Archives

278 Posts
archive-post-image
A Lighter Touch: Callaghan and Takenouchi on Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2
Four-hand Piano Version of Rachmaninoff’s most popular work After the complete and utter failure of his Symphony No. 1 at its premiere in 1897, Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff took a decade off from the genre, returning to create his Symphony
Read more
archive-post-image
“I Can’t Make Music Without Sharing” – House Concert by Igor Levit
On 12 March 2020, pianist Igor Levit tweeted the following: Empty concert halls. The idea of listening to and experiencing music together is gone – for now. It’s necessary, yet so sad. But it’s ok. Still: I’d like to continue
Read more
archive-post-image
Evgeny Kissin: The Salzburg Recital – Eclectic Programme and Emphatic Playing
The Salzburg Festival made its comeback in 2021 amid the pandemic and welcomed a full-capacity audience. Pianist Evgeny Kissin gave a compelling recital with a splendidly idiosyncratic programme, journeying from Alban Berg to Tikhon Khrennikov to George Gershwin in the
Read more
archive-post-image
Report From Pesaro – Frivolity and Femicide
Review on Rossini Opera Festival 2022 – La Gazzetta and Otello The 43rd edition of the Rossini Opera Festival (ROF) in Pesaro, Rossini’s birthplace, featured a selection of rare Rossini operas and recitals. The nearly two week-long event again drew
Read more
archive-post-image
The Colours of Villa-Lobos’ Piano Music
“Ms. Kopylova approaches the repertoire with an authority that is welcoming.” The pianist for the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra, Olga Kopylova, has created an album of selections from the extensive repertoire for solo piano written by Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos.
Read more
archive-post-image
An Invitation to Listen Deeply
Inner Landscapes: Christina McMaster
“An entry point for less familiar or more unusual repertoire.” “The act of listening can be transformative. It can introduce a change of perspective, heighten our perception of sound, space, time, spirituality. Our intuitive intelligence knows there is more beyond
Read more
archive-post-image
Alexandre Kantorow’s Saint-Saëns: Astounding Virtuosity and Conviction
“This album […] is a true delight and has much to savour.” Having recorded the last three piano concertos by Saint-Saëns with great acclaim, Alexandre Kantorow, the winner of the Tchaikovsky Competition in 2019, went on to record not only
Read more
archive-post-image
Reading Franz Liszt: The Poetry Behind the Piano Music
“I find Roberts’ argument most persuasive” In the introduction to his new book, pianist Paul Roberts recounts a conversation with “an elderly and much celebrated piano teacher” when he was just starting out as the inspiration for a lifetime’s fascination
Read more