Australian pianist Leigh Harrold will present a lecture and recital at Hastings College, Monday, Feb. 5, at 7:30 p.m., in Perkins Auditorium, Fuhr Hall of Music. The event is free and open to the public.

Harrold will present “Best Since Barber,” a discussion of composer Robert Muczynski’s piano music, and he will also perform sonatas by the composer.

Born in Whyalla, South Australia, Harrold is one of the country’s most sought-after pianist, recently winning the Adelaide Critics’ Circle prize for Best Emerging Artist of 2005. He has performed with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, the ANAM Chamber Orchestra and the Elder Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra. Harrold is in the process of recording Muczynski’s complete piano sonatas for ABC Classics.

Harrold has developed an affinity for contemporary piano and chamber music, having performed such scores as Peter Maxwell Davies’ Hymnos, Charles Ives’ First Piano Sonata, Theodore Dollarhide’s Ragings of a One Pot Screamer and Pierre Boulez’s Sonatine for Flute and Piano. He recently returned from Europe where he studied the Sonatine with Sophie Cherrier – the flautist in Boulez’s Ensemble Intercontemporaine.

Harrold completed a master’s degree in piano performance at Adelaide University.