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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.
Guardian article online now
To go alongside my new book, The Guardian has commissioned an article from me about the history of the nocturne. You can read the article here and it should be in the print edition tomorrow, Wednesday 1 April. One nice thing about online articles is that they can...
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A visit to Toppings Bookshop in Edinburgh
Last night I gave a talk, with Bob interviewing me, at Toppings Bookshop in Edinburgh (see photo of me with piles of Nocturne books waiting to be signed). It was a pleasure to speak at a sold-out event in this lovely bookstore. The book has had another good review,...
My new book pops up here and there
Two nice things happened yesterday. I popped into Waterstones in Princes Street to ask if they were going to stock my Nocturne book. Lo and behold it was already on the 'New NonFiction' shelf, with its own little recommendation card (see photo). An hour later my...
Lyon Chamber Music Competition – jury notes
I'm back from chairing the jury at CIMCL, the Lyon International Chamber Music Competition. It was won by the Trio Messiaen from Paris, who swept the board with almost all of the available prizes. In 2nd place was the Trio Hélios, also from Paris, and in 3rd place was...
Looking forward to spring weather in France
Tomorrow I'm off to France to spend a week on the jury of the Lyon International Chamber Music Competition. This year the competition is for piano trio - the classic combination of piano, violin and cello. From time to time I come across people who think -very...
Ice dancing
On a walk today I found myself passing the ice skating rink ('the coolest place in town!') where my late father was a devoted member of the skating club for about fifty years. He went every Saturday evening and every Sunday afternoon. We children tried ice skating as...
Checking proofs of my new book
Over the last few days I have been checking the proofs of my new book, Speaking the Piano, due out in June from Boydell Press (see photo). Before we got to this point, there have been several other stages of editing. Various friends read the manuscript and gave their...
Snow and cancellations
We're in the grip of bitter winter weather. For several days it's felt as if the country has ground to a halt while 'The Beast from the East' roars around us. My inbox is full of mail from fellow free-lancers who, like me, have had concerts cancelled because of the...
5-star ‘Winterplay’ review in The Scotsman
Winterplay - Beethoven concert, Queen's Hall, Edinburgh 'The dark days of February have been indelibly brightened by Winterplay, a new weekend chamber music festival curated by pianist Susan Tomes. With workshops for children and concerts featuring teenage talent and...
Scotsman Magazine article about Winterplay
It's just ten days now until the Winterplay mini-festival of chamber music in the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh. My tally of organisational emails has probably doubled since I last reported that I had written 568 emails relating to the festival - and of course I was only...
‘Speaking the Piano’ – my new book, due out in June
I have a new book, Speaking the Piano, due out in June from Boydell Press. My previous four books are about performance. This new one is about my experiences of learning and teaching (though performance sneaks in too). The title was inspired by a remark of Artur...
Winterplay, Queen’s Hall, 10-11 Feb
Just a month now until Winterplay, my mini-festival of chamber music in the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh. The weekend of six events is designed to bring in listeners of all ages. We start on the morning of 10 Feb with a children's 'music and movement' workshop run by...
Starfish
Yesterday a strange sight greeted us when we went for a Sunday morning walk on Portobello beach. At first glance we thought the beach was covered in long drifts of pinkish seaweed, extending almost the whole length of the beach. As we got closer we realised with...
Shiny piano
My piano, which I've had for almost thirty years, has just come back from a six-month trip to be renovated by Steinway in London. Before you ask, I wasn't without a piano for the whole of that time: they kindly lent me a very nice Steinway 'B' grand to tide me over....
A piano in every Victorian home …
I've been reading 'Tales and Travels of a School Inspector' by John Wilson, an account of travelling round the Highlands and Islands of Scotland in the Victorian era, in the years after the groundbreaking 1872 Education Act which gave every child between the ages of 5...