first time.
Through the years, he has collaborated with jazz greats such as Miles Davis, Stan Getz and Dizzy Gillespie. He’s worked with big names in classical music like Kiri Te Kanawa and Jessye Norman. Barbra Streisand’s latest release contains five of his compositions.
Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and Johnny Mathis have all had hits with his songs. Jack Jones, Sting, Diana Ross, Yves Montand and Rosemary Clooney have all performed his music.
Legrand has composed more than 200 film and television scores, several musicals and made more than 100 albums. He has won three Oscars and five Grammys and has been nominated for an Emmy for the TV movie “A Woman Called Golda” starring Ingrid Bergman.
He’s a jazz virtuoso on the piano who can quote Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans and Erroll Garner with playful ease. He’s a renowned conductor of classical music appearing with the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic and the symphony orchestras of Atlanta, Denver, New Orleans, Montreal and Vancouver. Legrand has recently written music for the ballet “Liliom,” which will open in Paris in March.
Legrand’s melodies include “Brian’s Song,” for which he won a Grammy, and “The Summer Knows,” the theme of the movie “The Summer of ’42,” for which he won an Oscar. He also wrote the score for “Lady Sings the Blues” and the score for “Yentl,” for which he won another Oscar.
He won his first Oscar for “The Windmills of Your Mind” from “The Thomas Crown Affair” (1968). He’s had 13 Academy Award nominations and eight Grammy Award nominations.
At 80 years old, he talks about his music being still fresh, and his incredibly accomplished career still beginning.
“I’m not at the end of my career — I feel like I’m just beginning,” Legrand says.
Since 1978, Michel has been the solo harpist with Orchestre National de l’Opéra de Paris. She has held master classes on the harp all over the world. Michel worked all her distinguished career to extend the harp's repertoire by editing and transcribing music for the instrument.
The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 15. Tickets range from $28 to $49, and may be purchased at www.whitefishgrand.com or www.alpinetheatreproject.org, or by calling 862-7469. Any proceeds from this concert will benefit the Steinway Fund.
Box office assistance is provided by Alpine Theatre Project. The concert is sponsored by Don “K” Subaru, with special thanks to the Lodge at Whitefish Lake.