STETSON UNIVERSITY
JOEL HASTINGS
Canadian-born Joel Hastings was the winner of the 2006 8th International
Web Concert Hall Competition and the 1993 International Bach
Competition at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. After delivering a
stunning performance at the 10th Van Cliburn International Piano
Competition in Fort Worth, Texas, one reporter designated Hastings the
"audience favorite" while another declared, "the kinetic fingers of this young
Canadian reminded me strongly of his late countryman, Glenn Gould." In a
Newsweek review, he "pulled the audience to their feet after a wild
performance of Franz Liszt's Totentonz.n Critics have described his playing as
passionate, mesmerizing, hypnotic, and transcendental.
His discography includes Franz Liszt's song and operatic transcriptions,
Frederic Chopin's 24 Etudes, and selections of works by Prokofiev,
Rachmaninoff, Mendelssohn, and Scriabin. His latest CD, Songs and Dances,
includes works by Grieg and Respighi with transcriptions of music by Bach,
Schubert, Wagner and Gershwin. His recordings have been selected for
Canadian critic's awards, praised in publications such as American Record Guide
and Musicweb International, and featured on CBC national radio as well
numerous stations throughout the United States. Forthcoming, on the Naxos
American Classics label, will be a recording of solo piano music by Carter
Pann.
A Steinway Artist, Hastings has performed solo recitals and concertos across
Canada, United States, Poland, Italy, and the United Kingdom. This past
summer, he performed and taught at the InterHarmony International Music
Festival in Arcidosso, Tuscany, Italy, and was a guest professor at the Sichuan
Conservatory in Chengdu, China.
Hastings earned his ARCT diplomas in piano and organ from the Royal
Conservatory of Music, Toronto, receiving a gold medal for the highest score
in the country. He holds a doctorate in piano and a degree in organ from the
University of Michigan. His former teachers include Sergei Babayan, Nina
Lelchuk, Louis Nagel, Dickran Atamian, and Logan Skelton. Currently he is an
assistant professor of piano at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida.
STETSON
UNIVERSITY
School of Music
421 N. Woodland Blvd., Unit 8399 | DeLand, FL 32723
stetson.edu/music | concert line 386-822-8947
Eighteenth Annual
Festival of Piano Scholars
Friday, January 3 I - Sunday, February 2, 2014
Guest Recital: Joel Hastings, piano ] Friday, 7:30 p.m. in Lee Chapel
LECTURE: Charise Hastings, "Learning Music Like a Master" | Saturday, 9 a.m. in Presser 204
Piano Master Class: Joel Hastings ) Saturday, ll:00 a.m. in Lee Chapel
RECITAL: Current and Alumni Stetson Piano Scholars | Saturday, 7:30 p.m. in Lee Chapel
Faculty Recital: Edit Palmer and Michael Rickman, pianos | Sunday, 3 p.m. in Lee Chapel
