If you’d like to hear this SLSO concert but can’t make it to Powell Hall this weekend, you’ll be able to tune into St. Louis Public Radio by clicking the play button near the top of their homepage on Saturday, March 4, at 8:00 p.m. CST (6:00 p.m. Pacific, 9:00 p.m. Eastern), and hear their broadcast of the March 4 morning concert. This broadcast will probably be offered only on the evening of Saturday, March 4 (it is unlikely to be available on demand).
A versatile pianist, Peter Henderson is active as a performer in orchestral, chamber, and solo settings. Henderson is currently Associate Professor of Music and Artist-in-Residence at Maryville University, where he has served on the faculty since 2005. Since 2015, Henderson has been the Principal Keyboardist of the Sun Valley Music Festival Orchestra. In September 2023, he began his tenure as Principal Keyboardist of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO).
During January and February 2016, Henderson was the piano soloist in the SLSO’s California tour performances of Olivier Messiaen’s Des Canyons aux étoiles… (From the Canyons to the Stars…). Critics described him as a “powerhouse soloist” (San Francisco Chronicle) and praised his Messiaen playing for its “intense focus and thrilling vibrancy” (San Jose Mercury News). His most recent solo appearances with the SLSO, in March 2023, featured performances of Joseph Haydn’s Keyboard Concerto No. 11.
In addition to his regular ensemble performances with the SLSO, Henderson often delivers pre-concert lectures, introducing classical concert programs from Powell Hall’s stage.
Henderson’s discography includes collaborations with violinist David Halen, flutist Mark Sparks, bass trombonist Gerry Pagano, violist Jonathan Vinocour, and soprano Marlissa Hudson. His most recent solo album is A Celebration of African Composers for Piano (AMP AGCD 2706, released 2017).
Henderson also occasionally composes music and works as a recording producer. Rückblick (Looking Back), his song without words for trombone and piano, appears on Gerry Pagano’s album Solitude, released 2018. Printed and electronic editions of Rückblick were issued by Ascenda Music Publishing in January 2024.
Henderson holds a Doctor of Music degree from Indiana University, Bloomington, where his main piano instructor was Dr. Karen Shaw; he had previously studied with Dr. Jay Mauchley at the University of Idaho, Moscow. Henderson and his wife Kristin Ahlstrom, the SLSO’s Associate Principal Second Violinist, live in St. Louis with their lively, sweet beagle/terrier-mix, Zinni.
Brief bio (220 words)
A versatile pianist, Peter Henderson is active as a performer in orchestral, chamber, and solo settings. Henderson is currently Associate Professor of Music and Artist-in-Residence at Maryville University, and Principal Keyboardist of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) and the Sun Valley Music Festival Orchestra.
Henderson was the piano soloist in the SLSO’s February 2016 California tour performances of Olivier Messiaen’s Des Canyons aux étoiles… (From the Canyons to the Stars…); his Messiaen playing was lauded for its “intense focus and thrilling vibrancy” (San Jose Mercury News).
In addition to his regular ensemble performances with the SLSO, Henderson often delivers pre-concert lectures, introducing classical concert programs from Powell Hall’s stage.
Henderson’s discography includes collaborations with violinist David Halen, flutist Mark Sparks, and soprano Marlissa Hudson. His most recent solo album is A Celebration of African Composers for Piano (AMP AGCD 2706, released 2017).
Henderson also occasionally composes music. Rückblick (Looking Back), his song without words for trombone and piano, appears on Gerry Pagano’s album Solitude, released 2018. Printed and electronic editions of Rückblick were issued by Ascenda Music Publishing in January 2024.
Henderson holds a Doctor of Music degree from Indiana University, Bloomington. He and his wife Kristin Ahlstrom, the SLSO’s Associate Principal Second Violinist, live in St. Louis with their lively, sweet beagle/terrier-mix, Zinni.
The 2022-23 Music at Maryville series concludes Sunday afternoon, April 23, at 3:00 p.m. with a free performance by the Saint Louis’s premiere string quartet, the Arianna Quartet: John McGrosso and Julia Sakharova, violins; Joanna Mendoza, viola; and Kurt Baldwin, cello.
Peter Henderson, piano — Haydn meets Bach — Jan. 20, 2023 @ 7:30 p.m., Maryville University Auditorium — Free admission
“Haydn meets Bach” Program:
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat major, Hob. XV:46 (ca. 1767-70)
I. Allegro moderato II. Adagio III. Finale: Presto
Andante with Double Variations (Sonata “Un piccolo divertimento”) in F minor, Hob. XVII:6 (1793)
Brief Intermission
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
French Suite No. 1 in D minor, BWV 812 (ca. 1722)
I. Allemande II. Courante III. Sarabande IV. Menuet I — Menuet II V. Gigue
Chaconne with Variations from Partita No. 2 for Unaccompanied Violin, BWV 1004 (ca. 1717-20) — Concert arrangement for the piano by Ferruccio Busoni (1866-1924), 1893
Performing solo piano works by Haydn in a faculty recital on Friday, January 20, 2022, at 7:30 p.m., in the Maryville University Auditorium. Free admission.
Reading and blogging on this site about Haydn’s life and work.
Friday, March 3, 2023, 7:30 p.m. — Haydn Project concludes: Peter Henderson will perform the solo piano part of J. Haydn’s Keyboard Concerto No. 11, Hob. XVIII with the St. Louis Symphony conducted by Stephanie Childress —Powell Hall • Tickets available from the SLSO
Sunday, April 16, 2023, 3:00 p.m. — Music at Maryville Concert 4 of 5: Music by Maryville Faculty Composers — World premieres of the first Music at Maryville commissioned work by David Nalesnik, Peter Henderson‘s Five Poems of John Wickersham, and portions of Scott Lyle‘s Missa Pro Defunctis; also featuring performances of original songs by Maryville faculty members Gabriel Colbeck, Jonathan Fahnestock, Jesse Kavadlo, and John Marino — Maryville University Auditorium • Free admission; donations gratefully accepted
Sunday, November 13, 2022, 3:00 p.m. — Music at Maryville Concert 2 of 5: Adam Maness Combo plays Jazz Standards and Originals — Maryville University Auditorium • Free admission; donations gratefully accepted
