A Unique Partnership with JMC and La Chapelle Historique du Bon Pasteur
Next season, two of Schulich's finest piano students and each a winner of the McGill Concerto Competition, will perform recitals in partnership with Jeunesses Musicales du Canada and with La Chapelle Historique du Bon Pasteur. Dates will be announced at the start of the fall season.
Megan Milatz will be performing at the Maison Jeunesses Musicales Canada, at a date to be announced later in the year. An accomplished pianist, Meagan Milatz began her piano studies in Saskatchewan at the age of five with Cherith Alexander. She progressed very quickly, completing her Performer’s ARCT diploma at the age of twelve. Since then, Meagan has gained much experience as both a soloist and collaborator. She was named the most outstanding competitor in the Grand Awards Competition at the Saskatchewan provincial music festival in 2011. She received second place at the National Music Festival in 2009 and third place in 2011. In 2009, she received second place in Piano Class B at the OSM competition in Montréal. Meagan won first place in her age category at the Canadian Music Competition in 2007, and was then chosen to perform as soloist with the Sherbrooke Symphony Orchestra. She again appeared with orchestra this past January as winner of McGill University’s 2014 Classical Concerto Competition, and is scheduled to appear with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra in 2015.
Milatz came away with first prize in the CFMTA National Piano Competition in 2011, along with the opportunity to perform with the string members of the Gryphon Trio. Passionate as a collaborator, she has also performed with Andrew Wan, concertmaster of the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, on several occasions. She has given various concerts as both a soloist and collaborator for the Regina Musical Club series. Milatz was recently awarded the top prize at the 2014 Shean Piano Competition, and also received the award for best performance of the test piece.
An avid learner, Milatz has participated in summer programs such as the Banff Centre, the Gijón International Piano Festival in Spain, and Morningside Music Bridge in both Calgary and Poland. She recently received her Bachelor of Music in piano performance from McGill University under the direction of Dr. Ilya Poletaev, along with a minor in Early Music Performance, having studied fortepiano with Tom Beghin. She is also the recipient of a Developing Artist Grant from the Hnatyshyn Foundation.
Pianist Zhenni Li will be performing at the Chapelle Historique du Bon Pasteur, and is hailed as “a magnetic pianist—with fire and poetry. Everyone should hear her” by music critic David Dubal, has performed throughout the United States, Europe and China, in notable concert halls including the Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Morgan Library in New York, The Pasadena Civ-ic Auditorium in Los Angeles, The California Theater in San Jose, Théâtre de Vevey in Switzerland and the National Concert Hall in Tianjin, China. Ms. Li is a prizewinner of numerous competitions, most recently the unanimous 1st Prize at the Concours Musical de France, and was in the final six at the renowned Concours Clara Haskil in Switzerland. She is also a top prizewinner of the International Russian Piano Competition in San Jose, the Kosciusko Chopin Piano Competition and The Heida Hermanns International Piano Competition. Upon moving to the United States, Ms. Li enrolled in the Juilliard School, where she earned her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees on a full scholarship, under the tutelage of Seymour Lipkin and Joseph Kalichstein. She is currently on her first year of Doctorate Degree of Piano Performance with Dr. Stéphane Lemelin at Mcgill Schulich School of Music, after having recently pursued her Artist Diploma with Peter Frankl at Yale School of Music.
