ChristopherAxworthy-MusicCommentary

Truly masterly playing from Ashley Fripp who I have heard over the years give many recitals both in the UK and in Italy where he came to perfect his studies with Eliso Virsaladze. I remember her telling me about this very good English young man she had in her class in Sermoneta, near to my country home, where she would give masterclasses every year. I later heard him in Florence where he was one of the first to give a recital in the Harold Acton Library of the British Institute. It is thanks to that happy encounter that the Keyboard Trust now give a series of recitals there every year, allowing aspiring young pianists a chance to pay in the city that is acknowledged to be the ‘Museum of the World’. All this to say that Ashley has matured and his playing is of such seeming simplicity, full of profound poetic meaning of overwhelming authority and remarkable musicianship. Two works on the programme with only three years between their composition by Schubert and Beethoven.Two much loved works very often heard in the concert hall but rarely heard played as we heard it today from Ashley’s masterly hands. It was not only his playing that was inspired but his introductions shed such light and insight on these masterpieces and the composers that had penned them. I did not know that the Beethoven Scherzo was based on two popular songs or that he quotes in the last movement from Bach St John’s passion from the moment of Christ dying on the cross. It was this research to discover the true meaning behind the notes and the significance for their creators that came across in interpretations with profound insights and aristocratic authority.

Schubert impromptus that were both measured but also full of poetic meaning with the desolate opening of the C minor and its sudden rays shining a golden light on moments of sublime beauty. The beautifully mellifluous stream of sounds of the E flat impromptu where everything sang with disarming simplicity and beauty. Refined and restrained until the finally few bars of searing excitement with an exhilarating downward scale as an astonishing release of tension.The beautiful sense of balance in the G flat impromptu where the melodic line was played with aristocratic poise of nobility and tenderness.The fourth impromptu like water flowing with cascades of gentle notes taking us to the melodic line that was shaped with architectural understand. There was great control to the central episode played with nobility and refined passion with sudden rays of light lighting up this golden prism of sound of sublime beauty.

Beethoven’s penultimate sonata with Ashley’s introduction about Beethoven’s belief in humanity and how this was demonstrated, made his reading ever more enticing and full of significance. A beautifully sung first movement with flowing sounds of insight and poignant meaning. A ‘scherzo’ that seemed to grow out of the final two chords of the first movement such was the overall architectural shape and meaning that Ashley was able to convey. Of course technical difficulties just did not exist as it was the musical meaning that was uppermost in Ashley’s interpretations. But nevertheless the trio I have never heard played with such limpet like authority and assurance.There was great poise to the ‘Adagio’ where Beethoven’s own pedal enriched and enlightened this improvisatory transition to the etherial ‘Aria’. Beethoven finds a magical mixture of formal fugue and bel canto with a deep pulsating heartbeat that accompanies the ‘Aria’ and takes us to the final exhilaration and passionate acceptance of his faith in mankind.

An extraordinary performance of great significance and mesmerising authority similar to Serkin’s unforgettable performance in the Festival Hall many years ago.

Again Ashely’s spoken eloquence and informative intelligence enlightened his choice of encore by Liszt (who was the first to play Beethoven’s op 110 in public) with one of his transcriptions of Schubert’s song’s. ‘Aufenthalt‘ (Resting Place) derives from a Rellstab poem and is from the posthumous song cycle ‘Schwanengesang’. A bitter and resigned song about rejected love – “Surging river, roaring forest, immovable rock, my resting place.” It was played with sumptuous sound and hypnotic beauty with a kaleidoscope of colours that only the genius of Liszt and Schubert combined could ever have envisaged.

British pianist Ashley Fripp has performed extensively as recitalist, concerto soloist and chamber musician throughout Europe, Asia, North America, Africa and Australia in many of the world’s most prestigious concert halls. Highlights include the Carnegie Hall (New York), Musikverein (Vienna), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), the Philharmonie halls of Cologne, Paris, Luxembourg and Warsaw, the Bozar (Brussels), the Royal Festival, Barbican and Wigmore Halls (London), the Laeiszhalle (Hamburg), Palace of Arts (Budapest), the Megaron (Athens), Konzerthaus Dortmund, the Gulbenkian Auditorium (Lisbon) and the Konserthus (Stockholm). 

He has won prizes at more than a dozen national and international competitions, including at the Hamamatsu (Japan), Birmingham and Leeds International Piano Competitions, the Royal Over-Seas League Competition, the Concours Européen de Piano (France) and the coveted Gold Medal from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. Ashley was awarded the Worshipful Company of Musicians’ highest award, The Prince’s Prize, and was chosen as a ‘Rising Star’ by the European Concert Hall Organisation (ECHO). He has also performed in the Chipping Campden, Edinburgh, Brighton, Bath, Buxton, City of London, and St. Magnus International Festivals as well as the Oxford International Piano Festival, the Festival Pontino di Musica (Italy) and the Powsin International Piano Festival (Poland). Ashley also gave an open-air Chopin recital beside the world-famous Chopin monument in Warsaw’s Royal Lazienki Park to an audience of 2,500 people. 

Ashley Fripp studied at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama with Ronan O’Hora and with Eliso Virsaladze at the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole (Italy). In 2021 he was awarded a doctorate for his research into the piano music of British composer Thomas Adès. Future engagements include his debut at the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Festival (Germany) and a commercial film production of Rachmaninoff Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 with accompanying concert tours in Germany and the Czech Republic with the Prague International Youth Orchestra. 

Ashley Fripp at St Marys ‘The authority and impeccable musicianship of a great artist’

Ashley writes :

 

Stars shining brightly at Rome’s magnificent Parco de la Musica on the eve of the twelfth day of Christmas .

It is the evening of epiphany when by tradition the ‘Befana’ descends to give all good children their presents.

Daniele Cipriani has for many years now given us an evening of stars of the ballet world with an exhibition of pas de deux and solos greeted with stadium like enthusiasm by an audience that fills this vast space of Renzo Piano three times over .

An exhibition of refined elegance where the beauty of the human body is exulted by super human dedication to perfecting every nuance and movement.

Breathtaking athleticism from Renata Shakirova and Kimin Kim were greeted by yells of delight as their jumps became higher and higher and faster and faster.

There was also the very amusing slap stick of Simone Repele and Sasha Riva were art really conceals artistry of quite extraordinary vividness with subtle non stop gymnastics.

There was of course the ravishing beauty of classical ballet with the beauty and poise of the newly appointed star of the Bolshoi Ballet , Elizaveta Kokoreva and her dashingly dynamic partner Dmitry Smilevsky.

Amazing Spanish tap dancing from Sergio Bernal who also could create atmospheres of searing intensity.

And a final non stop exhibition from all the artists one after the other in a breathtaking line up of superhuman athleticism and virtuosity.

Some fine duo playing for the first concert in the 2025 season at St Mary’s ,the first of over a hundred already programmed for the future! Ke Ma I have heard many times as a solo pianist but this is the first time as an equal partner to a cellist.Finn a young cellist from Scotland who is now studying in Switzerland and already at 22 shows a maturity and mastery which will grow as his playing gains in even more weight.

Beethoven variations played with a great sense of character with a question and answer between the two players of tenderness and elegance quite apart from their dynamic rhythmic drive.The beautiful piano solo in the minor was answered by the cello with delicacy and nobility.A playful ‘joie de vivre’ between the two instruments with a joyous ending where as always the genius of Beethoven has some surprises up his sleeve that were played with innocent abandon.

The first of the Schumann Fantasiestucke was played tenderly with expression but seemed to lack the sweep and expansive line that is so much part of Schumann’s mellifluous output.It seemed to take flight with the central episode of the second piece that was played with quixotic lightness with a superb sense of ensemble between these two players now totally united in Schumann’s unpredictable changes of mood and character.Straight into the last piece with the treacherous opening played with wild abandon and mastery.Here now they both played with a great sense of architectural line with passionate intensity of great abandon and romantic fervour.

Now completely attuned to each other they gave a performance of the Franck Sonata of passionate intensity and masterly technical control.There was a beautiful fluidity from Ke Ma’s hands answered by the burning intensity of the cello. A dynamic drive to the treacherous second movement that they played with considerable mastery igniting passionate outcries of searing passion but always under control and with impeccable musicianship and mature mastery.They created a beautiful sense of discovery as the recitativo of the third movement evolved into the most passionate and fervent declamations between the two players.The last movement opening like a ray of sunshine after such a stormy journey was played with refreshing simplicity and quite considerable technical mastery with superb ensemble between these two very fine young players playing with exhilaration and excitement..

After such red hot passion ‘Ich liebe dich’ by Beethoven was played as an encore with simplicity and beauty and was an ideal antidote to such raging passions.

Born into an Irish family, cellist Finn Mannion grew up in the Scottish Highlands. He enjoys a richly varied musical life; a passionate chamber musician who is equally comfortable in concerto, duo and unaccompanied repertoire. A laureate of the Pablo Casals, Beatrice Huntington and Royal Philharmonic Society Isserlis Awards, Finn recently won First Prize at the 72nd Royal Over-Seas League Competition in London with his Trio Archai . He gave his Wigmore Hall debut in June 2024. Collaborating regularly with pianist Ke Ma, Finn is a Tunnell Trust award-winner and is on MakingMusic’s PDG-YoungArtist Scheme. He has been Associate Artist of the Aboyne Cello Festival since 2023. Performing extensively across the UK and Switzerland, Finn’s upcoming season will include recitals at St George’s Bristol, Hoylake Concert Society, Swiss Chamber Music Festival and Kelso Music Society to name a few. Born in 2002, Finn learnt with Ruth Beauchamp at St Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh before moving to Switzerland to study with German/Japanese cellist Danjulo Ishizaka at the Musik-Akademie Basel. He also studies Early Music with Petr Skalka at the Schola Cantorum Basilienis after formative lessons with David Watkin at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Finn is grateful for the continued mentorship of Celine Flamen and Gordan Nikolic, and for further cellist encounters with Steven Isserlis, Nicolas Altstaedt, Philip Higham, Bruno Delepelaire and John Myerscough. Finn plays a fine Italian cello by Giulio Cesare Gigli c. 1788, generously on loan from a private individual. Aside from music, Finn is an avid hillwalker, lover of dogs, and passionate street/portrait photographer.  

