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www.internatio
nal-piano.com
www.internatio
nal-piano.com
NO.31 MAY/JUNE 20155.50
www.international-piano.com
FERRUCCIO BUSONIExperts discuss the great concerto and more
NEW DISCOVERIESWorks by Roger Sacheverell Coke
GOLDBERG VARIATIONSGlenn Goulds seminal recording 60 years
on
Alice Sara Ott and Francesco Tristano explore the heady
world of four-hand repertoire
DOUBLE TROUBLE
COLE PORTERFELICJA BLUMENTAL
KIRILL GERSTEINSIBELIUS
77
20
42
07
70
05
9
05
>
Plus:
3-CD set Busoni The Visionary
by Jeni Slotchiver COURTESY OF CENTAUR
WIN
www.internatio
nal-piano.com
www.internatio
nal-piano.com
www.internatio
nal-piano.com
Alice Sara Ott and Francesco Tristano explore the heady
world of four-hand repertoire
TROUBLEINSIDESHEETMUSIC
MA
Y/JUN
E 2015
International Piano
www.internatio
nal-piano.com
SEE PAGE 41FANTASY IN D MINOR, K 397 BY MOZARTPIANO STREET
INSTRUCTIVE EDITION
IP0515_001_cvr_CJ.indd 2 20/04/2015 17:42
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May/June 2015 International Piano 3
con t en t s
20
Contents
55
48
90
Lo
uise D
uc
hesn
eau
tu
LLy potter c
oLLec
tion
steph
an
e-pauL c
ha
rpentier-tity/D
g
M
arc
o Bo
rgg
reve
20 Cover storyAlice Sara Ott and Francesco Tristano
25 New produCtsThe latest gadgets
31 saCheverell CokeSimon Callaghan on his recording of Cokes
Preludes and Variations
48 explore the sCorePierre-Laurent Aimard on Ligetis piano
works
52 high soCietyThe life and work of song-writer Cole Porter
62 Festival reportCreative programming at the Printemps des Arts
de Monte-Carlo
17 oNe to watChClimne Daudet
19 diary oF aN aCCompaNistIn which Michael Round samples the
Cor! factor
28 CompetitioN reportThe International Franz Liszt Piano
Competition
37 helpiNg haNdsHow to select your first piano
38 masterClassDeveloping rhythmic awareness, by IPs resident
tutor Murray McLachlan
41 sheet musiCMozarts Fantasy in D minor, K 397, Piano Street
Instructive Edition
64 a broader paletteUnseen sketches by pianist Felicja
Blumental
69 braiN mappiNgNorman Doidge on his bestseller The Brain That
Changes Itself
74 reCordiNgGlenn Goulds Goldberg Variations
7 lettersYour thoughts and comments
8 NewsThe latest updates from the piano world
15 CommeNtIn defence of Liszt
REGULARS
55 symposiumExperts discuss the great pianist, writer and
composer Ferruccio Busoni
60 repertoireThe 150th anniversary of the birth of Finnish
composer Jean Sibelius
67 piaNo makersGazas grand piano
73 take FiveJazz pianist Jason Moran
78 reviewsThe latest CDs, technology, films and sheet music,
plus recital roundup
90 musiC oF my liFeKirill Gerstein
IP0515_003_Contents_CJ.indd 3 20/04/2015 14:25
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MOVE BEYOND THE BOUNDARIES OF GENRECHOOSE LEEDS COLLEGE OF
MUSICVisit our next Experience Day on Saturday 6 June at 1pm to
find out more.
@LeedsMusic www.lcm.ac.uk/experienceday
IP0315.indd 4 17/04/2015 16:55:30
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May/June 2015 International Piano 5
Ivo Pogorelichs Royal Festival Hall concert, part of the
Southbank Centres International Piano Series, was the pianists fi
rst London solo recital since 1999 and the critics were out in
force, pencils sharpened, ears pricked. Pogorelich told this
magazine in no uncertain terms that this was not a comeback concert
(cover story, issue 29, January/February 2015). But it was, and
everyone was fascinated to hear what this controversial pianist had
been working on.
