JANET SOMMERFELD, 53
Freelance writer/producer
Palos Verdes Estates, California
United States

2016 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition
Quarterfinal Round – Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Van Cliburn Recital Hall
Fort Worth, Texas, USA

Janet Sommerfeld began her studies at 6 and played throughout high school in California. During her sophomore year in college, she became an exchange student at Waseda University in Tokyo, where she studied with Hideo Sakoda and Hiroko Nakamura. While in Asia, she performed Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with the Edelweiss Symphony Orchestra. Upon her return to the United States, she completed her degree in broadcast journalism from USC and pursued a career in television news and marketing for Fox Broadcasting and CBS. After a nearly 25-year absence from the piano, Ms. Sommerfeld has returned to music making. Recent performances include appearances as a soloist with the California Concerto Weekend Festival Orchestra at the West Valley College Theater (Saratoga, California). Away from the piano, Ms. Sommerfeld also enjoys reading, traveling, watching anything related to Star Trek, and spending time with her husband and daughter.

Program:
SCHUBERT-LISZT Soirée de Vienne No. 6 in A Minor
LISZT Mephisto Waltz No. 1