The 5 Browns to perform classical piano concert at Coastal
The classically-trained group is made up of the five Brown sisters and brothers – Desirae, Ryan, Melody, Gregory and Deondra – who attended the Juilliard School. Their first album last year topped the Billboard charts, and a new CD, No Boundaries, is scheduled for release this spring. They have been seen on major national television programs such as “60 Minutes II,” “Oprah,” and “The Today Show” and have been featured in high profile publications such as The New York Times, People Magazine, The Los Angeles Times and The Sunday London Telegraph.
The Browns, playing on five Steinway pianos, will perform collectively and individually a variety of showpieces including “Flight of the Bumblebee” by Rimsky-Korsakov, “L’Isle Joyeuse” by Claude Debussy, “L’Apprenti Sorcier” (“The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”) by Paul Dukas and “Selections from West Side Story,” transcribed for five pianos. Intermission will feature a conversation with the young superstars.
The Browns were raised Mormon in Utah and home-schooled by their parents, Keith and Lisa. The entire family and all five grand pianos moved to New York where the young Browns studied for five consecutive years at the prestigious Juilliard School. It was the first time in history that the school has accepted five members of the same family. They range in age from 19 to 25.
Collectively, The 5 Browns have performed at Lincoln Center, West Palm Beach’s Kravis Center, Houston’s Wortham Center, and at the 2002 Winter Olympics Celebrations in Salt Lake City.
The new CD showcases the five playing together and in various combinations, performing transcriptions of Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” Stravinsky’s “The Firebird” as well as the new work “Simple Gifts/Going Home” – variations on Copland’s Shaker hymn “Simple Gifts” from “Appalachian Spring” and Dvorak’s “Going Home” theme from his Ninth Symphony.
To purchase tickets or for more information, call 349-2502.