Bay Ridge to welcome harmonica virtuoso

Jiayi He to perform in concert on March 15

February 26, 2015 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Harmonica virtuoso Jiayi He will dazzle audiences with his skills in a concert on March 15. Photo courtesy of Art on the Corner

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Jiayi He, a world-renown harmonica virtuoso, will be performing music by everyone from Stephen Foster and Johann Strauss in a special March 15 concert in Bay Ridge that is part of Art on the Corner, a music and art series presented at a local church.

He will present “Harmonica Harmony,” a concert featuring both familiar works and new compositions, on Sunday, March 15 at the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd, 7420 Fourth Avenue, at 3 p.m. The church is the home of Art on the Corner.

The concert will feature music by Stephen Foster, John Newton, Emile Waldteufel, Johann Strauss and Dmitry Kabalevsky.

He will also premiere “Voices of the Mountain,” composed especially for March 15 concert at Art on the Corner by Dr. Mui Kwong Chiu, a Hong Kong composer.

He will play different types of harmonicas during the concert including chromatic, tremolo, diatonic, bass, keyboard and wheel, as well as the largest and smallest harmonicas in the world.

The virtuoso has received numerous awards from international festivals and competitions in England, Germany, Israel, Japan and U.S. He has served as a member of the judging committees in the Asia-Pacific Harmonica competition in Taiwan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Hangzhou, Korea and Singapore.

He has also appeared as a soloist with numerous orchestras around the world and has been featured on many television stations including NBC, News 12 Long Island, Queens Public Television and Sino Television.

He has recorded harmonica music for movies, radio stations, and CD’s.

Composers Naresh Sohal, Michael Isaacson, Zane Merritt, and Mui Kwong Chiu have written special harmonica works for He. Mel Bay Publications, Inc. published his book, “Recital Pieces for Chromatic Harmonica.”

He has performed a pre-game show at Shea Stadium for the New York Mets and has performed solo at the General Assembly Hall at the United Nations. In 2012, then-mayor Michael Bloomberg attended He’s seminar and learned how to play harmonica.

He currently serves on the faculty of the Turtle Bay Music School in New York.

Art on the Corner, which is presenting the concert, is a community-based non-profit arts ministry of Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd. The program presents concerts, art exhibitions and other arts-related events.

For more information about the concert, or about Art on the Corner, contact Rita Pihra-Majurinen at 718-745-8520.