Martha Braden : Biography

The brilliant American pianist Martha Braden combines imaginative virtuosity with a still rarer quality: A sense of continual discovery that lends vitality to her interpretations, as she pioneers in expanding the standard repertory of twentieth century masterpieces. Having attracted widespread attention with her recordings devoted to Alexander Tcherepnin and Ross Lee Finney, she now enjoys increasing acclaim for her CD 'Random Walks', featuring music of David Kraehenbuehl (whom Paul Hindemith hailed as "the most gifted student I ever had").

Ms. Braden's urge to share her discoveries has led her to divide her career between an extensive concert schedule - which spans the United States, Mexico, Europe and the Far East - and a series of innovative educational initiatives.

Most recently, drawing on a lifetime of observing the joy, insights and personal empowerment children can experience through music, she has produced 'A Pocketful of Music: Classics Composed for Children 1730-2002'. Devised for pre-kindergarten through primary grades, this project introduces children to serious music through a recorded series of five-minute 'mini-concerts', each offering three brief, contrasted keyboard pieces by important composers.

Young adults, on the other hand, were Ms. Braden's concern during a three-month tour of the People's Republic of China sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, where she presented numerous concerts and master classes, along with a series of lecture-recitals on the history of Western keyboard music at the 'Shanghai Conservatory of Music'.

In the past few years, Ms. Braden has had gratifying success with two- or three-day college residencies. Students frequently comment that in sharing her areas of expertise - virtuoso performance, exploration of twentieth century music, and creative pedagogy - she illuminates just those concerns that are most crucial in their own budding career plans.

In her educational endeavors, Ms. Braden follows in the tradition of her early teacher, the legendary piano pedagogue Frances Clark. Subsequently she studied and coached with Ernö Balogh, Ross Lee Finney, Louise Goss and Julius Hereford. Singled out for ongoing support by the late great Michigan philanthropist Irving S. Gilmore, Ms. Braden has received a series of Gilmore and Gilmore Foundation grants to underwrite her concert and recording activity. A major prizewinner at both the Bartók-Kabalevsky International Piano Competition and the Ibla International Competition in Sicily, she was also awarded a travel grant as The Tcherepnin Society's first Foreign Exchange Artist. She has made CDs for the Newport Classic, Composers Recordings Inc. (CRI), and New World Records labels.

Martha Braden performs for general concert audiences, gallery and museum series, and festivals of contemporary arts. She tours music schools, colleges and universities, and is featured at state and national music teachers' conventions.