Lied Center to host Van Cliburn gold medalist Haochen Zhang March 2

China's Haochen Zhang, gold medal winner of classical piano's most prestigious contest, the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, will light up the stage at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Lied Center for Performing Arts at 7:30 p.m. March 2.

Once every four years, a select few young pianists emerge victorious from the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. Zhang, who at 19 was the youngest participant in the 2009 Cliburn Competition, shared the gold with Japan's Nobuyuki Tsujii, 20, for only the second tie in the competition's 47-year history.

"Zhang . . . demonstrated a musical maturity almost unimaginable in one so young...he impressed with depth of musical understanding and subtle expressive nuance . . . at the competition's end, he was the musician I'd walk across town to hear," said the Dallas Morning News.

Zhang gave his debut recital at the age of five at the Shanghai Music Hall, performing all of Bach's two-part inventions, as well as sonatas by Haydn and Mozart. First-prize winner of the 2007 China International Piano Competition, Zhang has performed with the China National Symphony Orchestra, Krakow State Philharmonic, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra and the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, performing throughout Asia, Europe, and the United States.

Tickets for this performance are $25. University of Nebraska-Lincoln students with a valid I.D., as well as youth age 18 or younger, may purchase tickets for half price. Call the Lied Ticket Office at (402) 472-4747 or (800) 432-3231 for ticket availability. Regular ticket office hours are 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekdays. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.liedcenter.org.

As part of the Lied Center's ongoing education programming, a pre-performance talk will be held in the Lied Center's Steinhart Room 30 minutes prior to curtain. Seating is limited in the Steinhart, and the pre-talk will begin a half hour before curtain or when the room is full. The Lied Center is located on the UNL City Campus at 301 N. 12th St. [map]

The Lied Center's 20th season is supported by Friends of Lied and Union Bank. All events in the Lied Center are made possible entirely or in part by the Lied Performance Fund, established in memory of Ernst F. Lied and his parents, Ernst M. and Ida K. Lied. The Nebraska Arts Council, a state agency, has supported the programs of this organization through its matching grants program funded by the Nebraska Legislature; the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; and the Nebraska Cultural Endowment.

For more information about Van Cliburn Gold Medalist, visit www.cliburn.org.