Ian Shapinsky. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com

Ian Shapinsky has been conditioning his fingers for another marathon of notes.

The local pianist — after a year of learning new pieces and playing piano every day — will perform his virtuosic show at 2 p.m. at the Paramount Theatre on Sunday, Oct. 6.

“Only a handful of pianists in the entire world could play this program,” said Shapinsky, who moved from New York to Austin years ago.

Shapinsky started playing piano when he was 7 years old, and his family has a rich musical and artistic background. For the past 12 years, Shapinsky has been playing piano every day. Each year, the pianist strives to perfect new pieces for an extensive performance that tests his limits.

“I learn new pieces every year,” he said.

Some pieces Shapinsky learned as few as several weeks ago, but he’s not concerned about that. He’s ready to hit the Paramount stage again.

“You have to keep learning,” Shapinsky said. “Part of life is learning.”

For this performance, Shapinsky will focus primarily on Hungarian composer and virtuoso pianist Franz Liszt. The show will include about an hour and a half of actual performance, which is like a musical marathon to Shapinsky. The everyday practice and challenge of playing new pieces will be put to the test during an exhausting performance.

“It’s musically demanding, and also a physically demanding performance,” he said. “It feels like running one and a half marathons when I’m done with it.”

Tickets to Shapinsky’s show are $10 at the Paramount Theatre box office or half price for students. Stage seating is $25. The show will last about two hours.