Acclaimed Pianist Ory Shihor to Perform in Concert to Benefit HUC-JIR

Ory Shihor, recognized as one of the leading young pianists in America today, will perform at a special benefit concert for Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) on Monday, April 19, 1999, at the HUC-Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles.

The evening is chaired by Joan and Rabbi Leonard Beerman and Jean and Bradley Tabach-Bank. Concert proceeds will support HUC-JIR's Student Scholarship Fund. The concert is dedicated to the memory of John Adler, music devotee and active in the cultural life of Los Angeles. Mr. Adler was President of the American Israel Cultural Foundation and supporter and member of the HUC-JIR Los Angeles Board of Overseers of HUC-JIR. Sponsors of the evening include Jill Adler, Bank Julius Baer, Carole and Robert Kopple, and Western International Media

"We are delighted that our students, future rabbis, cantors, educators and Jewish communal professionals, will benefit from an evening featuring music by such an accomplished pianist," said Dr. Lewis M. Barth, Dean, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion's Los Angeles School.

At his concert, Ory Shihor will perform pieces by Beethoven, Debussy, Franck, and Handel. Immediately following the performance, there will be a reception with the artist and grand dessert buffet. There will also be a pre-concert supper for donors of $250 or more.

Ory Shihor has been hailed by New York Newsday as "the first important Israeli pianist to come along in years." He has established himself as one of the leading young pianists in America today with highly successful debuts in New York, Washington, D.C., Boston, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh. Mr. Shihor is the recipient of the 1986 Young Concert Artists International Competition, the prestigious Gina Bachauer Prize at the Juilliard School, and first prize winner of the 1999 Washington International Piano Competition. In addition he was a prize winner at the 1998 Ninth Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition and at the 1997 Cleveland International Piano Competition. In the 1999-2000 season, Mr. Shihor will perform at the Kennedy Center's Terrace Theater in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Shihor's international concert debuts have included appearances in Germany, Spain, Greece, and Guatemala. Mr. Shihor's orchestral engagements have included the Haifa Symphony Orchestra in Israel and in America, the Tallahassee Symphony, Missouri Symphony and the Memphis Chamber Orchestra.

Born in Tel Aviv, Mr. Shihor was a recipient of American Israel Cultural Foundation scholarships from the age of twelve. He came to the United States at the age of fifteen to work with Jorge Bolet at the Curtis Institute of Music and later studied with Russell Sherman at the Juilliard School in New York, where he completed his Bachelor of Music. Mr. Shihor is currently completing graduate studies at the University of Southern California with the distinguished pianist and teacher, John Perry.

For tickets or for more information contact Sharon Friedman, Director of Development for HUC-JIR's Western Region at 213/749-3424.