Spitznagel slated to play at Haddonfield United Methodist Church

Martin Spitznagel will play for Tri-State Jazz Society on Sunday, Oct. 20, 2013 from 2:00 to 4:30 p.m. This concert will be at Haddonfield United Methodist Church, 29 Warwick Road, Haddonfield, NJ 08033. Spitznagel will present a program of ragtime and stride piano that promises to display the virtuosic technique, sophisticated touch, and sparkling repertoire, which earned him the title of “World Champion of Old-Time Piano Playing.”

Half-price admission is $10, available for first-time attendees and members; general admission is $20. High school and college students with IDs and children accompanied by a paying adult are free. Pay at the door; there are no advance sales or reservations.

The church is about 15 minutes from central Philadelphia via the Ben Franklin Bridge. There’s free parking. For information call (856) 720–0232 or visit: www.tristatejazz.org.

Martin Spitznagel, hailed as “a remarkable, astonishing… ‘face‐melting’ musical talent” (Amazon.com/editorial review), achieved musical success at age 14, winning a Yamaha Disklavier piano at the “Crazy For Ragtime” competition in front of judge Itzhak Perlman. His flair and ebullience soon caught the eye of the Eastman School of Music’s Dr. Tony Caramia, under whose tutuledge Martin developed his ear, improvisational skills, and compositional acumen, eventually blooming into a world-class artist.

Spitznagel, who lives in Alexandria, VA, has performed across the country at venues large and small including featured performances at the Scott Joplin International Ragtime Festival in Sedalia, MO and the West Coast Ragtime Festival in Sacramento, CA. He’s won numerous awards for his original compositions, among them first place in the 2011 Scott Joplin Foundation’s New Rag contest for “Train Town Rag.” That same year he was selected as the Scott Joplin Foundation’s Artist-In-Residence and also claimed the title “World Champion of Old‐Time Piano Playing” at the World Championship Old‐Time Piano Playing Contest in Peoria, IL.

Spitznagel’s newest CD on the Rosemont label, “Handful of Keys: Face-Melting Ragtime,” features traditional rags and some of Spitznagel’s own compositions, including award-winning “The Train Town Rag.”

To hear Martin Spitznagel in action, please visit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wt_vzgs92BE — “Handful of Keys”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKeC46kQcy0 — “Maple Leaf Rag”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5HJpbvaf54&list=PL33E3BA4D5B09DDCD — “Hobson Street Blues”

Visit his website at: spitzfire.com.