The Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts Presents GEORGE WINSTON

Celebrated pianist George Winston brings his unique performance, featuring melodic folk, New Orleans R&B, and stride piano stylings, to Pepperdine University's Smothers Theatre at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, January 24.

Tickets, starting at $22 for the public and $10 for full-time Pepperdine students, are available now by calling (310) 506-4522 or visiting arts.pepperdine.edu. More information about George Winston: http://www.georgewinston.com/

Inspired by the seasons and topographies, George Winston's concerts feature a variety of styles including melodic folk piano, New Orleans R&B piano, and stride piano. He performs songs from his seasonal favorites Autumn, December, Winter Into Spring, and Summer, as well as Peanuts pieces from his Vince Guaraldi tribute albums Linus & Lucy-The Music of Vince Guaraldi, and Love Will Come-Music of Vince Guaraldi, Vol. 2, and more.

George Winston grew up mainly in Montana, and also spent his later formative years in Mississippi and Florida. During this time, his favorite music was instrumental rock and instrumental R&B, including Floyd Cramer, the Ventures, Booker T & The MG's, Jimmy Smith, and many more. Inspired by R&B, jazz, Blues and rock (especially the Doors), George began playing organ in 1967. In 1971 he switched to the acoustic piano after hearing recordings from the 1920s and the 1930s by the legendary stride pianists Thomas "Fats" Waller and Teddy Wilson. In addition to working on stride piano, he also at this time came up with his own style of melodic instrumental music on solo piano, called folk piano.

Since 1972 George has released thirteen solo piano albums: Autumn (1980); Winter Into Spring (1982); December (1982); Summer (1991); Forest (1994); Linus & Lucy-The Music of Vince Guaraldi (1996); Plains (1999), which was inspired by his Eastern Montana upbringing; Night Divides The Day-The Music of the Doors (2002); Montana-A Love Story (2004); and Gold Coast Blues & Impressions-A Hurriance Relief Benefit (2006). His most recent recording are Love Will Come-Music of Vince Guaraldi, Vol. 2 (2010), and Gold Coast Blues & Impressions 2-A Louisiana Wetlands Benefit (2012).

In 2001 George released Rememberance-A Memorial Benefit, a seven song EP of piano, guitar and harmonica solos, to benefit those affected by 9/11. He has also worked with the late George Levenson of Informed Democracy on three projects: a solo guitar soundtrack for Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, and soundtracks of piano, guitar and, harmonica solos for Pumpkin Circle, and Bread Comes To Life. In addition, he has recorded the solo piano soundtrack for the children's story The Velveteen Rabbit for Rabbit Ears Productions.

George is presently concentrating mainly on live performances, and most of the time he is touring playing solo piano concerts, solo guitar concerts, solo harmonica concerts, and solo piano dances (with R&B and slow dance songs).

He is currently most inspired by the great New Orleans R&B pianists Henry Butler, James Booker, Professor Longhair, Dr. John, and Jon Cleary, and he is also working on interpreting pieces on solo piano by his favorite composers, including Vince Guaraldi, Professor Longhair, and the Doors, as well as Sam Cooke, Dr. John, Allen Toussaint, Randy Newman, Curtis Mayfield, Laura Nyro, Al Kooper, Jimmy Wisner, Arthur Lee, Frank Zappa, Ralph Towner, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, John Coltrane, Milt Jackson, John Hartford, Oliver Schroer, Taj Mahal, Henry Butler, James Booker, Jon Cleary, Philip Aaberg and others, to play at concerts, and at his solo piano dances.

George is also working on solo guitar and is recording the masters of the Hawaiian Slack Key guitar for an extensive series of albums for Dancing Cat Records. Slack Key is the name for the beautiful solo fingerstyle guitar tradition, unique to Hawaii, which began in the early 1800s and predated the steel guitar by over half a century.

He is also recording his main inspirations for his harmonica playing: Sam Hinton, Rick Epping, and Curt Bouterse.

This concert will feature George's Winter Show, which will include melodic fall and winter type songs, some of Vince Guaraldi's Peanuts pieces, pieces inspired by the New Orleans piano and the stride piano traditions, and songs from his upcoming albums.

The Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts at Pepperdine University provides high-quality activities for over 50,000 people from 808 zip codes annually through performances, rehearsals, museum exhibitions, and master classes. Located on Pepperdine's breathtaking Malibu campus overlooking the Pacific, the center serves as a hub for the arts, uniquely linking professional guest artists with Pepperdine students as well as patrons from surrounding Southern California communities. Facilities include the 450-seat Smothers Theatre, the 118-seat Raitt Recital Hall, the "black box" Helen E. Lindhurst Theatre, and the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art.

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