Blog
I’ve been writing this blog since 2009, but there still seem to be plenty of interesting topics to mull over. You can subscribe (it’s free) to follow the blog by email – each new post will pop into your inbox.
Trying pianos at Steinway Hall
I was at Steinway Hall in London the other day to try some pianos for a recording project later this year (of which more news soon). Chief technician Ulrich Gerharz had helped me - after discussing the repertoire and the venue - to whittle the choice down to two...
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The stages that lead up to submitting your book to the publisher
One of my blog readers recently asked me what stages I had to go through before my latest book was accepted by Yale University Press. He was surprised by how complex the process was, so I thought others might find it interesting too. I don't know how it is with other...
Different kinds of live music
I was lying awake in the night, with music playing in my head as it usually does when I'm awake in the wee small hours. Sometimes I set the music going consciously, as for example when I'm 'practising' something I'm currently trying to learn or memorise. At other...
‘Gramophone’ review of my book
The October issue of the venerable Gramophone magazine has a review of my new book. I reproduce some of it here as the magazine is behind a paywall. The reviewer, Jeremy Nicholas, has quibbles about my choice of pieces, wondering why I included this and not that, but...
A walk down Piano Street
I did an interview this week about my new book for Piano Street, a Swedish-based website which celebrates all things to do with the piano, pianists and news from the piano world. They asked some interesting questions. The interview is up on their site now and can be...
‘Es ist genug’: Bach’s chorale opens a BBCSO concert
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...
Interview and podcast for ‘The Music Show’ on ABC Radio in Australia
This week I did an interview about my book 'The Piano' with Andrew Ford, the knowledgeable host of ABC's long-running 'Music Show' in Australia. He has woven in archive clips of other pianists talking or playing favourite music, so it has become an pleasing mosaic of...
Knitting
Last week I was thinking of writing a blog post about knitting. What is the connection between knitting and pianism, you may ask? Well, I had been reading about the 19th-century pianist Clara Schumann, who continued to tour and earn money for the family after her...
A review of my book on Pianodao website
A review of my book has popped up on Pianodao, a website devoted to the piano, pianists and piano education. You can read the whole review by clicking here. For now, some excerpts: 'Before the last rays of summer settle into the colours of autumn, let me tell you...
Adapting touring methods because of climate change
This morning I heard a report about scientists who have made a list of recommendations for touring musicians to cut back on carbon emissions. Amongst other things it recommended that musicians should use instruments or equipment 'held by the venue'. Good luck with...
![No more bullfrogs […for now]](https://www.susantomes.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/IMG_20210816_155540976-rotated-1-400x250.jpg)
No more bullfrogs […for now]
My readers will know that I hate people coughing in concerts. I don't mean the sudden cough that the person can't help and does their best to stifle - I mean the self-indulgent barking cough which rings out across the hall and seems to be targeted at specially quiet...
Piano Power
Recently I've heard or coached a number of amateur pianists whose playing I haven't heard for 18 months, or before All This started. I had been afraid that everyone's playing would have fallen apart, but actually my impression was that lockdown has enhanced rather...
My book turns up in Western Australia
A reader has sent me a photo of my new book on his garden table in rural Western Australia (see photo). It's astonishing to me to think of this book, a copy of which I have photographed on my own garden table, flying to the other side of the world to start a...
How to subscribe to this blog – an update
Update: if you've been trying to subscribe to my blog in the last day or two and have encountered problems, please note that the link is now working properly. I've just been writing to my subscribers to tell them that new blog posts, delivered to them by email, now...
Toppings Bookshop ‘author event’ last night
Last night I did an 'author event' - the first in-person event of this year - at Toppings Bookshop in Edinburgh. This bookshop, fairly new to Edinburgh, has been beautifully designed around the many interestingly-shaped rooms of the historic building. Curved wooden...