Meadville, Pa. – Feb. 3, 2006 –The Allegheny College Music Department will host pianist Jon Gonder, associate professor of music at the University of Pittsburgh in Johnstown, on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 2 p.m. as he gives a solo recital in the Ford Chapel.

The recital will be drawn from J.S. Bach's “Concerto in the Italian Style, BWV 971,” Beethoven's “Thirty-Two Variations in C Minor, WoO 80,” Chopin's “Nocturne in F-Sharp Major, Op. 15, No. 2,” Ginastera's “Sonata No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 22,” Ravel's “Jeux D'Eau” and Chopin's “Ballade No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 52.”

A native of Toronto, Gonder studied at the University of Western Ontario, where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in piano performance. He subsequently studied with renowned French pianist Marcel Ciampi before progressing to his doctorate in piano performance at the University of Michigan; his teacher there was the celebrated and widely recorded pianist Gyorgy Sandor.

Gonder has presented solo concerts, concerto performances with orchestra, chamber music, accompaniments and piano duo concerts. He has performed in the United States, Canada and Europe and has appeared on national television and radio in Canada and on National Public Radio in the U.S.

Gonder has recently performed as a soloist with the Johnstown Symphony and Livingston Symphony and has also played solo recitals in Northern Ontario and Indiana and on WQED’s “Performance in Pittsburgh.” In 2005, he toured western Pennsylvania as part of the “Piano Masters” series, a concert series he established.

Gonder has held teaching positions at the University of Michigan, the University of Oklahoma, the Universit� canadienne in France, SUNY Sullivan in New York and Laurentian University in Canada and has also served in senior administrative positions in both academic and student affairs. He is currently the associate vice president for academic affairs at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown in addition to being on the university's music faculty.

For more information on the recital, contact the Music Department at 814-332-4338.