In May 2011, Michael Feinstein took center stage at the newly completed, multi-million dollar Palladium in Carmel, Indiana for an evening of songs dedicated to the legacy of Frank Sinatra. The concert, Michael Feinstein: The Sinatra Legacy, celebrated Sinatra and the writers, music and performers of the 1950s and 1960s when "Ol' Blue Eyes" reigned supreme. Backed by a 32-piece orchestra, Feinstein took the audience on a musical journey that explored how Sinatra influenced his contemporaries — voices like Rosemary Clooney, Nat King Cole, Sammy Davis Jr., Ella Fitzgerald, Dean Martin and many others — and how they, in turn, affected the incomparable singer. Michael Feinstein conjured up the musical legends of the post-W.W.II, pre-rock era using their extraordinary songs, which are also featured on his popular "The Sinatra Project" CDs, highlighted with intimate stories about their larger than life personalities.
Born in Columbus, Ohio, Michael Feinstein started playing piano by the age of five. He began his career working in local piano bars after graduating high school and subsequently moved to Los Angeles, where he became Ira Gershwin's assistant. His work for Gershwin and the legendary composer's influence informed Feinstein as a performer, composer and arranger of his own music as well as his unparalleled interpretations of the music of the Great American songbook.
In addition to his busy touring and recording schedule, Feinstein serves as the director of the Jazz and Popular Song series at New York's Jazz at Lincoln Center; artistic director of Indiana's Palladium Center for the Performing Arts; and also has his own supper club in Manhattan, Feinstein's at Loews Regency, which opened in 1999 and where he headlines every holiday season.
Michael Feinstein:The Sinatra Legacy airs on WLRN TV Saturday, August 17, 8 p.m.
