rick Rowley

Pianist Rick Rowley leads a diverse artistic life. Mr. Rowley has been on the Faculty of the University of Texas at Austin in the Butler School of Music for the past eleven years. In his position he coaches singers, works with collaborative pianists and has taught classes in art song literature, the history of Broadway and acting and singing for the musical theater. He also serves as Artistic Director of the Butler Opera Center Young Artists Program. His performanceof Schumann’s C major Fantasy, Op. 17, not only won the Austin Critics’ Table awardfor Instrumentalist of the Year, but was also named one of the 10 Best Performances of Music and Dance by the Austin Chronicle.In addition to a musical career, Mr. Rowley has been involved in over fifty theatrical productions as actor, musical director and director. He appeared as Cosme McMoon, pianist to famed “non-soprano” Florence Foster Jenkins, in the play “Souvenir”. He performed speaking roles for two Austin Symphony “Beyond the Score” performances, including Dvorak’s “New World” Symphony and as Stravinsky for the presentation of “The Rite of Spring”.  He also performed the solo actor version of Stravinsky’s “L’Histoire du soldat” with Dan Welcher and the UT New Music Ensemble. He appeared in the role of Frosch for the Butler Opera Center’s production of “Die Fledermaus” to great acclaim and created Herr Budweiser, a character who sang Gershwin’s “By Strauss” for the gala scene of the opera.