Pianist to bring Gershwin style to Cape concert

Acclaimed George Gershwin-style pianist Jack Gibbons will return to Cape Girardeau Friday for the first time since January 2002, performing for the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri's annual meeting.

By that time Gibbons had already established himself as the foremost Gershwin interpreter in the world after discovering the great contemporary composer in 1988. Gibbons played in Cape Girardeau both in November 2001 and January 2002, just months after it appeared as if he may never play the tunes of Gershwin again.

A car crash near his home in Oxford, England, nearly ended the life of the performer in March 2001. Surgeons at Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital had to remove Gibbons' spleen and operated on other injuries that included a punctured leg, broken sternum and ribs, a fracture of his left elbow and smashed jaw and cheek bones.

"I remember wondering what had happened to him because I hadn't heard from him for several months after the accident," said Dennis Seyer, who had developed a friendship with Gibbons during a trip to England in 2000.

Within just a few months, Gibbons was back playing music, including a show here in November that received rave reviews.

"He just knocked my socks off," said Arts Council director Rebecca Fulgham, who was only a member of the organization at the time. "It was extremely high energy and just very exciting."

"I've never seen a concert pianist play like he can play," said Seyer. "And he plays Gershwin like Gershwin played Gershwin. He used the entire 88 keys, just like Gershwin did."

The ability to play the late composer's famous works so well comes from years of practice, listening to original recordings of Gershwin and mimicking that style.

Seyer said people who come to see Gibbons (the concert is open to the public) will see both performance and charisma. Gibbons isn't simply a cover artist; he'll play some of his fresh originals at the concert and works from other composers, too.

The middle of the show will also feature the presentation of the Otto F. Dingeldein award to recognize a local person for achievement in the arts.

In addition, Gibbons will host a piano master class at 1:15 p.m. in Academic Hall Auditorium. The class is also open to the public.

msanders@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 182

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Want to go?

• What: Jack Gibbons presents "Gershwin and Friends"
• When: 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21
• Where: Academic Hall Auditorium
• Info: 334-9233