On Saturday’s broadcast, we welcome back 16-year-old pianist, composer, and songwriter Emily Bear to Introductions. Emily made her professional debut at the Ravinia Festival at 5 years old, and at age 7, she was one of the first artists to appear on Introductions in 2008. Since then, she has performed at many of the world’s most well-known venues including Carnegie Hall, the White House, Lincoln Center, Montreux Jazz Festival, Blue Note, Hollywood Bowl, among others. She has performed in concert halls around the United States, Europe, and Asia and shares her love for all musical styles, ranging from classical to pop to jazz and everything in-between.
Emily was the youngest recipient of the ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Award at age 6, and symphonies all over the world have performed her original orchestral pieces. She is the 2016 and 2017 recipient of the ASCAP Herb Alpert Jazz Composer of the Year Award. Emily also loves composing for film and TV, and she recently scored 6 national commercials for Weight Watcher’s ‘Simple Start’ campaign. Emily has released several albums of original music. Her most recent album, Into The Blue, topped the Billboard Charts. Her previous album, Diversity, was produced by Quincy Jones for Concord Music. Her five sheet music songbooks of original music are distributed worldwide by Hal Leonard Music. Emily has also helped raise millions of dollars for charities around the globe through performances and events.
Emily will also be the featured pianist at Grant Park Music Festival’s annual Independence Day Salute Concert on Wednesday, July 4. She will perform Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with the Grant Park Orchestra under the direction of Christopher Bell. The concert will be broadcast live on WFMT at 6:30 pm.
Emily Bear Photo Credit: Arturo Fernandez