A few pages into Liszts Dante Sonata, my heart sank. Pogorelich
did not seem on top of his game; he fi ddled with the piano stool,
employed extreme levels of rubato and lacked any sort of
sensitivity in his touch. While there is nothing wrong in playing
with sheet music IP has discussed at length the issue of
memorisation and the unfair pressures it
places on pianists Pogorelich remained buried in the pages,
seemingly sight-reading the music. Schumanns Fantasie in C
followed, a drawn-out, expansive a air that saw the Croatian
pianist take a full 37 minutes over a work that usually lasts
around 32. In both works the sound felt dry, and despite the
lengthy phrasing, notes were not fi nished properly. There were
snippets of beauty, particularly in the fi nale, but the listener
needed to embrace the unusual pacing, which this writer failed to
do.
Those who did connect to Pogorelichs unorthodox style found
slivers of genius in his rendition of the Brahms Paganini
Variations. But many did not stay past the fi rst half, myself
included, fi nding the experience uncomfortable and pondering the
pianists wellbeing. Perhaps the pressure had simply been too much.
Or perhaps this divisive style was the intended fruit of his
labour.
Its unlikely well fi nd out via another interview any time soon.
In the days that followed, every broadsheet with the exception of
The Independent panned the recital, giving it one-star (Guardian,
Telegraph) and two-star (FT, Times) reviews. Poor Pogorelich. We
demand individuality and creative programming but that on its own
just isnt enough.
This is my last issue as editor of IP. A er four years and 25
editions I am moving on to pastures new. It has been a great
pleasure to work at the helm of this esteemed publication. May I
take this opportunity to thank my colleagues at Rhinegold
Publishing, advertisers, interviewees, agents, artists,
distributors and contributors but greatest thanks to you, dear
reader.
CLAIRE JACKSONEDITOR
Editor Claire Jackson
Sub Editor Femke Colborne
Contributors Michael Church, Colin ClarkeAndy Hamilton, Benjamin
Ivry, Graham Lock, Murray McLachlan, Jeremy Nicholas, Guy Rickards,
Michael Round, Eric Schoones, Rebecca Schmid, Jeremy Siepmann,
Joseph Tong, Cameron Watson, Stephen Wigler
Head of Design & Production / Designer Beck Ward Murphy
Production Controller Gordon Wallis
Advertising Sales Edward [email protected]
Marketing Manager Frances Innes-Hopkins
Managing Director Ciaran Morton
Publisher Derek B Smith
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NO.31 MAY/JUNE 20155.50
www.international-piano.com
FERRUCCIO BUSONIExperts discuss the great concerto and more
NEW DISCOVERIESWorks by Roger Sacheverell Coke
GOLDBERG VARIATIONSGlenn Goulds seminal recording 60 years
on
Alice Sara Ott and Francesco Tristano explore the heady
world of four-hand repertoire
DOUBLE TROUBLE
COLE PORTERFELICJA BLUMENTAL
KIRILL GERSTEINSIBELIUS
77
20
42
07
70
05
9
05
>
Plus:
3-CD set Busoni The Visionary by Jeni Slotchiver COURTESY OF
CENTAUR
WIN
www.intern
ational-p
iano.co
mwww.intern
ational-p
iano.co
mwww.intern
ational-p
iano.co
m
Alice Sara Ott and Francesco Tristano explore the heady
world of four-hand repertoire
TROUBLEINSIDESHEETMUSIC
MA
Y/JUN
E 2015
International Piano
www.in
ternatio
nal-p
iano.co
m
SEE PAGE 41FANTASY IN D MINOR, K 397 BY MOZARTPIANO STREET
INSTRUCTIVE EDITION
IP0515_001_cvr_CJ.indd 2 20/04/2015 17:43
IP0515_005_Editorial_CJ.indd 5 21/04/2015 10:40
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Final Round > 26.08. 04.09.2015Watch the birth of a future
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May/June 2015 International Piano 7
l e t t e r s
RemembeRing RichteR Dear IP,When my copy of the March/April
issue arrived, I wasnt entirely surprised that the magazine failed
to include a 100th anniversary tribute to Sviatoslav Richter. Its
probably the case that IPs writers and editors, who need to
complete the magazine nearly two months before it is mailed to
subscribers, only remembered the anniversary when it was too late
to include an appreciation. Richter was and remains my favourite
pianist. I loved him so much that, even though he toured North
America only three times (in 1960, 1965 and 1970), I managed to
hear 12 of his recitals. But while I never forget that 20 March was
his birthday, I also forgot that this was his 100th anniversary.
