Where Magnificent Music Meets Beautiful Beaches: Celebrating 34 Years of Pianofest in the Hamptons
Michelle Cann
Classical music always holds the power to metaphorically transport the listener, helping us to embark upon whatever spiritual or emotional journey we seek. But every year as the calendar turns to summer, it begins transporting us in a very literal way — trading in the urban concert hall for more relaxed, pastoral settings for music-making.
The Boston Symphony players head west to the rolling hills and lush lawns of their summer home at Tanglewood. Singers at Santa Fe Opera perform beloved classics and bold new productions against the backdrop of a hazy desert landscape.
And here in New York, a mix of pianists and piano-lovers alike gather for Pianofest in the Hamptons — one of the premier summer piano festivals on the East Coast, celebrating the musical wonders of the piano alongside the natural wonders of Long Island's East End. Founded by the pianist Paul Schenly, Pianofest is about to open its 34th season on June 27, kicking off five weeks of recitals at intimate venues across Southampton, East Hampton, and Westhampton.
But Pianofest is more than a concert series — it's also a training ground for some of today's most promising young pianists. Every summer since 1989, pianists from major conservatories across the globe have traveled to the Hamptons to study with luminaries of the piano world. This year’s faculty includes Schenly, Jerome Lowenthal, Ursula Oppens, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, and Pavel Nersessian.
Providing an environment that's less about competition and more about collaboration and support, Pianofest offers artists the chance to study solo repertoire while exploring works for duo pianos and forging new friendships with their peers and the Hamptons community. To build camaraderie and foster collaboration, every student practices and attends master classes in Pianofest's "practice house" — a classic Hamptons manse furnished with 11 grand pianos. (There's even a piano in the kitchen!)
To date, more than 500 pianists have passed through Pianofest's festival-school over the past three decades — including 2022 Sphinx Medal of Excellence recipient Michelle Cann, the dynamic performer and educator Awadagin Pratt, Deutsche Grammophon recording artist Sergei Babayan, and Orion Weiss, one of the most sought-after concerto soloists on the scene today.
During the 2022 season, Pianofest will highlight 18 brilliant artists in eight recitals that will offer everything audiences have come to love about the festival: world-class performances, receptions for artists and the Hamptons community to meet and mingle — and most importantly, breathtaking evenings of music performed amid the unparalleled beauty of the Hamptons.
If your summer travels bring you to the Hamptons between June 27 and August 1, be sure to treat yourself to these sensational evenings of music-making. See everything Pianofest in the Hamptons has in store this summer at pianofest.com.
Discover More
