Alan Murray, pianist / Studio Hollywood

Live Performance Video Recordings can be found on tabs marked *

UPCOMING EVENTS (Winter-Spring '23):

- Summer: Weekly Chamber Music Readings at Studio Hollywood

- Fall: 2023-24 Season with Westchester Chamber Soloists

RECENT EVENTS (Winter-Spring '23):

- Jan 1 & 7: J.S. Bach: The Brandenburg Concertos

- Feb 18: Prokofiev - Piano Concerto No. 1 / Strauss - Burleske

with the Greater Newburgh Symphony Orchestra (Russell Ger, Music Director)

- Mar 5: Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 4 / Thuille: Sextet for Winds & Piano

with Westchester Chamber Soloists

- Mar 12 & 15: Yonkers Philharmonic Annual Young Artists Concerto Competition

- Mar 5: Poulenc: Sextet for Winds & Piano with Westchester Chamber Soloists

- Jun 3: RiverArts Music Tour: Andes Manta / Westchester Chamber Soloists

- Jun 4: Fauré - Fantasie for Piano & Orchestra with Westchester Chamber Soloists

STUDIO TIMELINE

(See tabs for video recordings, program notes, press coverage & further details)

Concerto Appearances with Orchestra: Rachmaninoff No. 3 (2013),

Bartók No. 2 (2014) / Prokofiev No. 3, Saint-Saëns No. 4 (2015) / Chopin No. 1,

Tchaikovsky No. 1, Grieg, Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue, Franck - Symphonic

Variations (2016) / Brahms Nos. 1 & 2 (2017) / Chopin No. 2, Saint-Saëns No. 2

Prokofiev No. 2, Rachmaninoff No. 2 (2018) / Beethoven No. 4, Ravel G major &

Left Hand, Rachmaninoff - Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini, Liszt - Totentanz,

Scriabin, Prokofiev No. 3 (2019) / Prokofiev No. 2, Saint-Saëns No. 2,

Beethoven - Choral Fantasia, Mozart No. 19; "Live-at-Home" Series:

Mozart - The Piano Concertos (complete) (2020) / Rachmaninoff No. 1,

"Live-at-Home" Series: Beethoven - The 5 Piano Concertos (2021) / Dvorák,

Rachmaninoff No. 4 (2022) / Strauss - Burleske, Prokofiev No. 1, Beethoven No. 4,

Fauré - Fantasie (2023)

Chamber Music - Featuring the Westchester Chamber Soloists & Friends:

Westchester Chamber Soloists (2020-Present):

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 4 / Thuille: Sextet for Piano & Winds (5-Mar-2023)

J.S. Bach: The Brandenburg Concertos (complete) (1&7-Jan-2023)

Beethoven: Choral Fantasia / Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 19 (8-Mar-2020)

RiverArts' Music Tours (2018-Present):

Beethoven: The Sonatas for Violin & Piano and for Cello & Piano (2018); Brahms:

The Sonatas for Violin & Piano and for Cello & Piano and Other Duo & Trio

Masterpieces for Violin, Cello & Piano (2019), Great Trios, Quartets & Quintets for

Piano & Strings (2021); Great Duos, Trios, Quartets, Quintets, Sextets & More for

Piano, Winds & Strings (2022)

Solo Recitals: Sunrise Series & Masters Series Concerts The Piano Music of Chopin,

Schumann, Debussy & Ravel; Beethoven: The 32 Piano Sonatas & Diabelli Variations,

Albéniz (Iberia), Granados (Goyescas), J.S. Bach: The Keyboard Music; Major works

of Brahms, Schubert, Liszt, Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev & Stravinsky (2010-2012);

RiverArts "Collectanea" Recital with live modern dance, poetry reading & visual arts

Other Events: Yonkers Philharmonic Annual Young Artists Concerto Competitions (2019-23)

Alan Murray has appeared extensively in solo and chamber music recitals and as concerto soloist with symphony orchestras in the US and Europe, under the auspices of Arista International Music Enterprises, based in New York.

