Please tell us a
little about who you are and your background
I'm from Yorkshire and I play the
piano. I studied at Cambridge then the Guildhall School of Music & Drama
and I now live in London. I play lots of different kinds of music - old and new
(borrowed and blue too I suppose!) - and a mix of solo stuff and chamber music.
What inspires or
motivates you?
Creating amazing experiences with
sound. I can remember discovering chord inversions when I was young: I bought
the sheet music for World in Union, which we used to sing at school, and I
managed to decipher it - at this stage I hadn't started proper lessons, and
couldn't really read bass clef - but I was so excited to have unlocked the
mystery of this particular bit I loved. I still get that kind of feeling a bit
today when a composer does something really special. That's why I prefer
playing other people's music to writing my own - I like to be surprised by
something I couldn't or wouldn't have done. So I guess I'm inspired by what
composers can create and that motivates me to practise and bring the piece to
life in performance.
What have been the
most exciting performances you've given recently?
The one I most enjoyed recently was a
recital in the Sage Gateshead. It was in Hall 2, which is a tall tube shape
like a chimney (with seats all the way up) so it's got a great intimate feeling
at the stage level but you're also aware of the space above you which gives it
this fantastic acoustic. I'd never seen a hall like that before and they've got
a gorgeous piano in there too. I had a lot of fun in that concert and
particularly remember some fiendish Britten going very well!
Credit: Sage Gateshead
How would you
describe your style?
I wouldn't.
What are the
challenges with performing newly written pieces?
The main challenge is that the
emphasis is on the first performance. When you play traditional repertoire you
usually play it a lot - wherever and whenever you can - working towards a big
performance, but with a new piece the big attention is on the première so you
don't have the same chance to get comfortable with it. Also, much of the music
written today is extremely hard! Composers can be quite evil.
Are there any
particular composers that you like performing?
In terms of living composers, I love
Mark Simpson's music; I've played the piece he wrote for me (Barkham Fantasy) a
lot and am recording it later this year. His music combines sophistication and
directness, which is something I really admire. In terms of the dead composers,
there are too many greats to choose from but some of my favourite moments
onstage have been with Bach and Beethoven.
What does the
future hold?
Later this year I'm making my third
recording and I'm extremely excited about the pieces going on it - a particular
highlight is the first recording of a piano paraphrase on Berg's opera Lulu by
Marvin Wolfthal - so that will probably shape a lot of what I do over the next
couple of years. I'm also going to be collaborating with a video artist for
some concerts in 2014; I don't know exactly what kind of direction that is
going to take yet so that's going to be interesting.
What makes you smile?
Larry David.
@richard_uttley
No comments:
Post a Comment