Archive for the ‘Inspirations’ Category

Good wishes for Hogmanay

Posted by Susan Tomes on 29 December 2021 under Books, Inspirations  •  1 Comment

At the end of December, I usually reflect on my favourite concerts of the year. This year however, as you will know all too well, we spent the entire year in a pandemic. Concert life is still badly impacted, and freelance musicians have been more impacted than most. For me, the big event of the […]

A ‘Strictly’ for pianists?

Posted by Susan Tomes on 7 November 2021 under Daily Life, Inspirations  •  4 Comments

I was discussing ‘Strictly’ with a friend who’s also a fan of the show. He asked me: ‘How do you think it would work if celebrities were partnered with professional pianists, to learn to play the piano in a few weeks and then perform, say, a piano concerto in front of a TV audience?’ I […]

‘Es ist genug’: Bach’s chorale opens a BBCSO concert

Posted by Susan Tomes on 27 September 2021 under Concerts, Daily Life, Inspirations  •  1 Comment

One of the most depressing sights of lockdown in Edinburgh – for me, anyway – was the sight of the Usher Hall being turned into a Covid test centre. I know that test centres are important. But it seemed a sad change of fortune for the first big concert hall I got to know. In […]

Publication day for ‘The Piano – a History in 100 Pieces’

Posted by Susan Tomes on 13 July 2021 under Books, Inspirations  •  2 Comments

My new book comes out today. Perhaps there’s no real significance to the formal publication date, especially as pre-ordered copies have been landing on people’s doormats for a week or two now – but still, it feels like a day to be happy. I made a YouTube playlist to go with the book, featuring twenty […]

Giving the public a glimpse of the jury’s reasoning in music competitions

Posted by Susan Tomes on 21 June 2021 under Concerts, Inspirations, Musings  •  1 Comment

Last week I followed the Cardiff Singer of the World competition on TV with great enjoyment through all the rounds. I was so impressed with these singers who, despite a year of lockdown and no opportunities to sing to live audiences, were able to come out and perform so generously to a hall empty of […]