Pianist Ethan Bortnick is determined not to let notoriety go to his head — in spite of the accolades an adoring public bestows on him.
“I think being humble is really important, because, first of all, showing off is really bad,” he said. “You shouldn’t be saying, ‘I’m the best in the whole world.’ There are a lot of people better than me.”
While that may be true, few are 11 years old and giving interviews to the press after school, ahead of a performance at Strathmore.
| ONSTAGE |
| Ethan Bortnick and his Musical Time Machine |
| Where: The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, Bethesda |
| When: 8 p.m. Friday |
| Info: Call for seating and prices, 301-581-5100; Strathmore.org |
Bortnick, a piano prodigy and fifth-grader, is the youngest performer to ever headline the 1,900-seat hall of the Music Center. With his masterful playing, he entertains the audience with classics from Bach to The Beatles, as well as a spicy dose of Billy Joel, Little Richard and Elton John thrown into the mix.
“Also, I’ll show you how I compose; it will be a lot of fun,” said the boy genius, who recently completed writing and recording music for a feature film, where he is the main character — a first!
Superlatives and Ethan Bortnick go hand-in-hand these days, and he wears them like the glittering costumes in his one-boy show, knowing that too much glitter often blinds the eye. This piano phenomenon has already made history with Guinness World Records as the youngest musician, composer and entertainer to headline a concert tour — with more than 100 tours already under his belt. Bortnick has astonished audiences with regular appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and is, indeed, a regular kid who plays baseball and basketball with his younger brother and talks about friends and the standardized testing he just finished in class.
Nevertheless, life is different for Bortnick, who, through his mega-talents, has helped raised more than $30 million for non-profit organizations world-wide and has shared the stage with the legendary likes of Natalie Cole, Beyonce and Reba McEntire. He recently joined notables including Barbra Streisand, Celine Dion, Justin Bieber and Tony Bennett as the youngest of the all-star lineup that recorded “We Are The World 25 For Haiti.”
“Music is my playground,” said Bortnick, who began playing a keyboard at the age of three and started composing at five years old. “I love everything, all the music is special.”
