Matthew Hagle to Perform FROM PAGE TO PIANO at Nichols Concert Hall

As part of the Music Institute of Chicago's 2026–27 Nichols Concert Hall Presents season, faculty pianist Dr. Matthew Hagle offers “From Page to Piano,” a program that spotlights the interplay between music and literature, which has fascinated artists and audiences for centuries. The concert takes place Friday, October 9 at 7:30 p.m. at Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Ave., Evanston.
 
In this program, Hagle explores three masterpieces inspired by the written word: Brahms' somber and introspective Four Ballades, Ravel's evocative and virtuosic Gaspard de la nuit, and Schumann's quintessentially Romantic Kreisleriana. Hagle showcases the ways these great composers transformed literary characters, images, and ideas into music of uncanny depth, drama, and beauty.
 
Hagle shared, “This program, which contains some of my favorite music to perform, happens to be made up of pieces with literary connections. I think the idea of composers somehow using musical sounds to reach for some of the same ideas as we find in poetry or other verbal expression is a really fascinating one—one of the background ideas for understanding Western classical music. Under the inspiration of speech rhythms, characters, or poetic images, these great composers could take their imaginations to places even they hadn't explored before, and the results are unique and moving.”
 
Hagle has been a member of the Music Institute's piano faculty since November 1997 and is the current director of the Musicianship Program. He has a bachelor of music degree from the Peabody Conservatory of Music and master of music, master of musical arts, and doctor of musical arts degrees from Yale School of Music. He is a frequent recital partner with violinist Rachel Barton Pine, with whom he has made three recordings on Cedille Records. He has performed in concert venues across North and South America and frequently on Chicago's classical music station WFMT.

Dr. Matthew Hagle performs “From Page to Piano”