Carnegie Hall

Educator, archivist, interpreter, and ambassador of the Great American Songbook, Michael Feinstein is a pre-eminent force in contemporary music. He has earned five Grammy and two Emmy nominations. His live concerts have spanned the globe, including such iconic venues as the White House, Buckingham Palace, Hollywood Bowl, Carnegie Hall, and Sydney Opera House.

In 2007, Mr. Feinstein founded the Great American Songbook Foundation, which is dedicated to preserving and elevating America’s rich musical legacy by curating physical artifacts of its creators and performers; offering programs for the public and research opportunities for scholars, historians, and performers; and providing educational opportunities for student musicians, including the annual high school Songbook Academy. He also serves on the Library of Congress’ National Recording Preservation Board, which ensures the survival, conservation, and increased public availability of America’s sound recording heritage.

His Emmy Award–nominated TV special Michael Feinstein: The Sinatra Legacy aired nationally in 2011. The PBS series Michael Feinstein’s American Songbook was broadcast for three seasons and is available on DVD. His most recent primetime PBS-TV special, New Year’s Eve at the Rainbow Room, aired in 2014. For his nationally syndicated public radio program Song Travels, Mr. Feinstein interviews and performs alongside music luminaries such as Bette Midler, Neil Sedaka, Liza Minnelli, Rickie Lee Jones, and David Hyde Pierce.

Mr. Feinstein was named principal conductor of the Pasadena POPS in 2012. Two years later, he launched an additional pops series at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach, Florida. He is also artistic director of the Palladium at the Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel, Indiana, and director of the Jazz and Popular Song series at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

Feinstein’s at the Nikko, Mr. Feinstein’s nightclub at San Francisco’s Nikko Hotel, has presented the top music talents since 2013. He debuted at Feinstein’s / 54 Below, his latest club in New York City, in late 2015.

Michael Feinstein was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, where he started playing piano by ear at age five. After graduating from high school, he moved to Los Angeles when he was 20. The widow of legendary concert pianist-actor Oscar Levant introduced him to Ira Gershwin. Mr. Feinstein became Gershwin’s assistant for six years, which earned him access to numerous unpublished Gershwin songs, many of which he has since performed and recorded.

Gershwin’s influence provided a solid base upon which Mr. Feinstein evolved into a captivating performer, composer, and arranger of his own original music. He has also become an unparalleled interpreter of music by Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, Johnny Mercer, Duke Ellington, and Harry Warren.

For more information, visit michaelfeinstein.com.

Marilyn Maye is a highly praised singer, actress, director, arranger, educator, and Grammy-nominated recording artist—a true musical treasure. Her entire life has been committed to the art of song and performance. Ms. Maye appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson a total of 76 times—the most of any singer. Perhaps the most poignant accolade came after one of her many show-stopping appearances when Mr. Carson turned to his audience and said, “And that, young singers, is the way it’s done.”

Ms. Maye began her professional singing career by winning a 13-week appearance on radio station WIBW in Topeka, Kansas, at age 9. During her 11-year engagement at the Colony in Kansas City, she was “discovered” by Steve Allen, who was the first to present her to a national television audience, leading to a recording contract with RCA. Her seven albums and 34 singles include the first hit recordings of “Cabaret” and “Step to the Rear,” as well as the classic The Lamp Is Low with full orchestra. Her concerts have included appearances with the Philly Pops, Phoenix Symphony, Kansas City Symphony, Omaha Symphony, and the Pasadena POPS with Michael Feinstein conducting. Ms. Maye has also performed with The New York Pops at Carnegie Hall in tributes to Stephen Sondheim and Frank Loesser. Ms. Maye’s place in American music history was secured when her recording of “Too Late Now” was selected for the Smithsonian-produced collection American Popular Song: Six Decades of Songwriters and Singers. Her upcoming engagements include an eight-night residency at Feinstein’s / 54 Below in celebration of her birthday. Sharing musical insights and experiences, Ms. Maye conducts master classes and coaches privately in New York City and across the country.

Ron Raines is a Tony and Grammy nominee for his performance in the acclaimed production of Stephen Sondheim’s Follies, in which he starred opposite Bernadette Peters. His recent credits include performances as Judge Turpin in Sweeney Todd at Michigan Opera Theatre and Kendall Nesbitt in Lady in the Dark with MasterVoices. Mr. Raines has also starred on Broadway as Daddy Warbucks in Annie with Faith Prince, Joseph Pulitzer in Newsies, Billy Flynn in Chicago, Gaylord Ravenal in Show Boat, and Nicholas Longworth in Teddy & Alice. He has delighted audiences around the country in A Little Night Music opposite Leslie Uggams, Amy Irving, Christine Ebersole, and Cleo Laine; The Unsinkable Molly Brown with Debbie Reynolds; Can-Can with Chita Rivera; The Merry Widow with Roberta Peters; and South Pacific with Marin Mazzie. His other stage credits include Rose-Marie, Oklahoma!, Carousel, Side by Side by Sondheim, Guys and Dolls, Candide, Regina, and Man of La Mancha at the Covent Garden Festival in London and recorded at the famed Abbey Road Studios.

Mr. Raines has been a soloist with more than 60 major American and international orchestras, including the Boston Pops with John Williams, Keith Lockhart, and Marvin Hamlisch; The Philly Pops with Peter Nero; BBC Concert Orchestra; Jerusalem Symphony; and Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. He has also performed at Carnegie Hall, Tanglewood, and London’s Palladium and Royal Festival Hall. He has appeared on four PBS Great Performances specials and recorded numerous cast albums, as well as two solo albums on the JAY Records label. Born in Texas City, Texas, and raised throughout East Texas, Mr. Raines graduated from Oklahoma City University and later attended The Juilliard School. He was a three-time Emmy nominee for his role as the nefarious Alan Spaulding on CBS’s longest running daytime drama, Guiding Light. He has also appeared on CBS primetime in The Good Wife, Elementary, and Person of Interest. Mr. Raines lives in New York City with his wife, Dona, and daughter, Charlotte.

Cole Winston is a singer and actor currently based in Indiana. He’s thrilled to be making his New York debut alongside such esteemed performers. An alumnus and runner-up of Michael Feinstein’s Songbook Academy, Mr. Winston is now a junior at Indiana University, where he is studying musical theater. His recent credits include Davey in Newsies, Laurie in Little Women, and Stine in City of Angels. Mr. Winston wishes to thank to Michael Feinstein, The Great American Songbook Foundation, and his family for making this all happen.