Hailed as one of the finest pianists in New England, William Ögmundson will be performing at St. Kieran Community Center for the Arts on Friday, May 12, 2017, beginning at 7 p.m. Mr. Ögmundson is in the process of developing his show program but is likely to include selections by Scott Joplin, Gottschalk and Gershwin as well as some novelty pieces. Thanks to a sponsorship from Bryant Funeral Homes, tickets for this performance ($12/adults, $10/under 18) are available online for a small additional fee, at the door on the evening of the concert or the art center’s office at 155 Emery St., Berlin, N.H., 603-752-1028.

William Ögmundson is an Emmy-nominated composer and is acknowledged to be one of the finest pianists in New England. He has built a career around piano performance (best known for his interpretations of ragtime music) while also making a name for himself as a composer and lyricist.

William began performing at the age of five and went on to win numerous piano competitions throughout his school years. During this period, he was the featured pianist for the New Hampshire Music Festival Orchestra on four separate occasions. In addition to regular performances in New Hampshire and the surrounding states, William has also performed at venues throughout Europe, including the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, and St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, where he was honored to have been the organist for a Sunday morning mass.

William is an accomplished composer as well. The most current projects include a lullaby that William co-wrote with Tomie dePaola, which appeared on CD and in print, in “The Magic of Strega Nona” published in October 2015 by Penguin. William recently completed a musical version of “Hapenny Magick” with the multitalented Jennifer Carson, which premiered in Warner, N.H. in April 2016. He wrote incidental music for the Northern New England Repertory Theatre recent production of “Heroes,” and has composed three choral anthems which were published by Kokopelli press.

William, along with Tom Dunn, adapted the story of “The Night of Las Posadas” by Tomie dePaola into a Christmas musical “Las Posadas,” which has toured New England for the past three years. “Marking the Moment” written with Trish Lindberg premiered at Plymouth State University in January 2013 and was featured on New Hampshire Public Radio June 10, 2013. In September 2013 the program won the Moss Hart Memorial Award for New England.

In September of 2012, New Hampshire Public Television aired “Bullies and Bystanders Be Aware,” a show about bullying which featured William’s music. The show was nominated for three New England Emmy Awards, including best original music, and won an Emmy for Best Overall Children’s Show, as well as a TELLY Award and a National Broadcaster’s Award.

In addition to the well-known works above, William has both composed music and/or written lyrics for many original musical theater productions, including: “Hope is Like a Feather” performed both in the United States and in South Africa; “A Star Spangled Salute”; “Pollyanna” published by Dramatic Publishing in 2011; “Benny Pierce: A Ghost Story”; “Wild Swans”; “Shiner Watson”; “The Lending Doll” and “Twins” which was written with novelist George Herman.

William has also written the music for the past ten productions of the Northern New England Repertory Theatre Company. Musical excerpts from the 2006 and 2007 shows can be found on his CD Orpheus.

William released his new CD “Phoenix” on May 30, with all original songs played on the piano, Hammond B3 and numerous other instruments with amazing cover art by Molly Ellison. In July of 2016 he received a standing ovation from an audience of 900 for his concert at Saint-Gaudens National Park in Cornish, N.H., and is currently touring his new musical with Tom Dunn “Georgia O’Keeffe paints Paradise.” He recently completed music and lyrics for a new children’s musical called “Wojer and the Wizard” with scriptwriter and director Jennifer Carson.

For more information about this event, to purchase a membership or loyalty card or to make a donation to the annual or capital improvement funds, please contact the Arts Center at 603-752-1028, visit the website www.stkieranarts.org or the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/stkieranarts.

Programming at St. Kieran Community Center for the Arts is made possible by the support of community corporate sponsors, The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, The Neil and Louise Tillotson Fund, The GETZ Foundation, The Wyman Family Fund, and The Rydin Family Fund.