Testimonials
"Robert Swan is a 'blockbuster' pianist with technical finesse, taste and style combined into one musical conception. As a coach and teacher, he is a gentleman and a musician of the highest rank, having studied with Paul Doguereau, whose teaching style derived from his personal contact with Ravel, Madame Debussy, Emil von Sauer, Igon Petri, Josef Hoffman and Paderewski."
~Harrison Gradwell Slater, pianist, music scholar and author
As artist-in-residence at Tennessee Tech University in April of 2012, Robert Swan presented an evening of spectacular chamber music performances with our faculty and premiered an exceptionally difficult concerto for piano and winds. We could not have asked for a more cooperative and capable guest artist than Dr. Swan, who embodies extraordinary musicianship and philosophical insight about our profession that he shares so vividly with students."~Charles DeckerTrumpet ProfessorTennessee Tech University |  Posing with Dr. Swan (center) are TTU faculty Eastman alumni from left to right Jeremy Hansen (MM 00), Charles Decker (BM 68), Wlliam Woodworth (BM 73), and Chris McCormick (MM '88). |
"As a pianist, Robert Swan is a rare gem. When he sits down at the instrument, his extensive background and performing experience reveals a prodigious technique, impeccable musicianship, and a depth of musical understanding that will captivate any audience. He is a well-respected, successful artist teacher as well, offering a wealth of musical knowledge and insight for those fortunate enough to study with him."
~Dr. Wayne Johnson, pianist and Chair of Keyboard Studies at Seattle Pacific University
"He presented no ranting, raving Beethoven, but a composer who communicates. Swan's style is not governed by stereotypes."
~Ron Bailey Custer, The Banner Newspaper, Blaine, WA
"His fingers were a study in energy conservation. It was a rare opportunity to hear a performer of that caliber in Blaine, WA. He played his heart out. He held his audience spellbound."
~Elisabeth Angell, chair-woman of the Friends of the Blaine Library music committee
"Swan swept his audience, a packed house, right off its feet, directly from the moment the dramatic opening cords of Beethoven's Sonata Pathétique reached the audiences ears until the energy filled ending of Liszt's first Mephisto Waltz brought the listeners to their feet for a standing ovation nearly two hours later."
~Richard E. Clark, The Banner Newpaper, Blaine, WA
"Swan provided a classical tone with his strongly mature delivery of Grieg's "Piano Concerto in A Minor. Swan displayed a gentleness approaching tenderness in the adagio and proved his technical skill in the allegros moderato and marcato…"
~Kate Caldwell, The Coloradoan, Fort Collins, CO
"Robert Swan is a recipient of a Carabo Cone Carnegie Hall foundation award. Carabo Cone was my mother and I worked at her music school for many years in Carnegie hall. Robert Swan is a rare pianist because not only does he possess an articulate and crystalline technique from his profound Juilliard training, but he plays with a great authentic passion and a soulful elegance. I knew Robert Swan when he played Gershwin with the Phoenix Symphony. He brought to Gershwin a fusion of deep blues and dynamic urban lightening and love songs. Robert Swan often played recitals on my father's Steinway. My father was a concert pianist [who studied with Aaron Copland] playing good will tours all over the world in the 60s for the state department. I was fortunate to hear Robert Swan's beautiful concert at the Kerr Cultural Center in Scottsdale, Arizona. [A benefit concert for the Art Therapy Institute]. The audience was deeply moved by Swan's clarity and dynamic expressiveness. Swan's range is enormous. He is a deeply romantic pianist and yet capable of great restraint and playfulness. He introduced many audiences in Arizona to Mompou... Robert Swan possesses a forceful rhythmic sense, able to animate whatever interior passages he chooses to illuminate. He can realize thundering fortes and delicate pianissimos, and all the shades between are at his command. His interpretations are emotive and subtle and brilliant. Robert Swan is a complete pianist!
~Claribel Cone, painter, musician, author
"Pianist Robert Swan is a multifaceted virtuoso. He has formidable technical equipment and a sure sense of structure. More important are his poetic inclinations. I have heard him play numerous times in public and there is always an underlying poetry which stirs the imagination and touches the spirit. His interpretations of such diverse works as Mozart Sonatas, Schumann's First Sonata, the three Petrarch Sonnets of Liszt, and the Chopin Ballades exude this poetic spirit. Mr. Swan is a superb pianist."
~Ian Altman, Pianist and Professor of Piano at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia
"I was introduced to Robert Swan by my uncle, Paul Doguereau, who had coached Robert for a time. I have always admired Robert both as a person and a brilliant musician. Having had the thrill of attending several of Robert's concerts, I was always impressed by the brilliance of his art. In addition to his dynamic quality and technique; what struck me most was his ability to transmit the soul of the music which we the audience felt enriched and inspired. This is a rare gift."