Ke Ma studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London with Christopher Elton, Michael Dussek and Andrew West, graduating with a Masters with distinction (DipRAM) in 2017.  She is currently pursuing her Doctoral study at Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Professor Joan Havill, Dr Alexander Soares and Rolf Hind. Ke has won top prizes at international competitions including 1st Prize at the 2016 Concours International de la vie de Maisons-Laffitte and Karoly Mocsari Special Prize (France), 1st Prize at the 2014 Shenzhen Competition (China) and 3rd Prize at the 2012 Ettlingen Competition (Germany).  As a soloist, Ke made her debut at Wigmore Hall under the auspices of the Kirckman Concert Society, she has given concerts across the UK, Italy, France, Germany, Poland, Hungary and the US. Highlights have included appearances with the Tapiola Sinfonietta, Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra, Sichuan Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Young Musicians Symphony, Suffolk Symphony Orchestra, Royal T unbridge Wells Symphony Orchestra, the Miskolc Symphony Orchestra conducted by Tamás Gál at the Palace of the Arts in Budapest. A committed chamber musician Ke has undertaken a Tunnell Trust Award tour of Scotland, given a recital at Wigmore Hall and recorded music by Vieuxtemps for Champs Hill Records with violist in Timothy Ridout. She has collaborated with cellist Margarita Balanas for The Royal Academy of Music ‘s Bicentenary Series recording. Since 2022, Ke and Finn have collaborated regularly. 

Ke Ma at St Mary’s a seduction of luminosity and musicianship

The set of variations on the duet ‘Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen’ from Die Zauberflöte dates from 1801. Here the music is already laid out in such a way that the two instruments are in essence equal partners. It is especially delightful to follow the dialogue of the duet, with the piano in the role of Pamina and the cello answering it as Papageno.

Fantasiestücke op. 73, were written in 1849 and although they were originally intended for clarinet and piano, Schumann indicated that the clarinet part could be also performed on violin or cello.

Robert Schumann wrote the pieces over just two days in February 1849, and originally entitled them “Soirée Pieces” before settling on the title Fantasiestücke. 

The three individual pieces are:

1. Zart und mit Ausdruck (Tender and with expression)
2. Lebhaft, leicht (Lively, light)
3. Rasch und mit Feuer (Quick and with fire)

The A major Violin Sonata is one of César Franck’s best-known compositions, and is considered one of the finest sonatas for violin and piano ever written. After thorough historical study based on reliable documents, the Jules Delsart arrangement for cello (the piano part remains the same as in the violin sonata) was published by G.Henle Verlag  as an Urtext edition. In his biography of Franck, Joël-Marie Fauquet reports on how there came to be a cello version. After a performance of the violin sonata in Paris on 27 December 1887, the cellist Jules Delsart, who was actively participating in this concert as a quartet player, was so enthusiastic that he begged Franck for permission to arrange the violin part for cello. In a letter that Franck wrote his cousin presumably only a little later, he mentioned: “Mr Delsart is now working on a cello arrangement of the sonata.” According to this, the arrangement for cello did not proceed from the publishing house, but from a musician who was a friend of the composer’s (both taught at the Paris Conservatoire). There is also no doubt about Franck’s consenting to this arrangement. Since the piano part remained unchanged, the renowned publishing house Hamelle did not publish the arrangement in an edition all its own (c. 1888), but simply enclosed the cello part with its separate plate number in the score.

The Violin Sonata in A was written in 1886, when Franck  was 63, as a wedding present for the 28-year-old violinist Eugène Ysaŷe Twenty-eight years earlier, in 1858, Franck had promised a violin sonata for Cosima von Bulow  . This never appeared; it has been speculated that whatever work Franck had done on that piece was put aside, and eventually ended up in the sonata he wrote for Ysaÿe in 1886. Franck was not present when Ysaÿe married, but on the morning of the wedding, on 26 September 1886 in Arlon, their mutual friend Charles Bordes presented the work as Franck’s gift to Ysaÿe and his bride Louise Bourdeau de Courtrai. After a hurried rehearsal, Ysaÿe and Bordes’ sister-in-law, the pianist Marie-Léontine Bordes-Pène played the Sonata to the other wedding guests.The Sonata was given its first public concert performance on 16 December of that year, at the Musée Moderne de Peinture in Brussels Ysaÿe and Bordes-Pène were again the performers. The Sonata was the final item in a long program which started at 3pm. When the time arrived for the Sonata, dusk had fallen and the gallery was bathed in gloom, but the museum authorities permitted no artificial light whatsoever. Initially, it seemed the Sonata would have to be abandoned, but Ysaÿe and Bordes-Pène decided to continue regardless. They had to play the last three movements from memory in virtual darkness. When the violinist Armand Parent  remarked that Ysaÿe had played the first movement faster than the composer intended, Franck replied that Ysaÿe had made the right decision, saying “from now on there will be no other way to play it”.Vincent d’Indy , who was present, recorded these details of the event.His championing of the Sonata contributed to the public recognition of Franck as a major composer. This recognition was quite belated; Franck died within four years of the Sonata’s public première, and did not have his first unqualified public success until the last year of his life on 19 April 1890, at the Salle Pleyel , where his String Quartet in D  was premiered.

During Franck’s lifetime the A major sonata was offered in two (more or less) equal variant settings (piano and violin; piano and cello), with the explicit reference to the arranger (Jules Delsart) of the cello version. César Franck probably had nothing against the title page in that he gave away appropriate copies to friends and acquaintances, including a dedication to the musicologist Adolf Sandberger.Comparing the two solo parts (violin vs. cello) demonstrates that Delsart kept very closely to the original and generally limited himself to transposing the violin part to the lower register. In only a few passages are there exceptions where Delsart adapted the music to the technical playing conditions of the cello.Delsart’s arrangement of Franck’s sonata for piano and cello has been one of the beloved sonatas in the instrument’s repertoire. With the publication of the Urtext edition  by G.Henle Verlag in 2013, the integrity of the cello version is justified.(At the heart of G. Henle Verlag’s programme are the so-called Urtext Editions. They are characterized by their correct musical text, drawn up following strict scholarly principles, with an extensive commentary on the sources consulted – covering autographs, copies and early printings – and details regarding the readings.)

On the “oral and written history” that Cesar Franck first conceived the sonata for cello and piano (before the commission from Eugène Ysaŷe arrived), Pablo Casals wrote in 1968, “… what I remember distinctly is that Ysaÿe told me that Franck had told him that the Sonata was intended for violin or cello. That was the reason for my taking it up and playing it so much during my tours.”

Antoine Ysaÿe, Eugène Ysaÿe’s son, expressed in a letter that there is a version in César Franck’s handwriting for cello.

Francesca Dego and Alessandro Taverna creating sparks together that ignited the Wigmore Hall as rarely seen .

An early Strauss Sonata of overwhelming exhilaration and excitement. I have not heard this sonata since by chance I heard Krystian Zimerman with Kyung Wha Chung play in an empty church in Chelsea where there was only Fou Ts’ong and a handful of people in the audience . I have never forgotten that experience but tonight I relived something of the same emotions The superb violin soaring above the streams of golden sounds that AT played with such fluidity and ease .Both playing with red hot passion but also moments of ravishing beauty.The piano lid fully open but with masterly ears that never allowed this big black beast to smother the solo violin.A Stradivarius violin in the hands of a violinist who could weave in and out of Strauss’s sumptuously rich textures with masterly ease.

It was the same in the Schoenberg that opened the programme , written in the last years of his life but with a mastery that could weave such sounds from the solo violin and that the piano could add shape and colour to a dynamic range of rhythmic intricacy and intensity.

But the best was yet to come with a ‘Kreutzer’Sonata played by two masters . Breathtaking rhythmic energy and a dynamic range of kaleidoscopic colour. Has the final chord of the first movement ever sounded so final or the opening so noble ? Sumptuous full sound from the piano in the Andante only to be so teasingly and wondrously varied by these two remarkable artists.A question and answer of extraordinary characterisation before the call to arms of the Finale and the race was on. Breathtaking ensemble as they played as one at breakneck speed with never the slightest doubt that this was a relentless tarantella of devilish proportions .

An even more passionate performance of the Brahms FAE Scherzo, played as an encore , with deep insinuating sounds from the piano that I have never been aware of before and a breathtaking drive from FD who swept all before her.

By great demand a slight morsel by Strauss the only other piece he wrote for violin and a fitting 150th anniversary tribute from two master musicians.

Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)

Phantasy Op. 47 (1949)

In Arnold Schoenberg’s last instrumental piece, the scale is tipped over to the violin side. Composed in 1949 and dedicated to the memory of violinist Adolph Koldofsky, the Phantasy “for Violin with Piano Accompaniment” is very precisely titled – the violin part was even written first, and the accompaniment added later.The Phantasy is an intense, virtuosic rhapsody in a single movement, but containing within it episodes that clearly recall archetypes of other traditional forms, including a complete little Scherzo and Trio crisply bouncing in 6/8 rhythmic games. Schoenberg is meticulous about dynamic and expressive indications, including romantic markings such as passionato, dolce, cantabile, grazioso, and furioso. Variation is a central principle in composing with 12-tone rows, and there is also a very clear sense of theme-and-variations here, including a tight, dramatic recapitulation.

