The Lyon College Music department will open the spring 2023 season Sunday, Jan. 29, at 3 p.m. with a guest faculty recital, “The Magic of the Piano,” featuring Harding University professor and director of piano studies Dr. Scott Carrell (pictured).
Selections will include “Waltz in C-sharp Minor” by Frédéric Chopin, “Sonata in B-flat Major” by Franz Schubert, “Liebesträume No. 3” by Franz Liszt, “Träumerai” by Robert Schumann, “Waldesrauschen” by Liszt, “Elite Syncopations” by Scott Joplin, “Ain’t Misbehavin’” by Thomas Wright “Fats” Waller, “Misty” by Erroll Garner and “Caprice Espagnol” by Moritz Moszkowski.
The free event is open to the public.
“We welcome Dr. Carrell back to Bevens after ten years,” said Dr. Michael Oriatti of the Lyon College Music department. “He beautifully performs variety programs, and directly engages the audience both with his technical artistry and in his verbal discussions of the music.”
Described as being a “natural at the keyboard” and playing with “verve, spirit, and zest,” Carrell enjoys a multi-faceted career as a pianist, collaborator, and composer, having performed in the United States, Europe, and Asia. His virtuosic flair, expressive playing, informative comments, and innovative programming have garnered enthusiastic responses from audiences and presenters alike. His varied interests have resulted in several programs of French music, ragtime, and lesser-known works of the repertoire, resulting in residencies at Texarkana College, Northwest Missouri State University, and Guongdong University of Foreign Studies in Guangzhou, China.
Concerto performances feature works from Bach to Prokofiev and include appearances with the Austin Symphony Orchestra, the Pine Bluff Symphony Orchestra, the Southwestern University Orchestra, the Plainview Symphony Orchestra, the Fort Worth Civic Orchestra, the Little Rock Wind Symphony, the New York Classical Players, the Russian String Orchestra and twice with the Harding University/Community Orchestra. He co-founded and performed in the Searcy Chamber Music Series as well as 242 Strings, a faculty piano quartet at Harding University. Other chamber music recitals have been performed with members of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra and the Austin Symphony Orchestra.
Carrell has performed with Crispian Steele-Perkins, Kiril Laskarov, James Houlik, Rose Taylor, John White, Colleen Mallette, and many other artists throughout the central United States. In addition to performing many choral works such as Mozart’s Requiem Mass and Orff’s Carmina Burana, he has also participated in musical orchestras for shows, including “Big Fish,” “The Addams Family,” “Shrek the Musical,” “Nunsense II,” “Grease,” “Scrooge” and “Into the Woods.” He created several interdisciplinary programs: music inspired by literature, music, and art influencing each other, and an improvisation involving music and other disciplines.
He has four compact discs available: “Crossings,” which includes the world premiere recording of an original composition based on a painting by an Arkansas artist; “Ragtime Memories,” a collection of ragtime gems; “Piano Works of Noël Gallon,” world premiere recordings of works by a Paris conservatory professor; and “Sonata and Variations,” favorite pieces of the Classical era. Carrell’s work as a composer has resulted in premieres of “Suite for Brass Quintet” (2011), “Dance for Oboe and Piano” (2011), “Tango” (2019) for piano trio and “Conversations” (2020) for double-reed trio.
Receiving degrees from Southwestern University, the University of Illinois, and a D.M.A. from the University of North Texas, Carrell studied with internationally known artists Drusilla Huffmaster, Ian Hobson, and Vladimir Viardo and participated in masterclasses with Gail Delente, Roy Howat, Dominique Merlet and Abbey Simon. The French Piano Institute awarded him a prize for the best performance of a work by Henri Dutilleux at the 1996 FPI Festival in Paris, France. He was twice honored with the Teacher Achievement Award from Harding University, for the 2003-2004 and 2012-2013 academic years.
An active member of the Arkansas State Music Teachers, he has presented sessions at both regional and state conferences, serves as president of the Music Teachers Association of Central Arkansas, and was recently named the ASMTA 2022 Teacher of the Year. Currently teaching piano, piano-related courses, and music theory at Harding University in Searcy, Carrell is in demand as a soloist, collaborative artist, teacher, and adjudicator.
