Sunday May 5, 2019
3:00 PM - 4:15 PM EDT
May 5, 3:00 pm
First Lutheran Church
1019 West Fifth Street
Lorain, OH 44052
Free and open to the public
Brian Wentzel
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Jeff Manchur plays a piano recital entitled “Choosing Joy” at First Lutheran Church, 1019 W. 5th St., Lorain. Music of Beethoven, Brahms, and North American composers Amy Beach, Samuel Barber, Jocelyn Morlock, and Garrett Hope will be presented as a celebration of the highs and lows of Jeff's wife's victorious battle against breast cancer.
Jeff says of this program:
"In July of 2016, my wife, Kimberly, was diagnosed with breast cancer, precisely one year and one week after we were married. The next year was full of doctor visits, surgeries and treatments, stress, despair and hopelessness, and love, charity and gratitude. It was all worth it as she is now a survivor!
"The experience caused a good deal of reflection on my role as an artist. I’ve always valued classical music as a way to connect people through stories, experiences and feelings, and I felt that I could use our journey to give greater meaning to my playing. I wanted to put together a recital program of pieces that could speak to the struggle we endured, and the faith, love and victory that helped us through."
Jeff Manchur is equally dedicated to the classical canon and contemporary music of the 20th and 21st centuries. His early piano studies were with Sandra Dowhan in Dauphin, Manitoba before completing undergraduate and graduate degrees in piano performance, studying with Joan Miller, Paul Barnes, Thomas Rosenkranz, and Louis Nagel. Jeff is dedicated to sharing his love of music through performing, blogging and teaching. He has served on the faculties of Marietta College, Heidelberg University, and Bowling Green State University. Presently, Jeff continues to freelance as a solo and collaborative pianist, as well as serving on the Suzuki piano faculty of the Toledo Symphony School of Music.
This concert is free and open to the public. It is part of First Lutheran's FIRST•music concert series, whose goal comes from the church's vision statement: to "use our musical resources to enhance our experience of God and as a gift to the community."