When I was playing in Birmingham a couple of weeks ago, I had an interesting conversation with a student there. (Birmingham University is rightly protective of its students' identities, so I won't name her.) She was studying aspects of the history of women playing...
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News of the death of the wonderful comic actress Prunella Scales at the age of 93 has reminded me of a little anecdote in my first book, Beyond the Notes, in the section about touring Japan with the Florestan Trio in 2000. Twenty-five years ago! For context, I should...
On Wednesday I played a solo recital in Ambleside Church as part of the Lake District Summer Music festival. My programme contained six pieces by the female pianist-composers whose work I have been performing in the past couple of years. In the context, I was touched...
Recently I've had to memorise various piano pieces by Schubert. I find his music unusually hard to memorise, for a reason that throws light on why it is so profoundly satisfying. Composers often use themes or musical material which they bring back later in the piece....
Two recent topics of conversation have come together in my mind to prompt a question. Topic 1: the number of classical concert reviews is shrinking rapidly. Everyone in the profession has noticed it. Many newspapers are reducing the number of classical reviews they...
BBC Young Musician came to a close last night with the wonderful young cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason being declared the winner after his remarkably mature and thoughtful performance of Shostakovich's first cello concerto. His charming, modest response on being asked how...
BBC Young Musician is underway on BBC4, and once again the talent and accomplishment of the young players is absolutely admirable. To watch and listen to them is inspiring and gives one great hope for the next generation of classical musicians. Having said that, I am...
It's just a week now until my Queen's Hall solo recital on 25 April at 7.30pm. The programme is called 'Pioneers of the Piano' and celebrates some of the composers who wrote in new ways for the piano, or showed it in a different light. I played the programme at...
In my travels as a guest tutor I come across post-grad and young professional musicians from lots of different countries. For some time now I've made it a habit to ask them how they're getting on with making their way in the classical music profession - easy or...
A young musician announced to me recently that the problem of classical music's dwindling audiences would be solved by moving concerts into exciting new locations not associated with classical performance. For example, she mentioned the MultiStory project, an...
A wonderful night on Monday at the Queen's Hall playing Schubert with violinist Erich Höbarth (see photo). We were pleasantly surprised by the size of the audience and even more so by their warmth. After such a long build-up to this particular concert it felt very...
A great weekend of music-making in Perth Concert Hall with the Quatuor Mosaiques came to an end yesterday with fabulous five-star reviews in The Herald and The Scotsman. During the residency we had the privilege of staying in Methven Castle with its delightful...
Last Saturday there was a lovely article by Ken Walton in The Scotsman weekend magazine about my upcoming concerts with the Quatuor Mosaiques in Perth, and with Erich Höbarth (pictured with me) in Edinburgh. Here it is for anyone who'd like to read it. For some...
An exciting week lies ahead, with a whole cluster of works - nine, in fact - to perform in the space of four days. I'm doing a residency with the wonderful period-instrument quartet, Quatuor Mosaiques, in Perth Concert Hall (in Scotland, before any Australians start...
Last week I played a lunchtime recital in Aberdeen, the first time I'd played in the city for ages. I took a train early enough to allow me to see sunrise over the Firth of Forth, followed by a spectacular curve around the coastline of Fife as the first light was...