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Sunday Piano series begins with Acclaimed Brazilian pianist featured

The Oregon Coast Council for the Arts presents the first of the 2006- 07 Sunday Piano Series beginning at 2 p.m. Sept. 17, featuring Alexandre Dossin from the School of Music at the University of Oregon. Sunday Piano Series performances are offered to benefit Lincoln County Let There Be Arts.


Dossin was born in Porto Alegre, Brazil, Sept. 13, 1970 and began to play piano at age 5. His first public performance was at age 7 and at age 8 he performed in the biggest concert hall of his hometown, playing for more than 2000 people. In 1982 Dossin made his first piano solo recital and was immediately acclaimed as the most talented artist of his age in Brazil. Since his first public performance, he has constantly appeared on television, radio, newspapers and magazines throughout Brazil.

Dossin successfully participated in piano competitions in Brazil, receiving Grand Prix and Hours Concours in the Villa-Lobos Competition (1987), First Prize and two Special Prizes in the First Edino Krieger National Piano Competition (1988), 2nd Prize in the Santa Maria International Piano Competition (1987), and a scholarship to study in the United States from the Sul America Competition (1982). He won the Porto Alegre Symphony Orchestra Competition in the years 1984, 1985 and 1986.

At age 14, Dossin was invited to be a soloist with the Montevideo Symphony Orchestra (Uruguay), and made a large concert tour in his home state. In 1989, after participating in the First Brazil-Soviet Union Cultural Seminar, held in Rio de Janeiro, Dossin received a full scholarship from the Ministry of Education of Soviet Union. He was selected among the 25 best Brazilian pianists by Professor Boris Romanov, dean of the piano faculty in the Musical College of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory.

In October 1989, Dossin moved to Moscow, where he lived until May, l998, having first studied from l989 to l991 at the Musical College of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, class of Professor Boris Romanov; and from 1991 to 1997 at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, class of Professor Sergei Dorensky.

Alexandre Dossin received the master's of fine arts degree in piano performance from the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory in June l996. He also was an assistant to Professor Sergei Dorensky and finished the advanced post graduate course in Piano Performance in l997.

During his years in Moscow, Dossin has developed a large piano repertoire and was constantly invited to perform both in solo recitals and with orchestra throughout Russia.

He was awarded the Silver Medal and Second Honorable Mention in the Maria Callas Grand Prix (Athens, Greece, 1996), Third Prize and Special Prize in the Mozart International Piano Competition (Salzburg, Austria, 1995), and Fourth Prize in the Mazara-del-Vallo International Piano Competition (Sicily, Italy, 1993).

In May 1997, among more than 200 applications from the best pianists of the world, Dossin was one of the 35 selected to take part in the Tenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition held in Fort Worth, Texas. After his performance at the Ed Landreth Auditorium, he was invited to move to Texas and pursue the doctor of musical arts in piano performance at the University of Texas at Austin, where he studied under the supervision of Professor William Race.

In September 1997, Dossin was the youngest person ever to receive the prestigious State Award "Ambassador of Rio Grande do Sul" in Brazil. In May 1998, he moved to Texas, and performed solo recitals in Grapevine and Austin. He also made several live broadcasts at radio stations in Austin. He was appointed as a full-time teaching assistant at the School of Music for 1999-01 and also coordinator of the Piano Project for 2000-01. Dossin studied under the supervision of Professor Gregory Allen during the 1999-2001 academic years. He received the doctorate of musical arts degree in 2001 from the University of Texas at Austin, and keeps an active concert performance schedule in the U.S., Brazil and Europe.

Recent engagements included recitals in Virginia, Paris and Brazil. In July 2000 Dossin was one of six semifinalists selected among 120 candidates at the New Orleans International Piano Competition. He has performed more than 200 recitals and concerts with orchestras in fifteen countries. He has appeared in more than 300 articles in newspapers and magazines throughout Brazil, Russia, Japan, Europe and the U.S.A.

In August, 2003 Dossin was awarded the First Prize and Special Prize at the Martha Argerich International Piano Competition (Buenos Aires, Argentina). Dossin was on the faculty at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette from 2001-2002 and is currently assistant professor of piano at University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

The Sunday Piano Series is sponsored in part by the Oregon Coast Council for the Arts, the city of Newport, and Lillian Crom. Light refreshments will be available from Quimby's at the PAC, prior to the performance and during intermission. Tickets are $12 for adults, and $5 for students. Reserved seats are available by calling the Newport Performing Arts Center box office at 265-ARTS or at the door.