About

Between performances in converted warehouses, basements, bars, art museums, sculpture gardens and traditional concert halls, wearing tuxedos with tails or jeans and sock feet, Jeff Manchur is committed to creating diverse and challenging musical experiences for audiences across the United States and Canada. He has performed Morton Feldman’s iconic 4 hour and 45 minute-long “For Philip Guston” (the subject of his doctoral dissertation) with Chamber Cartel in Atlanta and regularly performs on the toy piano (he owns two), appearing across the USA at the inaugural Omaha Under the Radar, and the BGSU, Studio 300, and Tutti New Music festivals. His solo piano performances span from premieres of works by Garrett Hope to his personal takes on the classics of Beethoven, the drama of Wuorinen to the passion of Liszt, the eclecticism of Rzewski to the refinement of Debussy.

Jeff’s playing has been rewarded at the 2013 BGSU Concerto Competition (winner in the Graduate Division with Schnittke's Concerto for Piano and Strings) and the Dr Marjorie Conrad Art Song Competition (first place, 2013) for his collaboration with soprano Fidelia Esther Darmahkasih. He performed with the Chiara String Quartet as a finalist in the “Play with the Chiaras” competition (2012) and represented Nebraska in the MTNA Young Artist competition as their state winner (2011). Academically, he has presented papers at the University of Toronto, Trinity College, Dublin, and the University of London. Most recently, he has received grants from the Manitoba Arts Council and in 2014, served as an artist in residence at both the Brush Creek Foundation for the Arts and the Hambidge Center.

His early studies were with Sandra Dowhan in Dauphin, Manitoba before completing a Bachelor of Music with Greatest Distinction, studying with Joan Miller at Brandon University. Graduate studies took him to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to work with Paul Barnes. At the same time, he studied classical performance practice with Ann Chang, leading him to take a keen research interest in the study of early recordings, most especially the eccentric Ervin Nyiregyhazi.

His love and respect of traditional music has led him into the world of new music, searching for fresh ways of musical expression beyond the conventional boundaries imposed by current customs of classical music. In May 2015 he graduated from the Doctor of Musical Arts in Contemporary Music program at Bowling Green State University where he studied with Thomas Rosenkranz and visiting professor Robert Shannon from Oberlin Conservatory. Jeff is presently Visiting Instructor and Collaborative Pianist at Marietta College.
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Music

Almost-Bach Program:

Sonata in Ab, Op. 110 Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

(Pause)

De Profundis Frederic Rzewski (b. 1938)

Ballad Program:

Ballade No. 3, Op. 47 Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)
Ballad, Op. 6 Amy Beach (1867-1944)
Ballade, Op 46 Samuel Barber (1910-1981)

(Pause)

Four Ballades, Op. 10 Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)

Videos

Audio