Michael Feinstein
Michael Feinstein, the multi-platinum-selling, five-time Grammy-nominated entertainer
dubbed "The Ambassador of the Great American Songbook," is considered one of the premier
interpreters of American standards. His 200-plus shows a year have included performances at
Carnegie Hall, the Sydney Opera House, and the Hollywood Bowl, as well as the White House
and Buckingham Palace.
More than simply a performer, Mr. Feinstein has received national recognition for his
commitment to celebrating America's popular song and preserving its legacy for the next
generation. In 2007, he founded the Michael Feinstein Great American Songbook Initiative,
dedicated to celebrating the art form and preserving it through educational programs,
master classes, and the annual High School Vocal Academy and Competition, which awards
scholarships and prizes to students across the country. He also serves on the Library of
Congress' National Recording Preservation Board-an organization dedicated to ensuring the
survival, conservation, and increased public availability of America's sound recording
heritage.
Mr. Feinstein earned his fifth Grammy nomination in 2009 for The Sinatra Project,
his Concord Records CD celebrating the music of "Ol' Blue Eyes." The Sinatra Project,
Volume II: The Good Life was released last year. His Emmy-nominated
TV special, Michael Feinstein: The Sinatra Legacy-taped live at the Palladium in
Carmel, Indiana-is currently airing across the country. His PBS series Michael
Feinstein's American Songbook was the recipient of the ASCAP Deems Taylor Television
Broadcast Award; the first two seasons are now available on DVD and the third season is
scheduled to air in 2013. For his nationally syndicated public radio program Song
Travels, Mr. Feinstein interviews and performs alongside such music luminaries as
Bette Midler, Neil Sedaka, Liza Minnelli, Moby, Rickie Lee Jones, David Hyde Pierce, and
others.
Mr. Feinstein's new book, The Gershwins and Me (Simon & Schuster)
includes a CD of Gershwin standards performed with pianist Cyrus Chestnut. Recently, Mr.
Feinstein released The Power of Two (a collaboration with
Glee and 30 Rock star Cheyenne Jackson) and Cheek to
Cheek (with Broadway legend Barbara Cook).
Mr. Feinstein serves as artistic director of the Center for the Performing Arts-a $170
million, three-theater venue in Carmel, Indiana. The theater is home to an annual
international Great American Songbook festival, diverse live programming, and a museum for
Mr. Feinstein's rare memorabilia and manuscripts. In 2010, he also became director of Jazz
at Lincoln Center's Jazz and Popular Song Series. In 2013, he replaced the late Marvin
Hamlisch as the lead conductor of the Pasadena Pops.
The roots of all this work began in Columbus, Ohio, where Mr. Feinstein started playing
piano by ear when he was five. After graduating from high school, he worked in local piano
bars for two years, moving to Los Angeles when he was 20. The widow of legendary concert
pianist-actor Oscar Levant introduced him to Ira Gershwin in July 1977. Mr. Feinstein
became Gershwin's assistant for six years, which earned him access to numerous unpublished
Gershwin songs, many of which he has since performed and recorded.
For more information, visit michaelfeinstein.com.
Judy Kaye
Judy Kaye received the 2012 Outer Critics Circle Award, the Drama Desk Award, and the Tony
Award for her work as Estonia Dulworth in Nice Work If You Can It, where she
nightly gets to sing the wonderful Gershwin score. Highlights from more than 40 years
include The Phantom of the Opera (Tony Award), Mamma Mia! (Tony
nomination), Ragtime (LA Ovation Award), On the 20th
Century (Theatre World Award), Souvenir (Tony nomination, LA
Ovation Award), Grease, Sweeney Todd, and The Pajama Game. Her
recent credits include Tales of the City at the American Conservatory Theater in
San Francisco and Saving Aimee in Seattle. Ms. Kaye has sung with major orchestras
around the country and in Europe, and has recorded numerous solo and cast albums, including
He Loves and She Loves with Steven Blier and William Sharp, and the
just-released Nice Work If You Can Get It. She has sung in concert, opera, and
cabaret, and twice at the White House. In addition, Ms. Kaye has recorded all of Sue
Grafton's Alphabet Mystery Series for Random House Audio. For more information, visit
judykaye.com.
Philharmonic Chamber Soloists
The Philharmonic Chamber Soloists is the acclaimed chamber ensemble of virtuoso musicians
from the New York Philharmonic. They have performed together since 2002 in concert halls
and festivals in the US, Europe, and Asia, including a tour of the Greek Islands, where
they played for Queen Sofia of Spain. The ensemble is known for concerts that feature
eclectic programming interwoven with lively commentary.
As members of one of the world's preeminent orchestras, the Philharmonic Chamber Soloists
embody a wealth of musicianship and experience. Its members hail from many nations and
enjoy active careers as solo artists.
The Philharmonic Chamber Soloists recently recorded a collection of long-lost Jerome Kern
songs arranged for string quartet by Kern's Hollywood arranger Charles Miller. These
miniature masterpieces have not been heard since their 1942 release on Decca. They are
currently being aired by Jonathan Schwartz on WNYC-FM and worldwide on Sirius Satellite
Radio.
Michael A. Kerker
Michael A. Kerker has been director of musical theater for ASCAP (American Society of
Composers, Authors, and Publishers) since 1990. In addition to coordinating ASCAP's Musical
Theatre Workshop in New York, he works with DreamWorks Animation SKG to produce the ASCAP /
DreamWorks Musical Theatre Workshop in Los Angeles (both of which are led by
composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz). Together with Michael Feinstein, Mr. Kerker produces a
regular series of concerts at Carnegie Hall that highlights the catalogue of both legendary
and contemporary songwriters.
Mr. Kerker is also producing a regular series of interview programs entitled Broadway:
Up Close and Personal for the Kennedy Center. His onstage conversations with some
of our nation's most prominent songwriters have included evenings with Jerry Herman,
Stephen Sondheim, Alan and Marilyn Bergman, Charles Strouse, Sheldon Harnick, Marvin
Hamlisch, and Stephen Schwartz. He also produces an annual songwriter's cabaret, as part of
the Chicago Humanities Festival.
Mr. Kerker produced the ASCAP Foundation Jerry Herman Legacy Program-a series of seminars,
master classes, and concerts that feature the legendary composer-lyricist. The program has
been presented nationwide in such cities as Chicago, Sundance, San Francisco, Savannah,
Miami, and Pittsburgh.
Mr. Kerker is proud to be a member of the boards of the American Theatre Wing, the Johnny
Mercer Foundation, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.