Mr. Murray has performed over 50 piano concertos (40+ live performance recordings available on this site) including the great concertos of Bartók (No. 2), Beethoven (Nos. 1-5, Choral Fantasia), Brahms (Nos. 1 & 2), Chopin (Nos. 1 & 2), Dvořák, Fauré, Franck, Gershwin, Liszt (Totentanz), Mozart (complete cycle), Prokofiev (Nos. 1, 2 & 3), Ravel (Left Hand & G major), Rachmaninoff (Nos. 1-4, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini), Saint-Saëns (Nos. 2 & 4), Scriabin, Strauss (Burleske) and Tchaikovsky (No. 1). His 2020-21 pandemic-period "At-Home Concert Series" performances included the complete cycles of Mozart's & Beethoven's Piano Concertos, both of which originated with the March 2020 public inaugural performance of the Westchester Chamber Soloists (link) chamber orchestra - for which Mr. Murray is founder and Executive & Artistic Director. An active and dedicated chamber musician, Mr. Murray's recent season performances have featured Beethoven's and Brahms' complete Sonatas for Violin & Piano and for Cello & Piano as well as duo, trio, quartet, quintet and sextet masterpieces by Arensky, Brahms, Debussy, Dohnányi, Dvorák, Fauré, Franck, Grieg, Piazzolla, Poulenc, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Ravel, Shostakovich, Schubert, Schumann, Thuille and Tchaikovsky. (Visit the Chamber Music and RiverArts Music Tour tabs for complete recording links, programs, and notes).

In prior seasons, Mr. Murray presented the Masters Series and Sunrise Series Concerts in the New York area, over 100 solo recital programs in total, comprising multiple performances of the cycles of piano music of Chopin, Schumann, Debussy, Ravel and J.S. Bach, as well as Beethoven’s 32 Piano Sonatas and Diabelli Variations and major works of Schubert, Brahms, Liszt, Albéniz (Iberia), Granados (Goyescas), Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev and Stravinsky. Mr. Murray also conceived and initiated Collectanea, the first in a series of multi-media "braiding" performances in collaboration with the Hudson Valley artistic not-for-profit RiverArts.org and other distinguished artists, combining art/poetry/dance-inspired classical piano masterpieces with simultaneous on-stage illuminated displays of still art, live modern dance and poetry readings; the initial program comprised Bach-Busoni's Chaconne, Ravel's Gaspard de la Nuit, Liszt's Vallée d'Obermann, and Granados' Goyescas. (Visit the Solo Performances and related tabs for Mr. Murray's solo recital series programs, notes and composer biographical information.)

A career professional in finance and risk management, Mr. Murray is an executive at global insurance ratings and research firm AM Best, prior to which he was a long-term member of the Global Financial Institutions Group management team at leading credit ratings and research firm Moody’s Investors Service in New York, where he managed international client portfolios across the Americas, Bermuda, Europe and Asia-Pacific regions and had executive management responsibility for operations the Latin America region; he began his career as a member of the corporate actuarial team at worldwide insurer American International Group. Alan resides in Westchester County, New York with his wife Amada, daughter Celia, and cavalier King Charles spaniel Lizzy, where for more than a quarter-century they have owned and operated a specialty bookstore, Galápagos Books. In addition to being founder and executive/artistic director of the Westchester Chamber Soloists, he is on the Board of Directors of the Fine Arts Orchestra Society, parent organization of the Yonkers Philharmonic Orchestra and its related programs. Mr. Murray began his musical studies in the New York area with Frances Wazeter and Allen Weiss, and his long-time performance coach is Robert Preston, distinguished concert pianist, professional artistic photographer and chamber music collaborator with the very finest of his generation. Mr. Murray holds diplomas in concerto and chamber music performance from the International Musicians Academy in Europe and an academic degree in theoretical physics/cosmology and languages from Cornell University, where he also received a special University Award for distinguished piano soloist.

Studio Hollywood, based in the Rivertowns area of lower Westchester County, named for the street on which it's located, and just a 15-minute drive or short scenic train ride from Manhattan, is a modern multi-purpose performance, rehearsal and recording space. Set in idyllic natural surroundings with ample natural lighting, the studio features magnificent and carefully maintained vintage Steinway D (concert grand) rosewood and Steinway B flame-mahogany pianos, as well as 850 sq ft (37'x23') of sound-insulated and illuminated studio space with high ceilings, beautiful natural hardwood flooring and trim, and comfortable seating for up to 50 guests, or approximately 30 musicians.

The studio opens up to the surrounding stone-terraced gardens, fish pond and gazebo, and is wheelchair-accessibile from the street. Since inception in 2010, Studio Hollywood has hosted over 100 musical and multi-media events and is available on a privately-negotiated basis for use by visiting artists and performers. Additional detail on the studio facilities, including seating capacity and charts, is available here on The Studio tab.