Richard Strauss (1864-1949)

Violin Sonata in E flat Op. 18 (1887)

I. Allegro, ma non troppo • II. Improvisation. Andante cantabile • III. Finale. Andante – Allegro

The Violin Sonata op 18 was written by  in 1887 and published in 1888. Although not considered a milestone in violin literature, it is frequently performed and recorded. It is noted for its lyrical beauty and its technical demands made on both violinist and pianist Following the completion of his cello sonata and piano sonata , Strauss composed his Violin Sonata in 1887. It was during this time that Strauss fell in love with Pauline de Ahna, the soprano  whom he would later wed, and his amorous feelings can be heard throughout the piece. Like all of his chamber music, Strauss’ sonata follows standard classical form, though it is considered the last of his works to do so.

Interval

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

Violin Sonata No. 9 in A Op. 47 ‘Kreutzer’ (1802-3)

I. Adagio sostenuto – Presto • II. Andante con variazioni • III. Finale. Presto

The Violin Sonata No. 9, in A major op.47 was written in 1803 and is notable for its technical difficulty , unusual length and emotional scope. It is commonly known as the Kreutzer Sonata after the violinist Rodolphe Kreutzer , to whom it was ultimately dedicated, but who thoroughly disliked the piece and refused to play it

In the composer’s 1803 sketchbook, the work was titled “Sonata per il Pianoforte ed uno violino obligato in uno stile molto concertante come d’un concerto” The final movement was originally written for the Sonata n.6 op 30 n.1 ^.

The sonata was originally dedicated to the violinist George Bridgetower (1778–1860) as “Sonata mulattica composta per il mulatto Brischdauer [Bridgetower], gran pazzo e compositore mulattico” (Mulatto Sonata composed for the mulatto Brischdauer, great madman mulatto composer).Though Beethoven had barely completed the sonata it received its first public performance at a concert in the Augarten on 24 May 1803 at 8:00 am,with Beethoven on piano and Bridgetower on violin. Bridgetower had to read the violin part of the second movement from Beethoven’s copy, over his shoulder. 

George Bridgetower a watercolour of 1800

He made a slight amendment to his part, which Beethoven gratefully accepted, jumping up to say “Noch einmal, mein lieber Bursch!” (“Once more, my dear fellow!”). George Bridgetower was born in Poland of a West Indian father described as an African Prince and German mother described as a Polish lady of quality.They were probably both in service!

George showed considerable talent while still a child and gave successful violin concerts in Paris,London,Bath and Bristol in 1789. In 1791, the Prince Regent , the future King George IV, took an interest in him and oversaw his musical education.He performed in the Philharmonic Society of London’s first season in 1813, leading the performance of Beethoven’s Quintet,and subsequently married Mary Leech Leeke in 1816. He later travelled abroad, particularly to Italy , where his daughter lived. He died in 1860 in Peckham , south London and is buried in Kensal Green Cemetery.After the premiere performance, Beethoven and Bridgetower fell out.While the two were drinking, Bridgetower apparently insulted the morals of a woman whom Beethoven cherished. Enraged, Beethoven removed the dedication of the piece, dedicating it instead to Rodolphe Kreutzer , who was considered the finest violinist of the day.After its successful premiere in 1803, the work was published in 1805 as Beethoven’s Op. 47, with its re-dedication to Rudolphe Kreutzer, which gave the composition its nickname. Kreutzer never performed the work, considering it “outrageously unintelligible”. He did not particularly care for any of Beethoven’s music, and they only ever met once, briefly.

In the words of Salvatore Accardo, ‘Francesca is one of the most extraordinary talents I have encountered. She possesses a brilliant and infallible technique and a beautiful, warm and appealing tone. Her musicality is full of imagination and at the same time very faithful to the score’. The Italian-American violinist now enjoys a busy international career founded on – as a Gramophone critic once put it – ‘playing that combines tonal purity, verve, and an evident delight in the unexpected’.

Mark Bebbington at the Wigmore Hall with a Hommage a Piaf that fast turned into the scintillating unmistakably French circus of Napoli , Poulenc Style.Mephisto Polka the last piece that Liszt was to pen with his energy obviously on the wane after admiring the scintillating fountains of the Villa d’Este or his transcendental paraphrase of Rigoletto all played with loving musicianship and daring.MB’s musicianship shone through all he played and nowhere more than in Cesar Franck’s much loved Prelude Chorale and Fugue

A simple Spanish dance by Granados was MB’s way of thanking his very enthusiastic audience before they could get to the sherry that awaited in the foyer on what must be the coldest day of the year beyond the comforting Wigmore doors

The critical plaudits that have greeted Mark Bebbington’s performances and recordings have singled him out as a British pianist of the rarest refinement and maturity. Internationally recognised as a champion of British music in particular, Mark has recorded extensively for the SOMM ‘New Horizons’ label to unanimous critical acclaim. His last seven releases have been awarded consecutive sets of five-star reviews in BBC Music Magazine and his most recent CD , ‘The Piano Music of Vaughan Williams’ reached No. 3 in the UK Classical Charts where it remained for eight weeks.

Mark’s premiere recordings include Bax’s Piano Concertino coupled with Ireland’s Piano Concerto and Legend, and premieres of Vaughan Williams’s Fantasia and Mathias’s first two Piano Concertos with the Ulster Orchestra.

In addition to concerto recordings, in 2017 Mark completed his Ireland and Bridge solo piano series and released a CD of Alwyn’s piano works. As well as his BBC Music Magazine success, he has won Gramophone magazine’s Editor’s Choice, International Record Review’s ‘Outstanding’ accolade and many others.

Over recent seasons Mark has toured throughout Europe and the USA (both as recitalist and as soloist with some of the world’s leading orchestras), as well as the Far East and North Africa. He recently gave the US premiere of Richard Strauss’s ‘Parergon’ for the Left Hand at Carnegie Hall with the American Symphony Orchestra and Leon Botstein and gave masterclasses and recitals of British music at Bard College. In the UK he has performed concertos with the Royal Philharmonic and Philharmonia orchestras, the London Mozart Players, the Orchestra of the Swan and the BBC Concert Orchestra. He has featured both as soloist and recitalist on BBC television and radio, and on major European television and radio networks.

Mark studied at the Royal College of Music, where he was a recipient of numerous international awards and prizes including a Leverhulme Scholarship, a Winston Churchill Fellowship and the Ivan Sutton Recording Prize – the latter awarded to the one outstanding graduate of the combined London music colleges. He later studied in Paris and Italy with the legendary Aldo Ciccolini.Mark’s programming demonstrates a commitment to the music of our time and he regularly includes contemporary composers as diverse as Toru Takemitsu, Julian Anderson, John McCabe, David Matthews, Pierre Boulez and Elliot Carter in his recital series.Forthcoming projects include continuing releases for the Somm label, appearances in major concert series and festivals both in the UK and throughout Europe and, closer to home, concerto performances with the London Philharmonic and Royal Philharmonic Orchestras. He recently completed a two-week tour with the Czech National Orchestra and Libor Pesek and returned to the USA for concerts with the Buffalo Philharmonic. In July 2017 Mark made his Israel debut tour with the Israel Camerata.

Franz Liszt (1811 – 1886) in 1884

The Mephisto Polka (S. 217) was written in folk-dance style for solo piano by Franz Liszt   in 1882–83. The work’s program is the same as that of the same composer’s four Mephistopheles Waltzes , written respectively in 1859–60, 1880–81, 1882 and 1885 and based on the legend of Faust, not by Goethe but by Nikolaus Lenau (1802–50). The following program note, which Liszt took from Lenau, appears in the printed score of the Mephisto Waltz No. 1:

There is a wedding feast in progress in the village inn, with music, dancing, carousing. Mephistopheles and Faust pass by, and Mephistopheles induces Faust to enter and take part in the festivities. Mephistopheles snatches the fiddle from the hands of a lethargic fiddler and draws from it indescribably seductive and intoxicating strains. The amorous Faust whirls about with a full-blooded village beauty in a wild dance; they waltz in mad abandon out of the room, into the open, away into the woods. The sounds of the fiddle grow softer and softer, and the nightingale warbles his love-laden song.

The Mephisto Polka was dedicated to Lina Schmalhausen, one of Liszt’s “inner-circle” piano students. However, she is remembered more as one among the closest and most ardently devoted of Liszt’s followers, frequently attending to and assisting in the many needs of the aged master whose health was in rapid decline.

Franz Liszt’s last work was probably an arrangement for Mozart’s Ave verum corpus -for organ- in the year he died in 1886, but let’s look at his last original composition. Actually, Liszt’s last original composition is not easy to pinpoint, he composed many small pieces in late 1885 and some of his compositions from 1885 were lost and some were undated. However, our information indicates that “En rêve” (“Dreaming”) was likely Liszt’s last original composition. The “Cambridge Companion to Liszt”, one of the most comprehensive books on Liszt, also points to this work as one of Liszt’s last works: “‘En Reve. Nocturne’ one of his last pieces, written in late 1885 for his student August Stradal.” Also, in the chronological listing of Liszt’s works made for Grove Music Online in 2010, En Reve appears as the last original piece.It can be said that this work, En rêve, stands in contrast to all the works of Liszt in his last period. Liszt’s last period is dark and experimental; The identified themes are death, depression, despair and sadness. Nuages gris (grey clouds), Unstern (sinister), Trauervorspiel und Trauermarsch (Funeral prelude and Funeral march), Abschied (farewell), Seven Hungarian Historical Portraits, La lugubre gondola (the lugubrious gondola)… Almost all works composed after 1880 are in similar dark tones. In the early 1880s he said: “I carry with me a deep sadness of the heart which must now and then break out in sound.” His compositions were much simpler than before, he used emptiness and silence like never before. The effective use of silence and simplicity also intensely reflects the “purposelessness” that Liszt felt. These works also pointed to the music of the future.It is quite interesting to compare these works composed in the same period as En Reve. For Liszt, worldly things were depressive and death-related. He composes elegies for important Hungarian figures; gray clouds and gondolas gave it dark connotations. But in En rêve (Dreaming) it’s the opposite, not “joyful” but a poetic and peaceful little nocturnal piece, there is an atmosphere where sweetness and sadness coexist, it is unrelated to all his other works of that period. In addition, it is a composition that does not use emptiness or silence like his other works, and ends in a snap. Liszt is just at peace in his sleep and that’s the only place where dark thoughts don’t surround him. His nightmare was when he awoke and was probably waiting for death, thinking there would be peace. 

