NOTE: “Today” refers to Sunday, Sept. 20.
PORT TOWNSEND — Argentine tangos, Chopin etudes, music from Lizst and Ravel: It’s a program Lisa Lanza loves.
The pianist will offer works from Romantic and Impressionist masters at the Northwest Maritime Center, 431 Water St., in a matinee concert today.
“I couldn’t help it,” Lanza said of her varied selections, which also feature three pieces by the Spanish composer Federico Mompou, tangos arranged by Claudio Mendez and a Debussy prelude titled “What the West Wind Saw.”
The 2 p.m. concert is a showcase for Lanza, a pianist who has played across the United States and Europe but who lives in Port Townsend.
In an interview this week, she hailed two of her teachers and mentors: Loran Olsen of Port Angeles and Paul Roberts of London’s Guildhall School of Music.
She continues to study with them, even as she also works with young players on the North Olympic Peninsula.
She’s invited 12-year-old violinist Marley Erickson of Port Townsend to join her at today’s concert. With Lanza accompanying, Marley will offer “Balada” by Romanian composer George Enescu.
“It’s a short piece, but really beautiful, and it shows off Marley’s lyrical playing,” Lanza said of the violinist, who won second prize in the Port Angeles Symphony Young Artist Competition back in January, when she was just 11.
Tickets to today’s performance are $20 at Crossroads Music, 2100 Lawrence St., and at the door, while more information can be found at www.lisalanza.com.
Lanza also gives an annual concert in Port Townsend to benefit orphaned children in Uganda. Marley is among the musicians who have played several times in that event.
After this weekend’s concert, Lanza will contribute to another charity: the Vascular Birthmarks Foundation (www.birthmark.org).
________
Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