The reason for this is that many of us even those who are too young
to have heard Richter in concert do not think of him as belonging
to history.
In the dozen years or so up to Richters death in 1997, as the
Baltimore Suns music critic, I wrote obituaries for many of the
great pianists of the 20th century
including Rudolf Serkin, Vladimir Horowitz, Claudio Arrau,
Wilhelm Kempff, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, Shura Cherkassky,
Emil Gilels and Jeanne-Marie Darr, all of whom I am lucky enough to
have heard in concert and all of whose recordings I also
assiduously collected. When I want to listen to many of the
greatest masterpieces of the piano literature Beethovens
Appassionata, Schuberts Wanderer Fantasy, Liszts B minor Sonata,
Schumanns C major Fantasy, Mussorgskys Pictures or Prokofievs War
Sonatas its usually the case that I listen to Richter rather than
any of his great predecessors and successors. I know Im not the
only one who feels this way. To us, he always remains alive.Stephen
Wigler
RepeRtoiRe RescueDear IP,This is an update on my article Search
and Rescue, which appeared in the January/February issue of IP. The
article was about the first ever editions, published last year, of
two of the three Grandes Sonates for piano by Antoine Reicha
(1770-1836). The total has now increased to six sonatas, edited by
me and published by Symtrie of Lyon (see p8). The four new ones are
the remaining Grande Sonate in E major, a sonata in D from the same
period, 1803-1805, and two in F from about 1800. This means that,
including the Sonata in E flat, Op 43, published by Henle, we now
have modern editions of all seven of the existing piano sonatas of
Reichas maturity (three from his adolescence remain in manuscript
and three, the Op 46, seem to be lost, apart from one
movement).
So what next for Reichas piano music? Two short, experimental
works from 1800-1803 are in preparation, to be published by
Symtrie: Capriccio (unusual modulations and lots of 74); and
Harmonie (variations on a harmonic sequence,
including one in 58 and another without bar lines).
Reicha produced no more piano sonatas after 1805, but still
continued to write for piano solo. Two of these later works,
published in the composers lifetime but not edited since, look
particularly interesting. One is the Variations on a Theme by
Gluck, which appeared in 1815. In that same year, Hummels Op 57 was
published a set of variations on the very same theme. Pure
coincidence? I think not. The other is the 34 Etudes of 1820,
which, though he does not make the comparison himself, could be
Reichas take on Bachs 48. Each study is in two parts, the second
being a fugue or in the style of a fugue. Michael Bulley
baReRe coRRectionsDear IP,There are a few factual errors in the
recent article on Simon Barere (Pearls of Sheer Light, March/April
2015).
It is written: Shehori remembers a revealing incident at
Carnegie Hall In fact, I relayed this story to Mr Johnson as it was
told to me by the great violinist Berl Senofsky in the year 2000. I
could not have remembered it because I was not born when Vladimir
Horowitz allegedly walked out in the middle of Simon Bareres
performance of Mozart-Liszts Rminiscences de Don Juan.
Secondly, when I described Simon Bareres playing as pearls of
sheer light, I referred to his amazing performances of Liszts
Gnomenreigen and not particularly to the La leggierezza
performance.