“Highest intelligence, extraordinary intensity, subtlety, sophistication and a razor‐sharp sense of time.” — Nottingham Post

”An extremely multi‐faceted, phenomenal musician, who has an endless array of abilities.” — Classical Music Magazine

Chopin – Polonaise in A flat major, op. 53
Chopin – 3 Mazurkas op. 63
Chopin – 2 Valses, op. 64, nos 1 & 2
Chopin – Barcarolle op. 60
Chopin – Sonata No.3, Op.58

Petr Limonov’s candlelit Chopin ignites St James’s for Warren Mailley Smith’s City Music.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/09/21/warren-mailley-smith-a-man-for-all-seasons-a-love-of-music-illuminated-by-candlelight/

A born Chopin player where freedom of Bel Canto and imagination is always with the roots firmly placed in the bass.
Like Argerich or Freire there is freedom of nobility which denies any of the superficiality of the so called ‘tradition’.
Blessed by the Gods they can do no wrong as everything they play lives for that moment of creation depending as much on the audience as on their inborn talent and childhood training.
Christmas is with us and all around St James’s were crowds that resembled rush hour in Hong Kong ! Hard to discern any English as so many languages could be heard of people from all Nations congregating in London with joy in their hearts and dollars in their pockets!

Enjoying a festive London lit up and welcoming with Fortnum and Mason taken by siege and sales enjoying this influx of visitors.
Keep to the left needs to be translated into multi languages if the natives hope to enter or exit their underground!
There are oases however that can be found in the candlelit churches that City Music Promotions fill with much needed favourite classical music. Oft washed down with Champagne to warm even more the cockles of the heart . Both reach places with a universal language where words are superfluous .

Petr has perfected his childhood Russian training in the west with Dmitri Alexeev and Maria João Pires and plays with the mastery that is born in someone where music is their life blood .
Despite influenza and much else Petr found solace in music making that kept a very full church spellbound for an hour of peace and good will amidst the hubbub outside the doors .

A Polonaise that was indeed ‘Heroique’ in these circumstances with a freedom that never overstepped good taste . Moments of calm where deep bass notes kept the ship on the road after a ferocious cavalry had taken us by storm. Counterpoints that shone like jewels within a shimmering texture bringing us to the exhilaration and excitement that we always awaited from Rubinstein.
Mazurkas are considered to be part of the Polish soul and only understood by the natives. It is ,however,a language that speaks to a soul that has no boundaries.It was this freedom and poetic intimacy that found the ideal common denominator in the Chinese soul of Fou Ts’ong ( who had very surprisingly won the Mazurka prize at one of the first Chopin competitions in Warsaw in the 50’s).It also had found a similar soul in Petr Limonov who covered these canons with ravishing flowers.Three Mazukas op 63 were played with a kaleidoscope of colours and emotions with a beguilingly subtle insinuation of nostalgia and yearning . Whispered confessions of op 63 n3 were the answer to the seductive beauty of Chopin’s unique bel canto of op 63 n 2 in F minor .

Two waltzes op 64, joined by an umbilical, where the final note of the Minute waltz shone like a star as the C sharp minor n 2 was allowed to insinuate itself into such scintillating jeux perlé nonchalant brilliance.
The Barcarolle op 60 considered by many to be Chopin’s greatest work for it’s continuous outpouring of song was played with a fluidity and glowing beauty where this very fine Fazioli piano resembled the soft beauty of Chopin’s beloved Pleyel.

The second half was dedicated to Chopin’s B minor Sonata where Petr’s sense of freedom was allied to an architectural shape that gave such nobility to this late masterpiece. Playing the repeat of the first movement as much for his own satisfaction as well as ours, added a good ten minutes to the hour long recital .The Trio of the scherzo was played with a rare sense of fantasy and colour and contrasted with the streams of golden sounds of the Scherzo.A Largo that became a real tone poem before the excitement and exhilaration of the Presto finale
The concert may have over run and the Champagne only a distant warming relief but an ovation was reserved for this dashing young Prince from a public hungry for more ……..music!

A Chopin mazurka of even more insinuating beauty sent us out into the evening fray with our souls now fully replenished

Winner of Nikolai Rubinstein Piano Competition, pupil of Maria João Pires and Dmitri Alexeev, award‐winning British pianist Petr Limonov is increasingly sought‐after both as a soloist and a chamber musician worldwide. His notable appearances include La Roque d’Antheron festival (broadcast by radio France Musique), Wigmore Hall, Southbank Centre, Lerici Music Festival, Cadogan Hall, Kings Place, the Great Hall of Moscow Conservatory, a solo recital in The Duke’s Hall for His Majesty King Charles III, iTunes Festival, TV appearances for BBC Proms Extra, Podium Witteman and broadcasts for BBC Radio 3. His arrangement of the Auld Lang Syne (from Nicola Benedetti’s “Homecoming” album, Decca) was performed in the Albert Hall at the BBC Proms. On the 6th of March 2022, Petr conducted an open‐air orchestral concert in Trafalgar Square, London, in protest against the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/09/20/mastery-and-supreme-artistry-at-st-martins-grynyuk-and-limonov-notre-amitie-est-invariable/

Kyle Hutchings The troubadour of the piano illuminates St Mary Le Strand

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Chorale Prelude ‘Nun komm der Heiden Heiland’ BWV659 arranged by Ferruccio Busoni

Chorale Prelude ‘Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ’ BWV639 (1708-17) arranged by Ferruccio Busoni

Ignacy Jan Paderewski (1860-1941)

Miscellanea Op. 16 (1886-96)

Nocturne in B flat No. 4 Légende No. 1 in A flat No. 1

Mélodie in G flat No. 2 Thème varié in A No. 3 LégendeNo.2inANo.5 Un moment musical No. 6 Minuet in A No. 7

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)

Scherzo in E flat minor Op. 4

Interval

Variations on an Original Theme Op. 21 No. 1
Sergey Rachmaninov (1873-1943)

Piano Sonata No. 2 in B flat minor Op. 36 (1913, rev. 1931)

I. Allegro agitato • II. Non allegro – Lento • III. Allegro molto

Jonathan Plowright at the Wigmore Hall a pianist I have heard a lot about via the magnificent reviews for his Brahms recordings in particular. A chance to hear the pianist that that eclectic authority on pianists ,Bryce Morrison a fellow Yorkshireman, has long been a great admirer of.

From the very first notes it was apparent that we were in the presence of a very fine musician ,an artist who thinks more of the music than any showmanship or demonstrative outward signs that could take away from his intense concentration of transmitting the composers wishes into sounds.

Two chorale preludes by Bach where Busoni’s sumptuous harmonic base was given precedence over any idea of melody and accompaniment showing us how Bach’s magic could emerge from sounds like the birth of a heavenly being.

Paderewski’s little ‘bon bons’ were indeed the jewels that in the great statesman’s hands could be turned into gems that created a sensation as one of the greatest pianist of all time took the US by storm. Jeux perlé, ravishing delicacy and extraordinary virtuosity went hand in hand with a style of another era as JP brought these long forgotten morsels enticingly to light.

Brahms has long been an important part of JP’s recorded legacy and it was with the early Scherzo in E flat minor that he showed us why.

Precision,beauty,fantasy and brilliance came together in this early work where Brahms was thinking more in pianistic terms than orchestral. Or was he ? JP missed the sumptuous full orchestral sounds in the majestic declamations of dynamic drive – it is written staccato but with what instrument in mind? Food for thought indeed and am sure JP has pondered on this very question, however it was played with intelligence, brilliance and exhilaration.

All doubts were dispelled after the interval when the variations on an original theme were miraculously allowed to evolve in a cauldron of molten gold.Sounds emerged into one another as there seemed to be no full stops but like Joyce one long outpouring of magical ethereal beauty.

It was the same intelligence and beauty he brought to Rachmaninov’s much maligned second sonata. No hystrionics but playing what Rachmaninov himself had penned.Some passages remarkably slow compared to some modern day showmen’s performances.Look at the score and all will be revealed and JP showed us a sonata that we could love without heart driven palpitations or circus like entertainment.There were no cat calls ( as I have heard recently for Kantorow or Lisiecki) but a deep satisfaction that we had been present at a very special occasion where the music was allowed to speak for itself.

A little piece by Mompou of barely whispered ravishing sounds played with mastery and beauty was JP’S way of thanking a very large audience of sharing in his journey of musical discovery .

Some pianists like Frank Merrick (the youngest student of Leschetitsky),Albert Ferber (a student of Rachmaninov) and Sergio Fiorentino (the great Neapolitan school) were happier in the recording studio away from the limelight of the concert platform.They are not born with the charisma or showmanship that a public performer must have as indeed Paderewski did as he took the USA by storm.They do have though all the ingredients that make up a great interpreter :Intelligence,technical mastery, poetic artistry and a memory that can absorb music like a sponge and make it their own without any mechanical means to get between them and the music!

