Julien Libeer casts a hypnotic spell with controlled yet dramatic playing, inserting the minute pauses between passages, as if he were allowing the note he had just played to float, expand and fall, then waiting patiently for the next one to arrive. Dave Rosenbaum South Florida Classical Review
May,18 2025
Aventura Arts and Cultural Center
Julien returns to the Miami International Piano Festival for the 3rd time. His magical debut in 2017 left audiences in Miami wanting to hear him again, his performance was simply magical.
Julien Libeer is one of the most fascinating pianists in the world today, his pristine technique and idiomatic musicality are matched by insightful, probing interpretations that bring freshness and polish to the repertoire he performs. His focus and concentration when performing is so intense as to be almost trancelike, he contemplates the meaning of every note he plays.
Around age four, Julien Libeer discovered Leonard Bernstein conducting West Side Story. Is it possible to see Bernstein at work and not believe that making music is the greatest thing on earth?
His next big influence was the pianist Dinu Lipatti; also, someone radiating musical truth. Lipatti proved formative for the direction in which Julien wanted to work, as he consciously avoided engaging in piano competitions.
For five unforgettable years, French Polish pedagogue Jean Fassina was the mentor for Julien’s pianistic and musical foundation. An additional five years, Maria João Pires taught Julien by example, and by taking him on the road to perform with her. Ultimately, he learned that your most important asset, on stage and in life, is your freedom.
PROGRAM
May 18, 2025
JULIEN LIBEER (Belgium)
CELEBRATING MAURICE RAVEL’S 150TH ANNIVERSSARY
LOUIS COUPERIN
Pavane in F sharp Minor
MAURICE RAVEL
Sonatine
Modéré (moderate)
Mouvement de menuet (Minuet tempo)
Animé (animated)
Valses Nobles et sentimentales
Modéré – très franc
Assez lent – avec une expression intense
Modéré
Assez animé
Presque lent – dans un sentiment intime
Vif
Moins vif
Épilogue: lent
GEORGE GERSHWIN
The man I love
I Got Rhythm
INTERMISSION
GEORGE CRUMB
A Little Suite for Christmas
The Visitation
Berceuse for the Infant Jesu
The Shepherd’s Noël
Adoration of the Magi
Nativity Dance
Canticle of the Holy Night
Carol of the Bells
MAURICE RAVEL
Le Tombeau de Couperin
Prélude Vif
Fugue Allegro moderato
Forlane Allegretto
Rigaudon Assez vif
Menuet Allegro moderato
Toccata Vif
Mission of Patrons of Exceptional Artists
Exceptionally talented pianists, with unwavering dedication, devote their entire youth to developing their skills, abiding by rigid and demanding schedules, and focusing on achieving a successful music career. During this arduous process, they often find themselves lost without the support and understanding of a benefactor. That is where the mission and purpose of Patrons of Exceptional Artists comes in, an organization that, for the last 26 years, has brought the talent of countless deserving pianists to the attention of the public, conductors, and agents. Many of our artists are now on the international circuit, represented by top management.
To enrich its mission, in 1998, Patrons of Exceptional Artists branched out to create the now-celebrated Miami International Piano Festivals and Academy, where students experience the hands-on immersion of working closely with an outstanding international faculty. In the winter, the MIPFA takes place at the beautiful Cadet Hotel in Miami Beach, and in the summer at the Gustav Mahler Cultural Center in Dobbiaco, Italy, a gateway to the Dolomites, about which Mahler wrote, “Dobbiaco is extraordinary: it tempers your body and soul.”
We have also expanded our outreach through an online state-of-the-art virtual platform that continues to evolve, creating an archive and visual library of all MIPF activities. The goal is to provide global exposure to our artists while allowing music lovers worldwide to enjoy our concerts, lectures, and masterclasses. The Miami International Piano Festival concerts are interactive experiences that engage our audiences and enhance their appreciation of music in its infinite prism of ideas and emotions.
Giselle Brodsky, founder and artistic director of Patrons of Exceptional Artists, spends hundreds of hours
listening to innumerable performances of hopeful applicants to select artists who, with their passion and commitment to the expression of music, will inspire and be inspired by our faculty, students, and audience.
Patrons Of Exceptional Artists is a 501 (C) (3) non-profit organization. For more information, contact Giselle
Brodsky, at info@miamipianofest.com or visit our website at www.miamipianofest.com.
