Award-winning pianist Read Gainsford will perform in Michelsen Hall in the Noel Fine Arts Center on Monday, March 31. This concert concludes the 2007-08 Performing Arts Series at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

The performance begins at 7:30 p.m. Cost is $18 for adults, $14 for senior citizens and $6 for youth. UWSP students with ID may buy tickets in advance for $4.50 or be admitted free the day of the show if seats remain.

An associate professor of piano at Florida State University (FSU), Gainsford has earned public and critical acclaim all over the world for his music, which ranges from Mozart to Messiaen. Known for engaging his audiences, Gainsford mixes history, insight and anecdotes with his performances of chosen works at each concert.

He has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in venues in the United States, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

A native of New Zealand, he won the top prize in the Television New Zealand Young Musician of the Year. He went on to study in London, where he graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He also earned a doctoral degree at Indiana University. Gainsford taught at Ithaca College and won the college-wide Excellence in Teaching Award in 2004 before joining the FSU faculty in 2005.