Liszt the greatest showman the world has ever known was born with a demonic gift to seduce and ravish anyone that came into his sights he was also of course a musical genius which as he forsook his outward vices came ever more to the fore .Rubinstein in our time lived to create music with an audience that became his life blood.Perlemuter told me of Rachmaninov coming on stage as though he had swallowed a knife but the moment he touched the keys there were sounds that he had never heard from others.

Glenn Gould of course was unique as he also had showmanship but something in his make up made him give way to his intellectual curiosity rather than the manic showmanship of Bernstein.

Michael Moran the distinguished critic based in Poland writes

Morning Christopher!’Just to say Johnathan Plowright is highly respected here in Poland as he is intensely concerned with the justified resuscitation of Polish music after the fall of the iron curtain. He gives many recitals here that are booked out’.

Jonathan Plowright was born in  Yorkshire in 1959, England. He was educated at Stonyhurst College , in Lancashire . He was a gold medallist at the Royal Academy of Music, London, where his professor was Alexander Kelly . He was also a recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship  to study at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore with Julio Esteban.He won the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra  Award in 1984 and the European Piano Competition in 1989. His USA debut was at Carnegie Hall  in 1984 and his UK debut followed in 1985, at Wigmore Hall . Plowright has performed worldwide as recitalist, appeared with leading orchestras and ensembles, made many commercial recordings and appeared on radio and TV broadcasts.He champions neglected music from Polish Romantic composers, including Zygmunt Stojowski, Ignacy Jan Paderewski Juliusz Zarebski,Wladyslaw Želeński,lodomore Różycki,Ignaz Friedman, and Henryk Melcer- Szczawiński, which he has recorded for Hyperion Records  and Warner Classics.He gave the world premiere performance of Constant Lambert’s Piano Concerto, and made world premiere recordings of the transcriptions of J.S Bach  by Walter Morse Rummel, the ‘Bach Book for Harriet’, the collaborative suite Homage to Paderewski and the “Symphonic Rhapsody” by Stojowski.Between 2012 and 2017 Plowright recorded the complete solo piano works of Johannes Brahms  for Bis Records He taught part-time at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland from 2007 until 2020.

Ignacy Jan Paderewski  18 November 1860 – 29 June 1941) was a Polish pianist, composer and statesman who was a spokesman for Polish independence. In 1919, he was the nation’s prime minister  and foreign minister during which time he signed the Treaty of Versailles, which ended World War 1

A favorite of concert audiences around the world, his musical fame gave him access to diplomacy and the media, as well as, possibly, his status as a freemason and the charitable work of his second wife, Helena Paderewska. During World War I, Paderewski advocated for an independent Poland, including by touring the United States, where he met President Woodrow Wilson, who came to support the creation of an independent Poland. Wilson included that aim in his Fourteen Points and argued for it at the 1919 Paris Peace Conference , which drew up the Treaty of Versailles.

Shortly after his resignation from office, Paderewski resumed his concert career to recoup his finances, and rarely visited the politically chaotic Poland thereafter, the last time being in 1924

Nice to remember that this day 29 years ago Shura Cherkassky left us. Could it just be coincidence or something deeper that made me choose this very day to tend his grave in Highgate cemetery unknown that it was a day of celebration.

It is wonderful to note that this year, John’s 100th, was with a record of recitals worldwide of young artists selected by the Keyboard Trust, all receiving ecstatic praise and just recognition. John’s legacy will live on from a life extraordinarily well lived with his adored Noretta always by his side. The season had begun with the Italian tour that John and Noretta had organised many years ago in Venice,Padua,Abano and Vicenza and is now flourishing with stars such as Nikita Lukinov, a pianist whom Noretta admires enormously and who played for John and Noretta at their home last summer.

The year had finished on 14th December in the historic Laeiszhalle in Hamburg with a recital by the quite extraordinary Magdalene Ho (Weir Award holder), winner last year at the age of 19, of the Clara Haskil International Piano Competition in Vevey. A few months later she also won the Chappell Gold Medal, the most prestigious accolade of the RCM. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/02/17/hats-off-the-chappell-gold-medal-has-uncovered-a-genius/

Just a few weeks before Moritz von Bredow (KT Trustee and Concert Manager in Germany) had organised a tour in Germany for Giovanni Bertolazzi with three concerts in Hamburg (New Living Home, Augustinum and Bechstein Centre) and one in the Bechstein Centre in Cologne. A report on these concerts will follow shortly but this was Giovanni opening the season at the Maggio Musicale in Florence last September:

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/09/08/matvienko-bertolazzi-borgato-in-florence-and-the-season-opens-with-a-triumph/

An amazing success in Germany and a recording of the encore of the concert in Hamburg on the 2Ist was relayed to John in hospital who passed away peacefully on St.Cecilia’s day, the patron saint of music.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2023/06/02/the-gift-of-music-the-keyboard-trust-at-30/

A gift of music indeed and what a poetic ending to a beautiful, selfless life.

This is just a personal view and there are many concerts that time and space could not accommodate here, but many others can be found on my music commentary website: christopheraxworthymusic commentary.com.

Pip Rolfe, Music Director at the Erin Arts Centre on the Isle of Man writes: ‘A huge thank you to Nikita Lukinov for an incredible recital on Saturday evening, plus a fascinating masterclass in the morning which introduced the audience to his programme and particularly to his favourite composer Mussorgsky. We’re glad the weather finally let you get home!’

In the meantime, Filip Michalak had been playing in our series in the Harold Acton Library in Florence and at the Tuscia University in Viterbo

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia had given the first of the six debut recitals that we hold at Steinway Hall in London thanks to the generosity of Wiebke Greinus and Craig Terry. Giuliano is from Forlì in Italy where Guido Agosti (Leslie’s and my mentor) was born.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/01/03/forli-pays-homage-to-guido-agosti/

Giuliano has created a music festival dedicated to Forlì’s illustrious but much neglected citizen, Guido Agosti. It was nice to see Agosti united with his wife in the cemetery there. Lydia Stix Agosti died ten years after her beloved husband whom she had married late but brought much excitement into a life spent almost exclusively at the keyboard.

I had met my own wife, Ileana Ghione, in Siena thanks to her course of teaching actors how to use their diaphragm ( replaced by microphones these days much to the exasperation of lovers of real theatre!) .https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/02/08/diamonds-are-forever-at-steinways-giuliano-tuccia-for-the-keyboard-trust/

Our annual series in Haslemere for Stephen Dennison’s HHH series saw Damir Durmanovic (21st February ), Gabrielé Sutkuté (22nd) and Victor Braojos (23rd) give three lunchtime concerts. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/02/24/youth-and-music-a-winning-combination-in-haslemere-for-stephen-dennisons-hhh-concert-series/

Magdalene Ho played in our series of complementary concerts in Florence (27/2 ) and Milan ( 29/2). Magdalene, still only 20, was formed by Patsy Toh, the widow of Fou Ts’ong who passed away during the covid pandemic. Magdalene is currently studying with Dmitri Alexeev at the RCM.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2021/01/13/roberto-prosseda-pays-tribute-to-the-genius-of-chopin-and-the-inspirational-figure-of-fou-tsong/

Ts’ong used to play and give masterclasses every year in my Euromusica series in Rome. Patsy used to thank me for being so faithful, but it is we who should be grateful to have known a genius who has touched so many people’s lives, above all Patsy’s! Magdalene is the living proof of the energy people emanate during their lives and remains long after they are no longer on this earth.

My wife used to have long discussions with Stockhausen about this when he directed his music many times for us in Rome. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/02/28/magdalene-ho-in-florence-and-milan-the-exquisite-finesse-and-noble-style-of-a-musical-genius/

In March, Pedro Lopez Salas gave a recital in our prestigious series at the National Liberal Club thanks to the generosity of the Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation and Yisha Xue’s NLC Asia Circle

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/03/05/pedro-lopez-salas-at-the-national-liberal-club-with-aristocratic-style-and-artistry/

On 13th March there were two concerts on the same day. The first at Temple Church with an organ recital by Godfrey Leung and the second at Steinway Hall with the eclectic Mikhail Bouzine.

Power and Drama from Temple Organ Godfrey Leung for the Keyboard Trust by Angela Ransley

On 16th March, Ivelina Krasteva gave a masterclass and concert in our series at the Erin Arts Centre on the Isle of Man

A highly successful German tour with Gabrielé Sutkuté took place from the 9th to the 12th April in Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne and Rheda Wiedenbrück.

Giulia Contaldo gave a recital on 15th April at the National Liberal Club supported by the Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation and the NLC Asia Circle.

Giulia Contaldo at the National Liberal Club ‘Mind and heart at the service of the music ‘

Mark Viner gave one of several recitals in Bedford Park. Mark, a tireless promoter of the much-neglected world of Alkan, Blumenthal, Chaminade and many others, has a string of CDs to his name (at least 10 at the last count), all received with rapturous reviews by the critics.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/04/18/mark-viner-at-st-michael-and-all-angels-bringing-mastery-and-discovery-to-chiswick/

Mark playing on Perlemuter’s piano in Joan Flockhart Booth’s house in Markham Square https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2023/12/05/ileana-and-joan-3rd-december-2023/

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/04/25/sherri-lun-at-steinway-hall-for-the-keyboard-trust-masterypassion-and-intelligence-of-twenty-year-old-pianist/

Sherri Lun played in the third in our series at Steinway Hall in London and she also visited John and Noretta together with Elias Ackerley (Weir Award holder). Both played to them at n.8 much to the delight of our founders, and are promoted by the Keyboard Trust.

