SIMON GHRAICHY, the 29-year-old, prize-winning, Mexican-Lebanese pianist, makes his Carnegie Hall debut, October 15

Hispanic Heritage Month continues to run through October 15.

Also on October 15, SIMON GHRAICHY, the 29-year-old, prize-winning, Mexican-Lebanese pianist, makes his Carnegie Hall debut. A champion of lesser known Latin composers, his recital will feature works by Ernesto Lecuona (Cuban), Manuel María Ponce (Mexican) and Heitor Villa-Lobos (Brazilian).

Simon’s second CD, “Duels,” is also due to be released in the coming weeks.

“I always kept very tight links with my Mexican – and generally Latin – roots. I was raised listening to Latin music ranging from Thalia to Chucho Valdes and always felt frustrated that the Latin American classical repertoire has been a bit neglected. It might sound crazy but I started discovering the Latin American classical music through the North American composer – Louisiana born –  Gottschalk. He’s a very colorful composer who traveled a lot to the Caribbean and for inspired by the local cultures and rhythms. His piece “Souvenir de Porto Rico” could have been any ‘Latin hit’ from the 1980s when be had composed it back in 1856 I was just up to go on a tour to Latin America, featuring Mexico, Cuba and Brazil. So I decided to learn a different ‘encore’ piece by a composer from each of those countries. And that’s how I discovered the Mexican Manuel M. Ponce’s, the Cuban Ernesto Lecuona, the Brazilians Villa-Lobos, Nazareth and Guarnieri. This music combines exciting rhythms, beautiful harmonies, touchy melodies, it has it all to range on the same level than any European classical composer. And that’s where my duty is as a European pianist of Latin American decent, to promote this music and make my European fellows discover it through exciting concert programs and my Latin roots are certainly being very helpful in the understanding of the essence of this music.”

“Liszt and the Americas,” will feature Simon Ghraichy at the piano performing a program of Liszt compositions “Sonata in B Minor,” “Funeral March dedicated to the souvenir of Maximilian, Emperor of Mexico,” as well as works by Godowski, Gottschalk, Lecuona, Ponce and Villa-Lobos.

Ghraichy’s Carnegie Hall debut is the first stop in a “Liszt and the Americas” tour that will play engagements at The Kennedy Center in Washington, DC on March 16, 2016, and Mexico, Berlin and Paris in fall 2016.

Ghraichy’s new CD, “DUELS,” will be released in the coming weeks. The new CD, to be released by Dutch record label, Challenge, features Ghraichy performances of Schumann’s “Kreisleriana op.16,” Liszt’s Sonata in B Minor, and Liszt’s transcription of Beethoven’s 7th Symphony (Allegretto).

The new recording follows Ghraichy’s debut CD, “Always in Motion: Opera Transcriptionsand Paraphrases by Franz Liszt,” which was released in 2011 in celebration of the 200th anniversary of Liszt’s birthday, and is available online from iTunes, Pandora, and Spotify.

For more information about Simon Ghraichy, his new CD and upcoming Carnegie Hall debut,  visit www.SimonGhraichy.com.

To see video of Simon in performance, visit the following URLs: