Article by Peter A Roos
Rebecca Penneys Historic Concert on a restored Steinway Grand Piano – Sunday, January 19, 2 pm in the USF School of Music Concert Hall on the USF campus in Tampa.
American pianist Rebecca Penneys is a recitalist, chamber musician, orchestral soloist, educator, adjudicator and International Steinway Artist. For over six decades her passionate and insightful performances have held audiences spellbound. Hailed as a pianist of prodigious talent, she possesses a daredevil technique, the sort of charismatic stage presence that demands attention, and an interpretive gift that make her performances into musical revelations. She is Founder/Director of RPPF, a tuition-free piano festival, held every July at USF.
While wrapping up a career teaching piano at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester NY, Rebecca made St. Pete Beach her second home. Now it is her only home, and she has generously and enthusiastically moved the tuition-free summer festivals for collegiate-age aspiring pianists to USF in Tampa.
On January 19th, at 2 PM in the USF Concert Hall, USF Courtesy Steinway- Artist-in-Residence Rebecca Penneys will debut a special 1973 Steinway & Sons Model D Black Walnut Concert Grand at USF Music School’s Concert Hall.
Donated to the school by an anonymous donor in 2017 and recently restored with a generous $35,000 gift from Rebecca Penneys herself, the piano will be looking and sounding its best when it takes the stage for its USF debut.
You are invited to join the College of The Arts for this special event. Tickets are $5 for students, $10 for seniors and active military, and $15 for general admission. A reception will follow the concert in the USF
Concert Hall lobby.
The whole audience is invited to attend the reception and to try the piano and meet Rebecca and everyone involved with the rebirth of this unusual instrument. To purchase tickets visit ticketmaster.com or the USF College of The Arts box office in the School of Music Concert Hall or call (813)-974-2323. The USF Box Office reopens January 14.
In addition to performing on the piano, Penneys will also make comments about the music and the 1973 instrument, which features an Indiana black walnut case of striking brown color. It has been restored to a like-new condition by the Music Gallery of Clearwater, the exclusive Steinway dealer of Tampa Bay.
In 2011, the USF School of Music became a prestigious All-Steinway School, giving USF faculty and students the opportunity to create music from practice room to stage exclusively on Steinway & Sons pianos. USF Concert Hall, 3755 USF Holly Dr., Tampa, FL 33620.
Read more about Rebecca on her website at rebeccapenneys.com and also visit rebeccapenneyspianofestival.org.