Elias Ackerley gave six highly acclaimed recitals in the USA in October 2024, as part of the KT’s annual US Tour. Venues included Lorin and Dietlinde Maazel’s private theatre in Castleton,Virginia, the Arts Club of Washington, Klavierhaus in New York and several venues in Philadelphia and Delaware.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/10/23/elias-ackerley-keyboard-trust-usa-tour-12-20-october-2024-a-supreme-stylist-of-refined-poetic-potency/

Sherri Lun playing in our Rising Star Series in collaboration with Warren Mailley-Smith’s City Music Promotions at St Mary Le Strand in London.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/10/25/the-strand-rising-stars-series-sherri-lun-the-magic-and-artistry-of-a-star-shining-brightly/

On 25th April another concert in our collaboration with the Brazilian Embassy at the Brazil ( ex Cunard) Hall in Trafalgar Square.

A Celebration of ALMEIDA PRADO The Embassy of Brazil in collaboration with the Keyboard Trust

Andrea Molteni gave a recital on 7th May in Florence at the Harold Acton Library at the British Institute

Andrea Molteni in Florence – A live wire of Mastery and Poetic sensibility.

The fourth in our series of debut recitals at Steinways was with the brilliant Israeli pianist Tom Zalmanov, currently studying with Ian Fountain at the RAM .

We were very pleased to see his mentor Murray Perahia present with Lady Weidenfeld and his current teacher at the RAM, Ian Fountain (the only British winner of the Rubinstein Competition who tied with another British pianist – Benjamin Frith – in 1989)

Tom Zalmanov at Steinway Hall for the Keyboard Trust

In May, both Misha Kaploukhii and Magdalene Ho were invited to play at La Mortella on Ischia for the Walton Foundation. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/05/05/misha-kaploukhii-mastery-and-clarity-in-waltons-paradise-where-dreams-become-reality/ https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/05/12/magdalene-ho-a-musical-genius-in-paradise/

The KT is delighted to be able to showcase some of its top artists in the ‘Music al British’ Series, at the British Institute in Florence, managed by Director, Simon Gammell. Past performers have included four Busoni Competition winners.

Sasha Grynyuk, an emeritus KT artist, performed at the Institute for Sir David Scholey in Florence and at Steinway in Milan, managed by new Manager, Maura Romano, in May.

An enthusiastic and much loved supporter of ‘Music al British’ as exemplified by the series the KT have been invited to offer including four of the past Busoni winners.

Sasha Grynyuk in Milan and Florence Mastery and musicianship combine with poetic sensibility and intelligence

For several years, we have been very happy to be part of ‘Proms at St Jude’s’ in Hampstead Garden Suburb. This year George Todica was chosen to play on the 25th June to a very enthusiastic full house.

George Todica at St Judes Prom ‘A star is born of eloquence and masterly communication’

Victor Maslov played for Peter Barritt’s series at St Alkmund’s in Shrewsbury on the 25th June.

In July, Victor Maslov was invited to play in the prestigious Michelangeli Festival in Rabbi in Italy. The festival, held every year in the north of Italy, was particularly loved by the great Italian pianist whose Assistant for over fifteen years was our Founder, Noretta Conci Leech who also lives in that area.

Stefan Biosa writes: ‘14th edition of the International Festival“Omaggio all’Arte pianistica di Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli”. As has been the tradition since the first edition (2012, recital of Vitaly Pisarenko) also this year we plan to invite various artists from the Keyboard Trust, both young and very young (2024 Edition): Lilit Grigoryan, Victor Maslov, Alexander Ullman, Vitaly Pisarenko, Emanuil Ivanov, Gala Chistiakova, Evelyne Berezovsky, Chloe Mun and Arsenii Mun.’

Victor Maslov was invited to play at the Wingham Festival in Kent on 4th August ( via an introduction by Sir Geoffrey Nice, Trustee and founder member of the KT). Ben Bevan, Festival Director, commented:  ‘Victor was a sensation. People were openly weeping during his concert. A true Tour de Force.’

Nicholas Fairbank writes :’It was a privilege to listen to the talented Victor Maslov perform at the Wingham International Concert Series this afternoon. His musicality shone through as he displayed total mastery of some of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s most ambitious works – a selection of the Études-Tableaux (Op. 33 and 39) and the colossal Piano Sonata no. 1 (Op.28). The Études-Tableaux, or ‘study pictures’, are tone poems for the piano that present a range of rhythmical and harmonic progressions whilst haunting melodic lines pass between the voices, often within full chord structures as is characteristic of Rachmaninoff. Composed as individual studies, there is a flow to the two suites which seems quite natural in Maslov’s hands. Asymmetrical rhythms abound – from the outset with Op. 33 no. 1 and present throughout the works. I particularly enjoyed the percussive accelerando of Op. 39 no 9 leading up to its formidable presto, all balanced by delicate, almost ethereal, melodies, for example in Op. 33 nos. 2 and 7. ‘Mere’ virtuosic technique is only the minimum prerequisite for a successful performance of these miniature musical masterpieces. Maslov presented a masterclass.By contrast, Piano Sonata no. 1 is a mountain of a piece. At some 35 minutes it demands much of the performer both physically and mentally. After the scene-setting allegro moderato first movement, particularly enchanting was Maslov’s interpretation of the tuneful slow movement, the calm before the storm of the final movement which was a veritable tour de force.Maslov dedicated his closing words to the memory of his pianist colleague Pavel Kushnir who died of starvation just two weeks ago in a Russian prison. His ‘crime’? Daring to speak out against the war in Ukraine. A most moving epilogue to] an outstanding afternoon of music.’ Nicholas Fairbank
4th August 2024.

Arsenii Mun, the charismatic winner of the Busoni Competition and prestigious Michelangeli Award, played for us at Steinway Hall in London on the 26th June.

Gabrielé Sutkuté was invited to play at the Deal Festival on the 5th July. Here are the programme notes I was very happy to prepare for this very fine young artist: https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/05/01/programme-notes-for-deal-gabriele-sutkute/

On 9th July, Milda Daunoraite (another Lithuanian pianist) was invited to play at the En Blanc et Noir Festival at Lagrasse in France. Milda writes: ‘I think it went well! Everyone seemed very positive, some said it was the best concert for them out of the whole festival, and someone said they weren’t a fan of Liszt and I have almost changed their mind.

I felt very relaxed and confident performing yesterday and I hope I can go back sometime to such a charming little village! The people there are living the dream! And all so kind and generous.’ This is what I wrote about her a little while before: https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/05/28/milda-daunoraite-at-st-marys-a-joyous-journey-of-beauty-and-poetry/

Timothy Stewart gave our annual organ recital at Westminster Abbey on 14th July.

Timothy Stewart a 20 year old master organist triumphs at Westminster Abbey A review by Angela Ransley :’HIGH ROMANTICISM AND THE UNSEEN MASTER’

Noretta and John’s beloved Leslie Howard gave his annual recital at Wigmore Hall and, despite health problems, gave the recital of his life with a typically eclectic programme of forgotten masterpieces from the Russian repertoire.

.https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/07/17/leslie-howard-the-prince-of-pianists-50th-anniversary-concert-at-the-wigmore-hall/

On 10th August, Avinoam Shalev gave a harpsichord recital at St. Cecilia’s Hall in Edinburgh .

On 17th August, Nikita Lukinov played at Lyddington in Rutland

Nikita is currently touring Scotland, a tour that he has arranged himself, bringing music to areas often with little ‘live’ music. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/?p=33516

Nikita also gave a recital on 25th November in the historic Armourers’ Livery Hall. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/11/27/nikita-lukinov-a-knight-amongst-the-armour-shining-brightly/

On 23rd and 24th August, Zala and Val Kravos, and Ellis Thomas, gave concerts both late at night in the open air and in the Orangerie for the French Festival ‘Un Piano sous les Arbres’ at Lunel-Viel near Montpellier.

On 16th September Mihai Ritivoiu, a KT emeritus, played in the magnificent cultural oasis that is the Fidelio Café in London. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/09/17/mihai-ritivoiu-at-fidelio-the-poet-speaks-in-an-oasis-of-elegance-and-eloquence/

On 28th September, Neo Hung, winner of the Liszt Competition UK, gave a masterclass and concert for the Erin Arts Centre on the Isle of Man.

‘What a lovely, easy-going young man and such a fantastic pianist. The masterclass was detailed and informative and the recital was absolute dynamite. Everybody was fully engaged throughout the show and all shook his hand afterwards (there were about 60 of them!) and thanked him for coming. Once again thank you to you and the Keyboard Trust for finding ANOTHER exceptional young talent; we’re really happy to help give them a foothold’ – Pip Rolfe, Erin Arts Centre.

And from Neo: ‘I had a most unforgettable experience performing at the wonderful Erin Arts Centre on Isle of Man on 28th September 2024 in addition to presenting my first ever masterclass! First and foremost, I would like to thank the artistic directors of the Keyboard Trust for offering me this unique opportunity which has increased my exposure to a wider audience. I had a most unforgettable time performing for such an enthusiastic and warm audience who reacted positively as I shook hands with one by one post-concert. Thank you to everyone who has come to either or both of my masterclass and recital that day with such attentiveness and passion. It has been an absolutely fantastic day! ‘

 

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/10/03/mark-viner-cooks-a-dish-fit-for-a-king-ravishing-beautysupreme-artistry-and-total-mastery-served-up-on-a-casserole-by-a-cordon-bleu-maitre/

Mark Viner at St Mary’s Nobility and radiance on a voyage of discovery

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/?p=33506

George X. Fu, another KT emeritus pianist, gave a stunning performance at the Pharos Arts Centre in Cyprus of Messiaen’s Vingt Regards Sur l’Enfant Jésus including a masterclass. George writes: ‘I had a wonderful trip to Cyprus to perform the entire cycle of Messiaen’s Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant Jésus. From the moment I arrived, I was looked after warmly by Garo and befriended many new people affiliated with the festival. On the day of the concert, I gave a morning educational lecture-recital with students from a local music school, playing excerpts from the Messiaen while answering questions about my life and career. Afterwards, Saskia conducted a brilliant, challenging interview of me on the radio ranging on many topics, from the work that I was to perform to philosophies on education and the arts. Finally, I performed the recital to a wonderfully appreciative audience who I dined with afterwards. On the following day I visited a gem of a bookshop, called the Mouffalla, run by someone who attended the recital — Ruth, who very graciously gifted me several books on Cyprus and various other interesting topics. I leave the country with many wonderful new friends and memories.’

