Fans of traditional and untraditional piano music may hear both in a concert by artist-in-residence Dr. Jeri-Mae G. Astolfi at Piedmont College.
The free concert will be at 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 29, in the college’s chapel at 992 Central Ave. in Demorest.
Astolfi will perform sonatas by Baroque composer Domenico Scarlatti, as well as Frederic Chopin’s “Sonata No. 3 in B Minor, Op. 58,” and three sonatas from “Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano” by American musical pioneer John Cage.
“The prepared piano is a 20th century innovation in which individual notes are altered by securing various objects above or between the strings,” Astolfi said a news release. “Materials are chosen depending on what sound you are looking for, whether it be a muted, more percussive attack, a chime-like effect, or anything between!”
For his “Sonatas and Interludes,” Cage specified a series of metal screws, bolts, nuts, plastic and rubber tabs that are attached to the strings at precise locations. Following the concert, listeners can examine how the piano was prepared, Astolfi said.
Originally from Canada, Astolfi has previously served on the music faculty at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and Henderson State University.