Pianist, composer feature in Hot Springs Music Club concert
The Hot Springs Music Club will present pianist and composer Raymond Liebau in concert at 3 p.m. Nov. 5 at Grand Avenue United Methodist Church, 841 Quapaw Ave.
The program, which is free and open to the public, will feature many of his compositions, including several classical and jazz-oriented piano pieces, songs with sopranos Ruth Liebau and Robin Williams, two piano duets with former student and friend Jeff Myers, and a world premiere choral composition to be sung by the Hot Springs Music Club Ladies Chorale.
“This premiere is especially important,” Liebau said, because the work “answers a question that has been baffling us for generations: ‘Where are the peppers that Peter Piper picked?’”
Liebau’s winning personality and relaxed stage presence make his concerts a joy for all who attend, a news release said.
His works have been performed in many places, including Carnegie Hall, Europe, and New Zealand. He has composed scores to three musicals; one of his choral arrangements was sung by the Texas High School All-State Choir.
Serving on the piano and composition faculty at the University of Mississippi, Liebau was named the Elsie M. Hood Outstanding Teacher in 1993. In addition to teaching and composing, he has been a recitalist, featured symphony performer, and accompanist, especially enjoying a 16-year collaboration with Jerry Jordan and the Ole Miss Concert Singers.
Ray and his wife Ruth, a soprano and lyricist, moved to the Hot Springs area in
1999. Two of their favorite concerts together are tributes to Gershwin and to Rodgers & Hammerstein. They have performed weekly at the Caring Place in Hot Springs since
2006.