‘The exquisite pianist George X. Fu, gave a dynamic but at the same time heartbreaking interpretation of the monumental Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant Jésus by Messiaen’ – Yvonne Georgiadou, Artistic Director, Pharos Arts.

And on the same day in London, at Wigmore Hall, Emanuil Ivanov gave a breathtaking account of Rzewski’s Variations in the Royal Academy of Music Series where Emanuil and George are both Fellows. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/10/09/emanuil-ivanov-sensational-performance-at-the-wigmore-hall-of-rzewski-the-people-united-will-never-be-defeated-a-staggering-performance-of-total-mastery-and-musical-communication/

On the 10th October, Nicolò Giuliana Tuccia gave a recital in Florence which was rapturously received.

Nicolò Giuliano Tuccia ‘sensibility and mastery ignite the Harold Acton Library’ including a long distance review.

On 13th October, Ivelina Krasteva played in a festival of women composers ‘L’Une, Elles in Lunel’, France. She performed: Clara Schumann – 3 Romances, op. 11; Mel Bonis – Desdemona op.109, Ophélie op. 165 and Barcarolle op. 71; Pauline Viardot – Two pieces for piano ; Teresa Carreño – Mi Teresita (Petite Valse) ; and Clara Schumann – Sonata in G minor.

Le matin, il faudra se rendre à l’orangerie du parc de la Ville de Lunel- Viel pour écouter la pianiste Ivelina Krasteva qui interprètera des compositrices du 20e siècle.

Mikhail Kambarov at Steinway Hall London Poetic sensibility of a Master

Mikhail Kambarov, star pupil of Michail Lifits (winner in 2008 of the Busoni Competition and Emeritus KT artist) in Weimar, made his Steinway Hall debut for the Keyboard Trust after his sensational win in two international competitions this year: https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/04/11/trapani-the-jewel-of-sicily-where-dreams-can-become-reality-the-international-piano-competition-domenico-scarlatti/

The extraordinary class of Michail Lifits.Nine young pianists of artistic integrity and refined musicianship who illuminated the beauty of Chopin’s 21 nocturnes

On 17th October, Victor Braojos gave a recital for Imperial College.

Victor Braojos at Imperial College ‘The voice of Spain with love,authority and passion’

On 18th October, Tyler Hay played at the North Fylde Music Circle – with thanks to the Robert Turnbull Foundation for its support.  Apparently, it went super well and the piano was ‘gorgeous’.  The only spanner in the works was our lovely train system with two cancellations in two days – but hero Tyler made it there and back with only a dry comment that only one of the 30+ trains he had travelled on recently had run ‘on time’.  He had one night at home, after 5 weeks away, and is now in France.  The life of a travelling pianist!!  https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0?ui=2&ik=e365e67791&attid=0.1&permmsgid=msg-f:1813709325067314547&th=192b97058e736573&view=att&zw&disp=safe

On 3rd November, Louis-Victor Bak played in the Elgar Room in the Royal Albert Hall on Elton John’s Red Yamaha Tour piano. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/11/03/louis-victor-bak-at-the-royal-albert-hall-aristocratic-music-making-of-refined-good-taste/

On 5th November, Paul Lewis, one of the very first to be helped by the Keyboard Trust in 1992, gave a masterclass at Milton Court for the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/11/06/paul-lewis-at-the-guildhall-on-a-wondrous-voyage-of-discovery-to-find-the-heart-and-soul-of-schubert/

Emanuil Ivanov gave two more concerts for us: one on 9th November at the Erin Arts Centre on the Isle of Man with a masterclass and recital.

And the other at the Pharos Arts Foundation Cyprus on 28th November where Garo Keheyan, in presenting Emanuil Ivanov, announced the very sad loss of his close friend, John Leech.

‘An extraordinary Pharos Arts Foundation evening for those fortunate enough to attend last night’s piano recital with the remarkable young pianist Emanuil Ivanov at The Shoe Factory – the most recognised venue in Cyprus for chamber music and recitals. A tempestuous tour de force that included Beethoven’s Sonata No. 17 in D minor, Shostakovich Preludes and Fugues Op. 87 and Rachmaninov Etudes-Tableaux, Op.39.

Ivanov delivered thunderous fortissimos that were full of depth and emotion, seamlessly morphing into the most delicate and nuanced pianissimo, all within coherent, well thought out architectural infrastructures.’ Yvonne Georgiadou adds: ‘ As I mentioned on Pharos’ Facebook page, Emanuil’s recital was absolutely thrilling. He is undeniably one of the finest pianists we have collaborated on, and it was a privilege to present him. Emanuil is on par with any big name out there and he has the qualities for a celebrated career ahead. His technical command is unparalleled, and his introspective sensitivity is rare to encounter. He performs with such natural elegance, free of any pretentiousness or affectation – a true artist.

Beyond his remarkable talent, Emanuil is a genuinely wonderful person – humble, grounded, and impressively mature for his age. We’re already looking forward to inviting him for another recital in the future.’

https://fb.watch/wJbY8VR4wu/?mibextid=WC7FNe

On 23rd November, The Liszt Society held their Annual Liszt Day at St Mary’s, Perivale.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/12/25/the-liszt-society-day-in-perivale/

On Thursday, 20th October Sherri Lun opened our Rising Stars Series in collaboration with City Music Promotions at St Mary Le Strand ( see above). The second concert in the series was with Kyle Hutchings on 20th November.

Kyle Hutchings The troubadour of the piano illuminates St Mary Le Strand

And another candlelight concert in the church where I was married !

On Sunday, 10th November, Giovanni Bertolazzi gave a sensational recital in Rome for the Roma 3 Orchestra series, to evaluate the lesser- known museum heritage, including the complete paraphrases of Verdi operas by Liszt. Shortly after this, Giovanni gave four recitals in Germany in Hamburg and Cologne ( see above).

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/11/10/giovanni-bertolazzis-spellbinding-mastery-ignites-and-excites-roma-3-orchestra/

Misha Kaploukhii gave two recitals in our Florence and Milan series. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/11/14/misha-kaploukhii-in-florence-and-milan-for-the-keyboard-trust-and-robert-turnbull-piano-foundation/

And a few days later at the National Liberal Club he played the second Chopin Concerto with a Chamber Ensemble. Magdalene Ho played the first Chopin Concerto.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/12/01/chopin-reigns-at-the-national-liberal-club-and-st-marys-perivale-the-triumph-of-misha-kaploukhii-and-magdalene-ho/

Misha Kaploukhii also played Brahms’ 2nd Concerto with the London Rehearsal Orchestra at Bishopsgate Institute on the Bechstein Concert Grand that had belonged to Myra Hess. He will play Brahms’ 2nd Concerto again at Cadogan Hall on 19th February.

Our last Steinway Hall recital this year was given by Jeremy Chan on 13th November. https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/11/14/jeremy-chan-at-steinway-hall-for-the-keyboard-trust/

Axel Trolese came to the UK from Italy to give two concerts. One in Shrewsbury in Peter Barritt’s series on 26th November and one in the newly opened Bechstein Hall in London on 24th.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/11/27/axel-trolese-at-bechstein-hall-mastery-and-intelligence-of-a-remarkable-artist/

‘The Italian pianist Axel Trolese visited Shrewsbury on Tuesday 26th November 2024 to perform for the first time in Shropshire, arriving hot-foot from playing his debut recital in London at the new Bechstein Hall. This recital in the Tuesday lunchtime St Alkmund series was the first recital sponsored by The Keyboard Trust and the Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation, who plan to support two Shrewsbury International Piano Recitals per year, in recognition of the welcome given to young international pianists by the town. Axel comes highly recommended from his homeland, where he is a regular recitalist and esteemed teacher. His programme was influenced by his recent achievement of reaching the second round of the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition. Axel explained to the audience that his programme demonstrated how the piano has been used to illustrate different genres of music. He started with J.S. Bach’s Italian Concerto, with the piano acting in orchestral fashion. As the first movement got underway, it was obvious that we were listening to a master of his craft, with immaculate technique, light pedalling and melodies singing from both hands. Repeats were adorned with intricate and subtle ornaments and variations in dynamics that seemed effortless and added to the freshness of his interpretation. The slow movement was achingly beautiful, played in a manner faithful to the period yet full of colour and interest. No surprise, then, to learn that Axel is a keen student of period instruments such as the fortepiano and harpsicord. The final movement was played with infectious enthusiasm, full of joy. What future pleasures await us as Axel delves into the vast treasure trove of Bach’s music for keyboard! Next up, from the baroque we moved to the watery depths of romantic repertoire of Franz Liszt, exploring the beautiful fountains and gardens of the 16th Century Villa D’Este in Tivoli near Rome. There were handfuls of notes pouring out of the piano in cascades of sound, soaking the audience in torrents of notes. Those of us lucky enough to have visited the Villa were reminded of the sculptural beauty of the gardens and fountains, which Liszt visited on three occasions. Axel then switched from the heavenly to the demonic Transcendental study in F minor which he  played with seemingly effortless bravado.In my limited experience, it is rare to find a young pianist equally at home with Bach and Rachmaninov but it was the breadth and complexity of Axel’s repertoire that was so impressive in his recital. With technical challenges seemingly brushed aside, he could concentrate on the essence of the music, taking the audience with him on an exhilarating adventure. Rachmaninov Etude-Tableau? No problem.Axel has a deep love of French and Spanish music. He has recorded the complete Iberia by Albéniz and he played a composition based on the life of a busy fishing port, busy with sounds of a fish market and a young girl singing. Why an Italian feels so grounded in the dance and passion of Spanish music is a mystery, but Axel relishes their music and passion. St Alkmund’s was not only full of an enthusiastic audience but characteristically bathed in winter sunshine. It was something of a jump of faith to get into the mood of the gothic world of sinking mermaids, hangmen and the night terrors of Ravel’s Gaspard de la Nuit. Ravel is Axel’s favourite composer and he relished disappearing into this spooky sound world, full of foreboding. Finally the recital ended with the flourish of De Falla’s Ritual Fire Dance, played with customary panache and passion. The Shrewsbury audience was on its feet, having enjoyed a world-class performer at the top of his game. The audience has no intention of letting Axel go without an encore and we heard the hauntingly beautiful Canción y danza no 6 by Federico Mompou. The simple beauty of the piece was a perfect end to an outstanding performance from a musician bound for greatness. Thank you Keyboard Trust and Robert Turnbull Piano Foundation for sending such a treasure for Shrewsbury to enjoy.’ https://petebarritt.wixsite.com/shrewsbury-internati

