Pianist Daniel Vnukowski Performs 'The Nutcracker Suite' To Support Musicians In Need

Pianist Daniel Vnukowski has reached over half a million viewers with his high-definition, livestreamed performances since the start of the pandemic earlier this year. On Tuesday, December 15th at 7pm PST, he performs a virtual fundraising recital in support of the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund (sweetrelief.org) to assist those musicians urgently affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

The recital will be broadcast free of charge and preceded by a 30-minute pre-concert talk on ZOOM at 6:30pm PST, which will be limited to the first 100 attendees. The performance features an array of arrangements for solo piano including Bach's Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring and Nur komm, Der Heiden Heiland; Handel's Keyboard Suite No. 5 "The Harmonious Blacksmith"; Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite and Scherzo: Third Movement from Symphony No. 6 "Pathetique"; and an arrangement by Mr. Vnukowski on Metallica in the style of Rachmaninoff.

The virtual recital will be streamed simultaneously via YouTube (youtube.com/danperforms) and Facebook (facebook.com/danperforms). Mr. Vnukowski's video chat precedes the virtual performance, where he will include historical commentaries and humorous anecdotes in an engaging Q & A format. The pre-concert discussion requires a free RSVP available via the artist's official website (danperforms.com/nutcracker).

Daniel Vnukowski said:

"Musicians are an integral component of our social fabric, allowing us to reconnect with our inner selves, explore the ideals of beauty and provide us with a sense of comfort and solace during this very challenging time. I am in deep gratitude to organizations such as the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, which provide relief for those musicians who have been most severely affected by the COVID-19 crisis, giving them hope for a brighter future ahead."

Aric Steinberg, the Executive Vice President of the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund said:

"We're so grateful for Daniel's support, all of the funds raised will help musicians and music industry professionals in desperate need of financial assistance. The full-blown, orchestral power of the Fazioli concert grand coupled with Daniel's extraordinary musicianship promises to make this a very inspiring evening of music-making - looking forward to a great show!"

Daniel Vnukowski performs on a Fazioli F308, the longest piano on the world market, brought in from Amsterdam, Netherlands to the Cardiff home of his audio engineer, Steven Norsworthy, in January 2020. Although Mr. Vnukowski has made Vienna, Austria his home for the past 10 years, he has been residing in Southern California since March 2020, after all of his European performances had been postponed to 2021, including his debut recitals at the Southbank Centre in London, UK and the Konzerthaus in Vienna, Austria.

Daniel Vnukowski's ability to improvise has been welcomed on social media, where his performance of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue (fb.watch/237Xq_EUba/) starring himself on two pianos, was viewed over 550,000 times and his improvisation in the style of Beethoven was featured on ClassicFM.com and shared 55,000 times. The virtual recitals have been endorsed by Fazioli Pianoforti and featured on NPR Radio, BBC Music Magazine and Ludwig Van (Toronto) online playlists.

Polish-Canadian pianist Daniel Vnukowski (pronounced Vnoo-koff'-skee) has performed throughout Europe, North America, South America and Asia in prestigious concert halls. His insightful interpretations of the standard classical music repertory are supplemented by projects that uncover rarely performed works. Dedicated to giving back to the country that nurtured him as an artist, Vnukowski founded Piano Six - New Generation, which has provided live, music experiences to over 10,000 young Canadians in remote, rural regions throughout the country. He is also the Artistic Director of the Collingwood Summer Music Festival, located in the charming region of Southern Georgian Bay, Ontario, Canada.

The music of interwar Jewish composers occupies a special place in Mr. Vnukowski's repertoire and he is frequently invited to give lecture recitals on the topic at various educational institutions throughout North America.

During 2019, he concentrated his efforts on researching the music of Karol Rathaus (1895-1954), an exiled composer who settled in New York before the outbreak of WWII, and performed the composer's Piano Concerto with The Orchestra Now conducted by Leon Botstein, as part of a Rathaus Festival presented by the Copland School of Music at Queens College; made his sold-out Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall recital debut in a program that included the composer's Piano Sonata No. 3, Op. 20; and released an all-Rathaus, world-premiere recording of solo piano music on the Toccata label, which was favorably reviewed in the American Record Guide ("played to the hilt"), Fanfare Music Magazine ("Vnukowski communicates the emotions within the music") and Limelight Magazine ("plays with sympathetic understanding"). Mr. Vnukowski will be featured in a documentary on Rathaus produced by Lev Deych and Michael Haas.

Daniel Vnukowski will release his first 4K Blu-Ray disc in Dolby Audio surround sound in February 2021, featuring the works of Robert Schumann. He enjoys writing about his recent livestreaming experiences and has contributed articles to the Canadian Musician Magazine and on his personal blog (https://www.danperforms.com/blog/). Mr. Vnukowski would like to express his gratitude to the Bloom Family, Steven Norsworthy, Fazioli Pianoforti, The New Classical FM, and over 50 private donors for making these livestreams possible.

For more information, visit danperforms.com.