And finally, just to clarify Cembal damours compilation
statement. Cembal damours recordings of Simon Barere include
material from Bareres last recording sessions in March 1951, only a
few weeks before his death (CD 114). Those were never available
before on a compact disc.Mordecai Shehori
LettersWrite to International Piano, 20 Rugby Street, London,
WC1N 3QZ, email [email protected] or tweet
@IP_mag. Star letters will receive a free CD from Hyperions
best-selling Romantic Piano Concerto series
S P O N S O R E D By H y PE R I O N R E C O R D S
Tu
lly PoTTer C
olleC
Tion
IP0515_007_Letters_CJ.indd 7 20/04/2015 14:36
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8 International Piano May/June 2015
n e w s & e v e n t s
UkraInIan-born PIanIst Valentina Lisitsa has had an engagement
with Canadas toronto symphony orchestra (tso) cancelled, allegedly
because the soloist has expressed political views on the situation
in Ukraine.
Lisitsa appealed to fans online and asked them to tell toronto
symphony that music cant be silenced. If they do it once, they will
do it again and again, until the artists are intimidated into
voluntary censorship,
she wrote. our future will be bleak if we allow this to happen.
Please stand with me.
Lisitsa claims that the tso offered to cover her entire fee for
the cancelled appearance
but only if she kept quiet about the circumstances: toronto
symphony is going to PaY ME not to PLaY because I exercised the
right to free speech [...]and they even threatened me against
saying anything about the cause of the cancellation [sic].
seriously. and I thought things like this only happen in turkey to
Fazil say? [In reference to the turkish pianist who was convicted
of insulting Islam in comments published via twitter.]
Lisitsa was born in kiev into a russian-Polish family. she
immigrated to the Us in the 1990s. Lisitsa was spotted online and
now records for Decca. over the last year she has been living a
double life as a pianist and activist, and tweets under the
nickname nedoUkranka (sub-Ukrainian), which she came up with after
the Ukrainian Prime Minister arseny Yatsenyuk published a statement
calling the supporters of eastern
Ukrainian militia forces subhumans. Her comments are often
controversial, for example she has compared governmental actions to
those of nazi Germany.
the situation in toronto became even more entangled when stewart
Goodyear, the pianist whom the tso had recruited to step in for
Lisitsa, announced that he would not be performing with the
orchestra after all. I found myself in the middle of a social media
frenzy, Goodyear wrote on his Facebook fan page. Words of bile and
hatred were hurled in my direction from all sides. suddenly I was
accused of supporting censorship, and bullied into declining this
engagement.
Lisista travelled to toronto with a view to find a space to play
for her fans, minus the tso. a church that had agreed to host the
recital pulled out, amid speculation that it had received
complaints.
news events
antoInE rEICHas (1770-1836) sonata in D has received formal
publication, over 200 years since it first appeared in
manuscript.
all seven of the existing piano sonatas are first editions
except for the Grande sonate in E, which was first published in
1803, and the sonata in E flat op 43, published by Henle in
1971.
the sonata in D was edited by Michael bulley and published by
symtrie. bulley wrote an article about the publication of two of
the three Grandes sonatas (1803) in the January/February edition of
IP (no 29).
the sonata in D has so many different things theres bound to be
something to appeal to every pianist, says bulley. If you like
playing fugues, for example, then, ten years before beethoven tried
it, reicha incorporates a fugue into a piano sonata
movement. Well, thats not quite right: in fact, there are two
fugues in the first movement, and two of everything else, including
two 20-bar passages of insistent repeated quaver chords.
the second movement is a Funeral March, that starts off in G
major, but then, in the trio section, marches off into all sorts of
keys. the finale is called La Folie, and thats what it is: a mad
whirlwind movement that alternates between a patter-song and a
driving theme that relentlessly ascends and descends the keyboard,
finishing with 33 bars of little grasshopper-like D major
arpeggios.
the work is likely to appeal to professional pianists and
amateurs alike; although there are some difficult passages the
technical level is not of the standard youd find in, say, Liszts
pianistic writing. the boldness of reichas musical ideas
will appeal to 21st century music lovers it was this that first
drew bulley to the oeuvre.
the sonata in D previously existed only in manuscript; bulley
put together a basic computerised version and worked with the
publishers to produce the final edition.