​On 23rd November Filippo Tenisci played at Tuscia University in Viterbo: https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/11/24/filippo-tenisci-in-viterbo-with-mastery-and-refined-generosity/

​On 4th December, Kasparas Mikužis played in Wigmore Hall’s Royal Academy Series. Another quite sensational Lithuanian pianist who gave a memorable performance of Rachmaninov’s much troubled First Sonata: https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/12/04/kasparas-mikuzis-at-the-wigmore-hall-masterly-playing-of-fluidity-and-ravishing-beauty/

And on 21st December, in Villa Borghese, for Roma 3 Orchestra, a recital of Liszt’s Années de Pèlerinage Italie by Maurizio Baglini, a KT emeritus artist from 1996.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/12/21/maurizio-baglini-plays-liszt-with-the-poetic-understanding-of-cordon-bleu-mastery/

On 17th December Andrea Molteni gave a recital at St Mary’s Perivale: https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/12/17/andrea-molteni-at-st-marys-the-extraordinary-clarity-and-mastery-of-a-thinking-musician/

It would not be Christmas without the special party that Steinway holds every year in the beautiful flagship in the centre of Milan.

https://christopheraxworthymusiccommentary.com/2024/12/13/steinway-sons-milan-we-could-have-danced-all-night-christmas-is-a-comin/

What greater tribute could there be to our founder than a concert for Ukrainian Medical Charity in the Lansdowne Club where John’s family and a few intimate friends had gathered shortly before to say a sad farewell to a friend and father figure to us all.

Sasha Grynyuk and Katya Gorbatiouk, who have been closest to Noretta and John over the past few years, know better than any the poignant significance of this concert on this very special day.

Gen Ukrainian Christmas Gala Concert ‘Wachet auf ruft uns die Stimme’

The Liszt Society Day and International Competition 

 

1.10 pm The Liszt Society and the Keyboard Charitable Trust 
present a recital by 

Letian Yu 

(First Prizewinner, 2023 Liszt Society Competition)  

Liszt: Danse macabre – Poème symphonique de Camille Saint-Saëns [opus 40], S555  

Liszt: Années de pèlerinage -Deuxième Année -Italie, S161
no 5: Sonetto 104 del Petrarca

Liszt: Années de pèlerinage-Troisième Année- Italie, S163
no 4: Les jeux d’eaux à la Villa d’Este (9′) 

Liszt: Rapsodie espagnole – Folies d’Espagne et Jota aragonesa, S254 (13′) 

Chopin (1810-1849) Nocturne in B major, opus 62 no.1 

Liszt: Grandes Études de Paganini, S141
No. 3 La campanella

Letian Yu, at the age of 15, became the first Chinese winner of the Liszt Society International Piano Competition, having been brought to London by the redoubtable CIPMF piano festival director Hao Yao. He has returned to Perivale give this prizewinner’s recital. He was born in Shanghai, China in May 2008. He started learning piano at the age of 5. In 2020, he went to study at the Special Piano Department of the Genius Class of the Affiliated High School of Tchaikovsky Academy in Russia. He has successively studied under teachers Hongyi Fu, Xiaoou Qiu, Ye Feng, Ying Cai, Maxim Kazitskii, Professor Nianqiu Liu, Qingxia Pu, Professor Natalia Trull and Daniil Tsvetkov. He has also received careful guidance from Kate Liu and Xinyuan Wang, and since 2023, has also been in Leslie Howard’s masterclasses.

During his years of piano study, Letian Yu has won more than 20 honours in domestic and international competitions. He has won the gold medal in the Shanghai Student Art Individual Competition many times, the first prize in the 28th Chopin International Youth Competition in Shanghai, the first prize in the Gloria Factum and “Friendship Cup” International Piano Competition held in Moscow, the first prize in the adult category of the St. Petersburg International Young Pianist Bartolomeo Cristofori Competition, the first prize in the American Youth Musician International Piano Competition held in the United States, the first prize in the professional category of the 28th Japan PIARA International Piano Award China Division, the first prize in the Clara Schumann International Piano Competition held in Germany, and he won the Young Euregio Piano Award 2024. 

2.0 pm Lunch break 

3.0 pm The Liszt Society International Piano Competition Final 2024 

Sebastian-Benedict Flore (Italy and United Kingdom) (b. 2002)
Großes Konzertsolo S176 (21′)

Catherine Chang (New Zealand) (b. 2002)
Deuxième Ballade S171 (15′)
Deux Légendes, S175: (17′)
1 St François d’Assise: La prédication aux oiseaux 
2 St François de Paule marchant sur les flots

Michele Taraborrelli (Italy) (b. 1999)
Venezia e Napoli – Supplément aux Années de pèlerinage 2 d volume, S162
1 Gondoliera; 2 Canzone; 3 Tarantella (17′)
A la chapelle Sixtine – Miserere d’Allegri et Ave verum corpus de Mozart, S462ii (13′)

Shiv Yajnik (United States of America) (b. 2002)
Großes Konzertsolo, S176 (21′)
Dritter Mephisto-Walzer, S215 (8′)

Xuanxiang Wu (People’s Republic of China) (b. 2007)
Douze Études d’exécution transcendante, S139:
No. 11 in D-flat major Harmonies du soir (9′)                         
Réminiscences de Don Juan (Mozart Don Giovanni ) S418 (17′) 

The adjudication by jurors Melvyn Cooper, Mark Viner and Leslie Howard should take place at around 5.30pm.

Some very fine musicianly playing of clarity and authority. Beethoven’s penultimate sonata was played with great architectural shape and a simplicity that allowed the music to seemingly speak for itself. A pastoral serenity to the first movement of sublime simplicity with a glowing fluidity. An Allegro scherzo of exemplary legato that made the treacherous trio a continuous stream of mellifluous sounds where technical difficulties were absorbed so naturally into an architectural shape of mellifluous forward movement .Dissolving to a whisper as the ‘Adagio’ was intoned with religious intensity.The pulsating left hand like a heartbeat on which Beethoven floats an aria of celestial beauty.The fugue that evolved with the same serenity as the aria returned with ever more glowing beauty. A whispered return of the fugue delicately inverted as it reached for the heights with the passionate conviction of a composer tired of the struggles he had suffered and is ready to exult and embrace his future.

The Medtner Sonata was given an exemplary performance where Amit’s musicianship and technical mastery allowed him to steer through the composers sometimes foggy textures with an architectural line that allowed us to appreciate the trees in an overcrowded wood .

It was the same musicianship that he brought to Chopin’s B minor Sonata where he managed to maintain the same pulse in the ‘Maestoso’ first movement that gave such nobility and strength to the radiant beauty of the bel canto of the second subject .A scintillating ‘Scherzo’ of refined jeux perle and a ‘Trio’ with a sense of line given to the intricate counterpoints of knotty twine that Chopin weaves into the texture.The noble opening of the ‘Largo’ grew out of the exhilaration of the Scherzo. A bel canto played with ravishing beauty and whispered intimacy which dissolved into a web of golden pulsating sounds where Amit’s intelligent musicianship could weave his way with such mellifluous clarity. A Presto finale played with ever more excitement exhilaration and remarkable technical control restoring this much maligned masterpiece to the pinnacle of the Romantic repertoire.

It was however in the scintillating encore of Gershwin, Earl Wilde style that Amit let himself go with all the improvised mastery of a born jazz player . His intellectual reticence given second place with an animal like freedom pouncing like a true ‘Kitten on the Keys’ .

Multi-award-winning pianist Amit Yahav is much in demand as a recitalist, chamber musician and concerto soloist, having earned his reputation for interpretations that grip and move audiences with passion and intellectual insight. His interpretations of the music of Chopin and Schumann in particular have received high praise. In 2018, he earned a Doctor of Music degree from the Royal College of Music for his thesis investigating interpretation in the music of Chopin. Amongst Amit’s success are the Anthony Lindsay Piano Prize and the György Solti Award for Professional Development. Amit also won the 1st International Israeli Music Competition in London and consequently performed Israeli composer Zvi Avni’s On the Verge of Time in London’s Southbank Centre in the presence of the composer. In 2014, Amit attracted much positive attention with his CD “Amit Yahav Plays Chopin“, containing the four Ballades. This release followed Amit’s tour showcasing the four Ballades in an explained recital, which was also selected by the Royal College of Music as part of their Insight Series of soirees offered to their donors. Most recently, his newest disc featuring Romantic piano fantasies by Mendelssohn, Schumann and Chopin appeared on the GENUIN label. 

Amit Yahav a a master musician at St Mary’s