Stefan Litwin is one of American Airlines’ best flyers.
The UNC professor commutes every few weeks between Berlin, Germany, and Chapel Hill.
Beginning today at Memorial Hall, he will help lead the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen on piano during its only stop in the United States.
Litwin, a pianist, was born in 1960 in Mexico City, Mexico, to Jewish parents who had moved from Nazi Germany.
He said he began playing piano and composing music as a young child.
“It was sort of a natural development,” Litwin said.
In 1992, Litwin moved to Berlin and began teaching music at Hochschule für Musik Saar — the University of Music in Saar, Germany. In 2008, he signed a special contract that allowed him to work at UNC while still living in Berlin.
Emil Kang, UNC’s executive director for the arts, approached Litwin about performing with the Bremen philharmonic about a year ago.
Kang said that, though he may not be well known in the U.S., Litwin is an important figure in European classical music.
Litwin, who has played with the Bremen philharmonic once before, was a big factor in bringing the group to Chapel Hill, Kang said.
Litwin will lead the chamber orchestra for a few pieces from his piano.
