John-Paul Bracey
Pianist John-Paul Bracey brings a unique combination of experience and education to his art. In the early years of his studies, he worked with pianists such as Lois Maer, Patricca Benkman, Ozan Marsh and Paul Badura-Skoda. He won several symphony competitions and grants during those years, including a contract to record for the first time a work by Charles Valentin Alkan: the Symphony Opus 39 for piano. Later, he was a recipient of three major international grants for study in Paris at the Ecole Normale de Musique and privately with Marcel Ciampi and Vlado Perlemuter. Ciampi’s collaboration with Claude Debussy and Perlemuter’s collaboration with Maurice Ravel provided Bracey with profound insights into those composers’ works.
During those years in France, Bracey made his debut during American Music Week at UNESCO with the following review in Le Monde: “John-Paul Bracey represents a pianism of fine sensitivity and rare flair.” John-Paul Bracey completed his studies at Eastman School of Music with the renowned pedagogue, Cecile Genhart where he received his Master of Music Degree and the Performer’s Certificate.
Since 1969, John-Paul Bracey has been a professor of piano and piano pedagogy at The University of Western Ontario. He has concertized across Canada and the United States and recorded for CBC National on several occasions. His performances with Orchestra London have received glowing reviews: “sensational playing”----“a performance full of magnificent sonorities and beautiful lyricism”----“ a captivating performance full of fire and imagination.” In addition, he has adjudicated senior piano classes at most of the music festivals across Canada.
In 1996, Bracey’s book, A Biography of French Pianist Marcel Ciampi – Music To Last A Lifetime, was published by Edwin Mellen Press. It was highly acclaimed in North America with many positive reviews: “ This book provides an interesting commentary on historical events and the Parisian cultural scene from the turn of the century until Ciampi’s death in 1980” --- “as a biography, this is an invaluable source of information about the French School and is a fitting tribute to one of France’s greatest pedagogues”-----“this work is full of pedagogical insights and is highly recommended for pianists and music lovers.”
In subsequent years, Professor Bracey has championed the piano, chamber and vocal works by Joaquin Turina in recitals, master classes and workshops. With assistance from Turina’s family and archives, Bracey has been able to present programs that document the poetic connections of his repertoire with the poems of Gustav Becquer, another native of Seville, Spain.
During his last sabbatical, Bracey researched piano works by composers from Chile and Argentina at the Universidad de Chile in Santiago,and the Universidad de Argentina in Buenos Aires. Recently he presented a recital program dedicated to the Argentinean composer Carlos Guastavino that highlighted some of the composer’s most important solo and vocal works.
In August 2012, Cambridge University will film an interview with Professor Bracey that will document his research on Marcel Ciampi and 19th-century teaching techniques.
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