Pianist Mohamed Shams Performs Today at Bruno Walter Auditorium

In a one-time only free public event, acclaimed Egyptian pianist Mohamed Shams returns to present works by Mendelssohn, Schumann, Debussy and Liszt today, November 22 at 2:30 pm at the Bruno Walter Auditorium, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center, 111 Amsterdam Avenue. Admission is on a first-come first served basis.

The pre-Thanksgiving performance will be Shams' third appearance at the Library. The program, featuring masterpieces from 19th and 20th century composers, comes on the heels of his noteworthy October S&R Foundation recital in Washington, D.C. and his critically praised appearances since the age of 16 with the Cairo Symphony Orchestra. He also appeared with the Royal National Orchestra of Scotland and the Royal Conservatory of Scotland Orchestra (2012). The November 22 New York Public Library performance will offer a sneak preview to what lies in store for Shams' upcoming April 15, 2015 Carnegie Hall/Weill Recital Hall solo debut.

Heralded as a "world class pianist" by Philippe Entremont, the celebrated pianist and conductor, and dubbed "brilliant" by host Bob Sherman of WQXR-NY McGraw-Hill Young Artists Showcase, Shams is an exceptionally gifted Middle Eastern musician steeped in Western European classical tradition.

"I am an Egyptian classical pianist," he says. "To many, this may appear anomalous; I suspect that for most of the worldwide audience for this art form, Egyptian classical artists are a well-kept secret. However, Egypt was the first, and remains the most cosmopolitan of the nations in this region. In fact, The Khedivial Opera house in Cairo, for over a century the only opera house in the Middle East, was built in 1869 to celebrate the inauguration of the Suez Canal. Verdi's opera 'Aida' received its premiere there."

"A year ago in Cairo," he continued, "a young girl was returning home from class at the at the Academy of the Arts Conservatory of Music when she was suddenly confronted by extremist Islamist enforcers who snatched her instrument and smashed it. Today, the government that embraced these people has been driven from power, but my country remains in the throes of an upheaval that in the past three years has also convulsed other nations of the Middle East. In the midst of this turmoil, the Cairo Opera House remains open, and defiant creativity flourishes in the formal venues and thrives in the most unlikely places."

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