Famous Ignancy Paderewski Weber Piano Played for the First Time at Paso Robles Inn
13 Year-Old Local Pianists Daniel Ha and Jack Raventos Chosen to Perform
August 13, 2013
PASO ROBLES, CALIFORNIA .August 13, 2013-- The famous Paderewski Weber piano, now permanently located at the Paso Robles Inn, will be played for the first time at the Inn by two winners of the annual Youth Piano Competition in Paso Robles, Daniel Ha and Jack Raventos. The two 13-year old pianists have just returned from Poland, where they participated in the 2013 Cultural Exchange Program between the Paderewski Festival in Paso Robles and the Province of Tarnów, Poland. Based on the 2008 agreement between Paso Robles and the Province of Tarnów, the Cultural Exchange Program provides young Central Coast pianists with workshops, piano master classes, and chamber music sessions followed by performances at Paderewski's former manor house in Kąśna Dolna - and at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków. Daniel Ha and Jack Raventos will officially unveil the Weber piano by performing a short program of solo works by Paderewski and Chopin on Thursday, August 15 at 1:30 p.m. in the historic Grand Ballroom of the Paso Robles Inn.
The hand-carved rosewood Weber grand piano was built in 1881 and purchased in 1905 by Ignacy Jan Paderewski for one of his concert tours in North America. First introduced to the Paso Robles Inn in 1914 during a visit to Paso's healing mineral springs, Paderewski owned over 2500 acres of ranches on Paso's Westside and became a frequent visitor to the area for the next 25 years.
The Weber piano was used in Canada for more than 50 years and sold in 2007 to the Paderewski Heritage Committee, who moved the piano to the Polish Consulate in Vancouver. In March 2013 the Heritage Committee donated the Weber to the Paderewski Festival in Paso Robles, and the historic ballroom of the Paso Robles Inn was chosen for its final location because of Paderewski's longtime association with and his love of the Inn. The Weber piano arrived in Paso from Canada in June.
Also in June 2013, Daniel Ha and Jack Raventos, residents of California's Central Coast, were chosen to travel to Poland on the Cultural Exchange Program, jointly funded by the Paderewski Festival in Paso Robles and the Province of Tarnów in Poland. For 10 days they were joined by two young pianists from Tarnów and two from the Ukraine. Representing the Ukraine, Poland and United States.the three places closely linked to Paderewski's personal history.these students presented a concert at the Paderewski's former country residence, on June 29, 2013, commemorating the seventy-second anniversary of Paderewski's death.
Daniel Ha (13), a resident of Arroyo Grande, is a veteran of the Paderewski Youth Piano Competition in Paso Robles, who received the Honorable Mention (2010), the First Place (2011), and Second Place (2012) in the Competition's Junior Division. He has been studying the piano for four years, starting at the age of nine and his current piano teacher is Dr. Lynne Garrett. Daniel was also the District Winner of the California Association of Professional Music Teachers (CAPMT) Honors Competition in 2011 and 2012, and received Honorable Mention in March , 2013 at the CAPMT Honors Competition State Finals. Last summer he participated in the Music Academy of the West MERIT Program in Santa Barbara, California. This two-week program gives some of the best young musicians in the state the opportunity to play in an ensemble group mentored by fellows in the Music Academy of the West Summer Program.
Besides his music accomplishments, Daniel is a straight-A student at Paulding Middle School in Arroyo Grande who was on the first-place four-person team in the Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) Olympics in 2011 and 2012. In addition, Daniel enjoys writing and has placed first in the San Luis Obispo County Writing Contest in 2010 and 2011. In his spare time he also practices taekwondo. He will perform Ignacy Jan Paderewski: Nocturne in B-flat major, Op. 16 no. 4
Jack Raventos (13), a resident of Orcutt, is an accomplished musician who plays both piano and violin. At age 12 he has already won multiple awards and accolades, including First Place in the Paso Robles Paderewski Youth Piano Competition, Junior Division in 2012. Jack has also been featured as a youth performer in both violin and piano for the Santa Maria Philharmonic Youth Showcase. He is a past Regional Winner of the California Association of Professional Music Teachers Honors State Competition 2011 and Regional Winner of the California Association of Professional Music Teachers Bartok & Contemporary Music Festival in 2012. Most recently, he was awarded the first place grant in the music category from the Santa Maria Arts Council.
