GRASS VALLEY, CA, March30 2023- Nevada County pianist Lynn Schugren will present a benefit concert for Saint Joseph’s Cultural Center on Sunday, April 2nd at 2 pm. The concert will be held in the former chapel at SJCC at 410 Church St. Grass Valley, CA, and will feature works by Scarlatti, Mozart, Schumann, and local composer Mark Vance.
Nevada County pianist Lynn Schugren has enjoyed a long career in performing solo and chamber recitals and has long been a champion of new music, having commissioned over a dozen new works for piano by California composers, the Sierra Rhapsody for piano and orchestra by Alexis Alrich. She has also performed for the Composers Project and the Nevada County Composers Cooperative on a regular basis, as well as performing recitals in the Bay Area and recordings like JS Bach’s Well Tempered Klavier.
Schugren was born in Berkeley, CA into a musical family. At age 5 she began lessons with Nadya Lorenz, a protégé of Chilean pianist Claudio Arrau, who would remain her teacher for over 15 years.
When the family moved to Nevada City she continued her studies with Nadya, and her mother would drive her to Berkeley every other week for 3 hour lessons. Schugren went on to attend the Music Academy of the West when she was 15 years old. After graduating from Mt. St. Mary’s in Grass Valley, she went off to Mills College on a Ford Foundation Talent Award Grant. After graduating from UC Berkeley Lynn Schugren began her teaching career.
Since the age of 18, Schugren has played throughout the western states, both solo and chamber music. She has been a guest soloist for many years with Music in the Mountains, and played recitals at Old First Church in San Francisco, Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, Julia Morgan Theatre in Berkeley and at the Oakland Museum. She has played live concerts on KPFA, KXPR and KQED Radio and commissioned and premiered several new American piano works.
“I have taught for over 40 years, students of a wide variety of ages and expertise. My students have been competition winners, scholarship winners, and have played at the Music Teacher’s state convention,” says Schugren.
Lynn Schugren has a special place in her heart for Saint Joseph’s Cultural Center. As a prior student of Mt. St. Mary’s, Schugren has fond memories of being a young student there. Today she serves as the vice-president of Saint Joseph’s Cultural Center, adjacent to Mt. St. Mary’s.
Schugren says, “This great old building has been around for a very long time. There is a lot of history here and we aim to continue providing this space to celebrate cultural events. I would be delighted to share my music with the community. All the money from ticket sales will go toward building preservation, so please come enjoy the concert this Sunday!”
100% of proceeds will be donated to Saint Joseph’s Cultural Center to go toward funding renovations to the historic 165-year-old building. Home to the Grass Valley Museum, as well as art studios to 13 local artists; in addition to being a dance class, concert, and wedding venue, Saint Joseph’s Cultural Center welcomes the community for a special piano concert by the local talent, Ms. Schugren for an afternoon of music.
Tickets are $25 and may be ordered by calling the office at 530-272-4725, emailing saintjosephsculturalcenter@gmail.com or can be purchased at the door.