Deborah Thoreson Sr. Lecturer, Collaborative Piano Dir. of Undergraduate and Performance Studies Music Department Emory University 1804 North Decatur Road, #309 Atlanta, GA 30322 404-727-6442 404-727-0074 FAX dthores@learnlink.emory.edu

Pianist Deborah Thoreson is known to concert audiences, both in Atlanta and elsewhere, as an active and outstanding performer. The Atlanta Journal Consitution noted after one collaborative performance that, “throughout these selections . . .Thoreson proved a skilled and sensitive partner.” She joined the music faculty of Emory University in 1978, where she teaches piano, chamber music, and accompanying, and serves as director of undergraduate and performance studies.

An active performer, Thoreson has appeared as a collaborative pianist in major concert halls in the United States and Europe, including concerts in England, Wales, Russia, and Hungary. She has worked with principal players of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic and performs regularly with faculty artists at Emory University.

Thoreson’s performances have been heard on NPR’s Performance Today, and she has recorded works by Olivier Messiaen on the ACA Digital label. An active choral accompanist, she performs and records regularly with the Atlanta Sacred Chorale under the direction of Eric Nelson. She has worked with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus, performed with the Atlanta Boy Choir on several European tours, and appeared in concert with many of Atlanta’s well-known choruses. During the past twenty years, she has accompanied the Emory Concert Choir and the University Chorus in numerous performances at Emory and throughout the United States, including concerts under the direction of the late Robert Shaw. In 2008, Thoreson appeared as piano soloist in Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy for Piano, Orchestra, and Chorus under the baton of conductor Richard Prior.

A native of Atlanta, Thoreson earned degrees in piano performance and literature from the University of Georgia (BM) and the Eastman School of Music (MM). As director of undergraduate and performance studies, Thoreson administers the applied music program, oversees the scheduling of courses, advises music majors and minors, and chairs the faculty performance committee.