Media Credit: Ryan Sayers Pianist Menahem Pressler, who has recorded more than 80 albums, performed Sunday afternoon at Jorgensen. Sunday afternoon, the smooth, tranquil and beautiful sounds of the piano at its finest were performed by world renowned pianist Menahem Pressler at the Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts for the 11th annual Alice Murray Heilig Memorial Concert.

Pressler, 83, has proven himself to be a revered and accomplished pianist and a virtuoso musician who helped found the Beaux Arts Trio, a chamber music ensemble that is still going strong after more than 50 years and over 6,000 performances, been the one of only five recipients of the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award by Gramophone magazine, a five-time Grammy nominee and recorded over 80 albums of his world-class music.

Each year, the Alice Murray Heilig Memorial Concert allows such esteemed musicians to perform. The Alice Murray Heilig Concert in honor of the West Hartford philanthropist whose love of and dedication to the arts and involvement in numerous art organizations in Connecticut also has impacted UConn despite her passing. In 1988, Heilig, along with her husband and daughter, donated a new Steinway Concert piano to von der Mehden Recital Hall.

Later, the charitable family established the Alice Murray Heilig Fund for the Advancement of Music at the School of Fine Arts to provide music students fellowships and pianos. The family also recently created the Alice Murray Heilig Chair in Music, the first endowed chair in the School of Fine Arts and just one step in attracting scholars, performers and teachers at the top of their respected fields to UConn.