MANNES COLLEGE OF MUSIC ANNOUNCES UPCOMING MASTER CLASSES:
PIANIST CLAUDE FRANK ON MONDAY, FEBRUARY 10 AT 3 PM AND
VIOLIST ROBERTO DIAZ ON TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 11 AT 3 PM

(New York, NY – January 27, 2003) Mannes College of Music, a division of New School University, announces upcoming master classes with pianist Claude Frank on Monday, February 10, 2003 at 3:00 p.m. and violist Roberto Diaz on Tuesday, February 11, 2003 at 3:00 p.m. The master classes are free and open to the public and take place at Mannes College of Music, 150 West 85th Street, NYC. (Take the #1 train to 86th Street.) For further information on Mannes College of Music events, call 212-496-8524.

Leading one of the most distinguished careers of any pianist, Claude Frank has repeatedly appeared with the world's foremost orchestra, at major festivals, and at its most prestigious universities. He is an internationally acclaimed interpreter of the piano literature of Beethoven. A milestone of Frank's career was RCA's release of his recordings of the 32 Beethoven sonatas and his worldwide performances of the cycle. During recent seasons, Frank has given joint recitals with his daughter, violinist Pamela Frank, in the United States and abroad. He also had appeared with his wife, pianist Lilian Kallir. A renowned teacher as well as performer, Frank is on the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and is a professor at the Yale School of Music.

A violist of international reputation, Roberto Diaz collaborates with the world's most important conductors and composers. He reaches wide audiences with both his solo and chamber music performances and inspires new talent through his many teaching and master class appointments. As a member of the Diaz Trio, with violinist Andrés Cárdenes and cellist Andrés Diaz, he has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Mexico and Chile. He currently holds the distinguished position of Principal Violist of The Philadelphia Orchestra and is a member of the viola faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music.

New World Records has recently released a critically acclaimed live recording of the Jacob Druckman Viola Concerto with Diaz and the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Wolfgang Sawallisch. On the Naxos label, he has recorded works for viola and piano by Henri Vieuxtemps with pianist Robert Koenig. Diaz performs on a 1739 Camilli viola and a 1595 Amati viola, formerly owned by William Primrose.

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Mannes College of Music, founded in 1916, is one of the world's major conservatories of music. A division of New School University, Mannes offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs, as well as a Professional Studies Diploma program. Notable alumni from Mannes include soprano Frederica von Stade, pianists Murray Perahia and Richard Goode, and conductors Semyon Bychkov, Myung-Whun Chung, JoAnn Falletta and Julius Rudel. Joel Lester is Dean of the College. For further information on Mannes, call (212) 580-0210 or go to the Web site at www.mannes.edu.

New School University, with 7,000 matriculated students and 25,000 continuing education students, is a New York City university committed to critical scholarship, artistic integrity, and ethical responsibility in the social sciences, humanities, the arts and design. It is comprised of a liberal arts foundation of three schools: The New School, Eugene Lang College and the Graduate Faculty of Political and Social Science, and five professional schools: Parsons School of Design, Mannes College of Music, Actors Studio Drama School, Milano Graduate School of Management and Urban Policy, and the Jazz & Contemporary Music Program. New School Online University offers one of the largest selections of online courses in the nation. For further information about admission to New School University, call (877) 5Ave-321 or go to the Web site at www.newschool.edu.