Alessandra Feris (English Version)

Following undergraduate studies at the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Brazilian pianist Alessandra Feris received a fellowship from KAAD (Katholischer Akademischer Ausländer-Dienst) to study at the Hochschule für Musik ‘Franz Liszt’ in Weimar, Germany, where she received the Artist Diploma under the tutelage of Thomas Steinhöfel and the legendary Lazar Berman. As a student in Weimar, she was awarded a Liszt Foundation fellowship to attend the Béla Bartók International Festival and Seminar in Szombathely, Hungary, and also participated in projects such as the entire performance of Bach’s Das Wohltemperierte Klavier. She came to the United States as a student and teaching assistant of Réne Lecuona at the University of Iowa. In Iowa she earned a master’s degree in Piano Performance and was awarded the ‘Becker Piano Scholarship’ as well as the prestigious ‘John Simms Piano Award For Outstanding Achievement in the Study of Music.’ Under the direction of Carolyn Bridger and Read Gainsford, Alessandra Feris received a doctoral degree in Piano Performance at Florida State University in 2009. A devoted doctoral teaching assistant at FSU, she was the recipient of the ‘2008 Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award.’ Dr. Feris served as Piano Faculty and Artist-in-Residence of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College for eight years, where she worked with a wide diversity of students. Committed to excellence in teaching, she received the ‘Mississippi Humanities Council Teacher of the Year Award’ in 2012. A sought-after pedagogue, Dr. Feris has been actively adjudicating competitions on both national and international levels, as well as conducting masterclasses at major universities in the U.S. and abroad. Her students are winners of many competitions such as the MTNA Young Artist and MTNA Senior (state level), Truran Piano Competition, and the University of South Dakota Concerto Competition. 

Alessandra Feris has as an extensive career as soloist and chamber musician. She has performed widely in Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Costa Rica, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Serbia, and in the United States, making successful solo debuts in major venues such as the Theatro São Pedro in Porto Alegre (Brazil), the Costa Rican National Theater, the Steinway Haus in Frankfurt (Germany), and the Palácio de Bellas Artes (Sala Manuel M. Ponce) in Mexico City. She has recently been a guest performer/teacher at institutions such as Texas A&M University, University of Kansas, University of Central Florida, Louisiana State University, Montclair State University, James Madison University, Augustana University, North Dakota State University, Auburn University, University of Southern Mississippi, Kansas State University, Huntingdon College, University of North Dakota, Chadron State College, University of South Alabama, University of Montevallo, Universidad de Costa Rica, Southern University, Wayne State University, Universidade de Aveiro in Portugal, Universidad de Buenos Aires in Argentina, Ionian University in Greece, and several universities in Brazil. Additionally, she is devoted to the diffusion of Latin-American music and is often requested to premiere works by contemporary composers. 

 Dr. Feris is an Associate Professor of Piano at the University of South Dakota. A passionate collaborative pianist, she enjoys performing with colleagues and is a member of Duo Weimar with cellist Pedro Bielschowsky and Duo Paul-Feris with oboist Jeffrey Paul. She is an artist-faculty at the InterHarmony International Music Festival in Italy, the Lancaster International Piano Festival in Pennsylvania, and the Piano Plus Festival in Greece.

Biography:
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Alessandra Feris (Versão em Português)

Após concluir o curso de Bacharelado em Piano na Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, a pianista gaúcha Alessandra Feris foi contemplada com uma bolsa do KAAD (Katholischer Akademischer Ausländer-Dienst) para estudar na Hochschule für Musik “Franz Liszt” em Weimar, Alemanha, onde recebeu os títulos “Künstlerisches Aufbaustudium” em Piano e “Künstlerisches Diplom” em Piano, Música de Câmara e Acompanhamento de Lied. Durante sua estadia na Europa, obteve bolsa da Fundação Liszt para participar do Festival Internacional Béla Bartók em Szombathely, Hungria. Também participou de inúmeros projetos, como a execução integral do “O Cravo Bem Temperado” de Bach.

Mestre em Música (Piano Performance) pela University of Iowa e Doutora em Música (Piano Performance) pela Florida State University, Alessandra ganhou várias bolsas e prêmios nestas instituições, destacando-se “John Simms Piano Award For Outstanding Achievement in the Study of Music” (University of Iowa) e “2008 Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award” (Florida State University). Estudou nos Estados Unidos com Réne Lecuona, Carolyn Bridger e Read Gainsford, na Alemanha com Thomas Steinhöfel e Lazar Berman, e no Brasil com Suêlma Figueiredo, Anna Seifriz, Dirce Knijnik e Homero Magalhães.

Alessandra tem uma extensa carreira como solista e camerista. Ela tem se apresentado na maioria dos estados brasileiros e em vários países como Argentina, México, Costa Rica, Alemanha, Hungria, Itália, Portugal, Sérvia, Grécia e Estados Unidos. Com debuts em importante teatros como o Palácio de Bellas Artes (Sala Manuel M. Ponce), na Cidade do México, Teatro Nacional da Costa Rica e Steinway Haus em Frankfurt, Alemanha, ela tem sido artista/professora convidada em muitas instituições como Louisiana State University, James Madison University, Auburn University, Wayne State University, University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Coast College, Huntingdon College, Chadron State College, University of South Alabama, Universidad de Costa Rica, Southern University, Universidad de Buenos Aires, University of North Dakota, University of Montevallo, Universidade de Aveiro em Portugal, Ionian University na Grécia e várias universidades brasileiras como UNICAMP (Campinas), UDESC (Florianópolis), UFRGS (Porto Alegre), UFSM (Santa Maria), UFPEL (Pelotas), UFOP (Ouro Preto) e UNB (Brasília). Destacada intérprete de música contemporânea, Alessandra estreou inúmeras obras nos EUA, incluindo a “Sonata sobre um Tema de Bartók” do compositor Marlos Nobre. Também é integrante do Duo Weimar, com o violoncelista Pedro Bielschowsky e do Duo Paul-Feris com o oboísta Jeffrey Paul.

Radicada nos Estados Unidos, Alessandra é professora titular de Piano na University of South Dakota. Antes disso, atuou como docente por oito anos no Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, onde recebeu o prêmio “2012 Mississippi Humanities Council Teacher Award” em reconhecimento ao trabalho pedagógico que desenvolveu. Além de atuar frequentemente como banca de concursos de piano nacionais e internacionais, integra o corpo docente do InterHarmony International Music Festival na Itália, Lancaster International Piano Festival nos EUA, e Piano Plus Festival- Summer Institute, na Grécia.

Biografia:
Arquivo PDF em português
Fotos:
5 fotos em alta resolução (107Mb)
6 fotos em alta resolução (47Mb)