As a member of the San Luis Obispo Youth String Orchestra, Jack has played violin at the Clark Center and San Luis Performance Arts Center. For the past three years, Jack has been studying piano with Dr. Lynne Garrett and violin with Brynn Albanese. Jack is a straight-A student who enjoys sailing, swimming, soccer and riding his unicycle while playing his violin. He loves playing music wherever he goes and if there is a piano, Jack will be playing it. He will perform Frederic Chopin: Grande Valse Brillante, Op. 18
About the Paso Robles Inn: The Paso Robles Inn is a member of the Historic Hotels of America and is owned and managed by Martin Resorts, a collection of premier hotels on California's Central Coast. From oceanfront hotels in the popular beach towns of Pismo Beach and Avila Beach to an historic garden inn located in the heart of Paso Robles wine country, each Martin Resorts hotel is a unique experience for California weekend getaways, family vacations, and business meetings, when companies want to meet halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco. California's best beaches, breathtaking ocean views and stunning sunsets, exceptional golf, an abundant wine country and farm-to-fork dining experiences, and historic Hearst Castle are within easy reach. For company details, visit www.MartinResorts.com.
Contacts for the Paso Robles Inn:
Lori Keller, Vice President, Sales and Marketing, 805-547-2711,
LoriK@martinresorts.com or
Susan Wilson, Publicist, 602-996-4242, susanwilson129@gmail.com
Contact for the Paderewski Heritage Committee, Vancouver BC:
Tamara Szymańska, 778-318-1304 t.szymanska@shaw.ca
Contact for the Paderewski Festival, Paso Robles, CA
Cri Cri Solak-Eastin: csolakeastin@gmail.com
Steve Cass, President: steve@casswines.com
Paderewski Piano Timeline
1881
The hand-carved rosewood Weber grand piano is built in New York by the Weber Piano Company
1905
Ignacy Jan Paderewski, long associated with Steinway pianos, has a disagreement with Charles Steinway and purchases the Weber for his concert tours of North America
1907-1908
Paderewski plays the Weber on concert tours of North America
1910
Paderewski's Weber piano is auctioned off in Vancouver, Canada and purchased by the town of Walhachin, British Columbia. It remains in the Walhachin Community Hall for the next 50 years and is used during community dances and holiday parties
1914
Paderewski visits Paso Robles Inn for the first time, staying three weeks to soak his ailing hands in the hot mineral waters. A firm believer in the water's restorative properties, Paderewski returned many times over the next 25 years.
1921
Paderewski retires from political activities, and moves to California's Central Coast
1941
Paderewski dies in New York City on June 29
1961
The community of Walhachin donates the Weber piano to the University of British Columbia's School of Music to aid its teaching program
1976
The Weber is moved to the University of British Columbia's Cecil Green Park, which is rented out for social events
2007
The University of British Columbia sells the Weber to the Paderewski Heritage Committee, and the piano is moved to the Polish Consulate in Vancouver
2013 (March)
The Paderewski Heritage Committee donates the Weber to the Paderewski Festival in Paso Robles, California where the piano will be located in the Paso Robles Inn historic Ballroom
2013 (June)
The Weber piano arrives in Paso Robles for installation at Paso Robles Inn's Grand Ballroom
2013 (August)
The Weber piano is unveiled on August 15 in a ceremony attended by Paso Robles city officials, board members of the Paderewski Festival in Paso Robles, and other guests. Daniel Ha of Arroyo Grande and Jack Raventos of Orcutt, winners of the Paso Robles Paderewski Youth Piano Competition, perform Paderewski's Nocturne in B-flat major, Op. 16 no. 4, and Chopin's Grande Valse Brillante, Op. 18 on the historic instrument
Contact: Lori Keller, Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Martin Resorts, LoriK@martinresorts.com; 805-547-2711
Timeline provided by Marek Zebrowski, Director of the Polish Music Center, University of Southern California and the Paso Robles Inn
