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Helen Small Retires from APA

Helen Small Retires from APA

Joel Harrison Named Interim President

INDIANAPOLIS (Aug. 29, 2008)—The American Pianists Association (APA) today announced that President and Chief Executive Officer Helen Small will retire effective Oct. 1, 2008.

The APA board of directors named Joel M. Harrison interim president and chief executive officer. Harrison will also continue performing his duties as artistic director.

“Having spent almost 11 years with the American Pianists Association, the decision to retire has been monumental,” Small said. “But I leave the American Pianists Association in excellent financial health and in the capable hands of its talented and imaginative artistic director, Joel Harrison.

“I am proud to have been associated with the American Pianists Association and have enjoyed my part in its significant and remarkable growth,” Small added. “Our pianists are performing worldwide and enjoying the attention and appreciation of international audiences. It has been my distinct pleasure to have met so many talented and distinguished pianists from around the world and to have witnessed their genius firsthand.”

Harrison has served the APA since 2001. He was previously a faculty member at DavidsonCollege in North Carolina and at MississippiStateUniversity, where he also was director of the Mississippi Piano Showcase and a touring artist for the Mississippi Arts Commission.

About American Pianists Association (APA)

The mission of the American Pianists Association is to discover, promote and advance the careers of young American, world-class, jazz and classical pianists. More information is available online at www.americanpianists.org .