OTHER INFO:

• An article on amateur pianists and the "fascinating world" of amateur piano competitions for which Ms. Bragin was interviewed, appeared in Amanda Holloway, "Best of Show," The Pianist Magazine, February-March 2005, pp. 16-18. (The Pianist Magazine is a British publication.)
• The article, "Chemists Making Music" by Joan Stephenson appeared in the Winter 2004 issue of the American Chemical Society's Chemistry and featured Victoria Bragin, among other chemists. Various issues of Chemistry are indexed by ACS. If unable to access the issue through the previous link, the issue in pdf format may be obtained here.
• Bragin produced the first "Huntington Museum of Art Composers' Festival" which took place on October 11 and 12, 2003. This was held in conjunction with a juried art show featuring works of visual artists from West Virginia and the contiguous states.
• Bragin was featured by West Virginia Public Radio's In Touch with the Arts hosted by Laura Harbert Allen.
• Bragin was honored by the The Herald-Dispatch, of Huntington, West Virginia, with its 2002 Citizen Award for the Arts. Since 1987, The Herald-Dispatch has been recognizing outstanding people of the Tri-State with its annual Citizen Awards, which honor citizenship, volunteer efforts, business innovation, athletics and the arts. The Award for the Arts was created in 2001 and recognizes contributions to the arts or accomplishments in the field of arts in the Tri-State. The first recipient was wildlife artist Chuck Ripper; Bragin is the second.
• Bragin was interviewed by Chemical and Engineering News: "C&EN Talks with Victoria Bragin: Van Cliburn Award winner and science educator balances excellence in piano and chemistry," Chemical and Engineering News, Volume 80, Number 49 (December 9, 2002). If the given link does not work, C&EN subscribers will be able to access this article by logging in to their account.
• The Smithsonian Associates presented Bragin at a sold-out concert in the Marion & Gustave Ring Auditorium of the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, DC on Sunday, October 27, at 4:00 pm. She performed works by Haydn, Debussy, Bartók, and Chopin.
• Victoria Bragin, who was a chemistry professor at Pasadena City College (PCC) in California until August 31, 2002, accepted an invitation to be the Music Artist-in-Residence at the Huntington Museum of Art. However, she continues to work as a chemistry consultant and continues work on her chemistry projects at PCC.
• Victoria Bragin was co-winner of the First Prize at the Third Van Cliburn International Piano Competition for Outstanding Amateurs, often called the "Amateur Cliburn," held in Fort Worth, TX in June 2002. Bragin also won the Audience Award, the award for Best Performance of a Modern Work, and the award for Best Performance of a Work from the Romantic Era. National Public Radio's Performance Today interviewed her soon after the competitition. The interview includes a recording of Bragin's performance of Debussy's Feux d'artifice during the semifinal round. Real Audio is needed to listen to this interview.

PERSONAL INFO:

Married to Joseph Bragin. Two children, Michael Bragin and Naomi Bragin, and two grandchildren.