Refined ,elegant and masterly performances from two stars shining brightly at the Liberal Club last night

The two Chopin Concertos in chamber performances with string quartet created a magic that will long be remembered

Magdalene Ho illuminates and exults the candlelit beauty of St Mary Le Strand

Misha Kaploukhii at the Razumovsky Academy with technical mastery and poetic sensitivity

  

Superb playing from these two young stars of the Royal College of Music, with a concert promoted by Yisha Xue and the Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation repeated at the Mecca for all great young pianists in Perivale.One in the sumptuous surrounds of the National Liberal Club and the other in the historic St Mary’s Perivale

Misha brought a spontaneity to his playing as the streams of golden sounds poured from his fingers with such ease and an aristocratic sense of style.From the opening bel canto of the F minor concerto it was obvious that here was a stylist who could give all the time necessary to allow the music to breathe and beguile without any excentricities or exaggerations.Looking intently at his colleagues as he was living every moment and was ready to capture beauty as on the wings of song.There was virtuosity but it never drew attention to itself as it was incorporated into a concerto that is one long mellifluous outpouring. The string quartet were following the every move of our soloists and it was only in the long tuttis that we were aware that with single instruments there is simply not the volume to create the climax that the soloist is preparing us for.

Magdalene gave a much more measured performance of extraordinary mastery and if the first movement seemed rather slow it was, though, full of ravishing detail .Especially the second subject where she played the deep bass note with her right hand before allowing it to carve such magic above pulsating chords.The grandiloquence of the opening was played with absolute clarity and majesty but a slightly faster tempo might have given it more electric excitement.It was in the slow movement that Magdalene showed her mature musical genius as she allowed Chopin’s bel canto to glow with ravishing sounds of simplicity and sublime beauty.The Rondo she thought of in more melodic terms rather than abandoning herself to the dance.She found such subtle beauty and an extraordinary architectural shape to this movement allowing herself finally to relish the final pages of virtuosistic brilliance.This version with string quartet was much more successful in the smaller space of St Mary’s or maybe it was because of the superb streaming that there seemed to be more weight to their playing.However to hear these two concertos played with such mastery and superb musicianship was indeed a rare treat

Misha Kaploukhii was born in 2002 and is an alumnus of the Moscow Gnessin College of Music. He is currently studying at the Royal College of Music and is an RCM and ABRSM award holder generously supported by the Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation and Talent Unlimited studying for a Bachelor of Music with Prof. Ian Jones. Misha has gained inspiration from lessons and masterclasses with musicians such as Claudio Martínez Mehner, Dmitri Bashkirov, Jerome Lowenthal and Konstantin Lifschitz. He has performed with orchestras around the world including his recent debut in Cadogan Hall performing Rachmaninov’s First Piano Concerto. His repertoire includes a wide range of solo and chamber music. Recently, Misha won prizes in the RCM Concerto Competition (playing Liszt’s Second Piano Concerto) and in the International Ettlingen Piano Competition. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/11/14/misha-kaploukhii-in-florence-and-milan-for-the-keyboard-trust-and-robert-turnbull-piano-foundation/

Malaysian pianist Magdalene Ho was born in 2003 and started learning the piano at the age of four. In 2013, she began studying in the UK with Patsy Toh, at the Purcell School. In 2015, she received the ABRSM Sheila Mossman Prize and Silver Award. As part of a prize won at the PIANALE piano festival in Fulda, Germany, she released an album of Bach and Messiaen works in 2019. She was a finalist at the Düsseldorf Schumann Competition 2023 and was awarded the Joan Chissell Schumann Prize for Piano at the Royal College of Music a few months later. In September 2023, she won the Clara Haskil International Piano Competition in Vevey along with receiving the Audience Prize, Young Critics’ Prize and Children’s Corner Prize. She has been studying with Dmitri Alexeev at the Royal College of Music since September 2022, where shee. is a Dasha Shenkman Scholar supported by the Gordon Calway Stone Scholarship, and by the Weir Award via the Keyboard Charitable Trust. She recently won the Chappell Gold Medal at the RCM https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/05/12/magdalene-ho-a-musical-genius-in-paradise/

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Dear Friends,

We had the privilege of experiencing two extraordinary and unforgettable days at the Casals Forum!

It is difficult to put into words the exceptional talent and the stunning performances of the six nominees for the
13th International German Piano Award.

These days were filled with musical beauty and the passion that each artist brought to the stage. My heartfelt congratulations go to all six nominees, who enriched both the jury and the audience with their incredible talent.

However, I would like to extend a very special congratulations to
𝐌𝐀𝐆𝐃𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐄 𝐇𝐎:

After 11 years, she is the first woman to win the International German Piano Award!

Dear Magdalene, your performance in the Grand Prix with Schumann’s Piano Concerto was nothing short of breathtaking, and your appearances on all previous stages were equally unforgettable. Every note was deliberate and played with gentle precision—a true masterpiece. Congratulations on this outstanding achievement! You are undoubtedly a pianist of great promise.

Thank you to C. Bechstein for the wonderful Grand-Piano!