Pianist Vytautas Smetona to Play New York City's DiMenna Center for Classical Music

Pianist Vytautas Smetona will present a recital on Friday, May 22 at 7:30 p.m. in The DiMenna Center for Classical Music, 450 West 37th Street in Manhattan, performing works by Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, Schumann, and his own composition. The recital is presented under the auspices of DeSales Artist Management, LLC.

The event marks Smetona's first public New York recital in more than 20 years and celebrates his return to the concert stage and the April 14 release of his newest CD, Vytautas Smetona - All the Way Back, on the Navona Records label (NV5992).

Tickets are $20 general admission and are available at http://vytautassmetona.brownpapertickets.com/. For more information, call 516-586-3433 or visit https://www.facebook.com/events/1645760022314720/.

Smetona, a grandson of the last president of pre-Soviet Lithuania, comes from a prominent Cleveland musical family. He made successful debuts at New York's Town Hall in 1976 and at London's Wigmore Hall in 1980. This was followed by a live recital on radio station WQXR in New York. Among the orchestras with which Mr. Smetona has appeared as piano soloist are the Baltimore Symphony, the Dallas Symphony, and the St. Louis Symphony. His playing drew the admiration of Jorge Bolet, Sergiu Comissiona, Lili Kraus, James Levine, Eduardo Mata, Neville Marriner, and Leonard Slatkin.

After this auspicious beginning, Smetona withdrew from a promising performing career and the music world. He is now returning to the world stage with the new CD, as well as performances in Jacksonville, Cleveland, and New York in May.

In addition to his musical accomplishments, Smetona holds master's degrees in operations research and mathematics, was a ranked tennis player, and has written a number of original compositions. Visit him at http://vytautassmetona.com/.