We now have modern editions of all seven of reichas piano
sonatas that have survived, apart from three pre-1790s ones from
his adolescence, bulley explains. Maybe they will be done sometime,
but now we go on to other piano works by reicha, some in
manuscript, some in old editions. the reicha revival continues.
tu
lly potter c
ollec
tion
ToronTo Symphony cancelS performance by ValenTina liSiTSa
firST publicaTion of anToine reichaS SonaTa in D
IP0515_08-09_News_CJ.indd 8 20/04/2015 17:47
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May/June 2015 International Piano 9
n e w s & e v e n t s
Ronald StevenSon, the composer and pianist best known for
Passacaglia on DSCH, reckoned to be the longest single-movement
work within the piano literature, has died.
Stevenson was a polymath composer, pianist and writer who will
always be remembered for his mammoth Passacaglia on DSCH, composed
in 1960-62. Paradoxically, this masterpiece was not truly
representative of the rest of his colossal output (toccata Presss
catalogue covered 78 pages and took three years to compile) but it
is by far his best-known creation.
Stevenson was in the great line of composer-pianists that
includes liszt, Busoni, Paderewski (his personal idol), Godowsky
and Sorabji. he was an extraordinarily gifted pianist with an
individual touch (and what a touch!) and tone. For evidence, look
no further than the two available recordings he made of the
Passacaglia. travelling the world as a touring virtuoso, though,
was not for him. It was too much of a sacrifice given his family
and the need to sit and compose music which he did in his small
study christened the den of Musiquity.
his comparative lack of worldly, commercial success seemed not
to bother him. he did what he had to do despite limited interest
from the powers that be in the musical world. While recognition
went to the likes of Maxwell davies and Boulez, he scoffed at their
composition techniques. In Music Ho!, Constant lambert said that
the way forward in music was going to Sibelius, not Stravinsky,
Stevenson once remarked. he was wrong, of course, but I think it
would have been a damn sight better if he had been right.
In many senses, Stevenson was born out of his time. the
composer-pianist tradition had virtually died out with the advent
of recordings (although it is now making a comeback) but that was
of no consequence. he espoused unfashionable causes, not only as an
outsider but an outsider who promoted other outsiders such as
havergal Brian, Percy Grainger, norman dett, Bernard Stevens and
John Foulds. I feel very strongly, he once said,
that my aesthetic belongs to two circles of composers who were
satellites round Busoni and delius. he named Peter Warlock, Bernard
van dieren, and Sorabji. a one-time Marxist, his pacifism landed
him in gaol while his concomitant refusal to do military service
led him to work in a colliery school in County durham.
he was born into a working-class family in Blackburn,
lancashire, but in essence he was a true Celt: his father was a
Scottish railway fireman, his mother a Welsh cotton-weaver. at
heart he was a Scot. he spoke with a gentle Scottish burr. he had
Scotland in his soul and, though a true cosmopolitan, he was a
Scottish composer. Since 1955, he made his home in West linton on
the Scottish borders, half and hours bus ride from edinburgh.
Stevenson was composing and giving recitals from his early teens
and at 17 began studies at the Royal Manchester College of Music
(now the RnCM) with Iso ellinson who himself had been a pupil of
Felix Blumenfeld and alexander Glazunov. after graduating he spent
six months in Rome studying orchestration with Guido Guerrini at
the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia.
In 1952 he married his long-time sweetheart Marjorie Spedding.
anyone who knew Ronald also knew what a debt he owed to her
devotion and support throughout his long career. With little money
filling the coffers at times, it was she who kept the Stevenson
boat afloat by her work as a district nurse. among
his landmarks as a composer are the song cycle Border Boyhood
(with Peter Pears, aldeburgh 1971); Piano Concerto no 1 (with the
Scottish national orchestra under Sir alexander Gibson, 1966); the
violin Concerto the Gypsy (commissioned by Yehudi Menuhin) and a
Cello Concerto written in memory of Jacqueline du Pr (premiered in
1995 by Moray Welsh).
on a personal note, I have never forgotten his kindness and
generosity when I was researching my biography of leopold Godowsky.
We first met in 1972 at londons Roundhouse during a rehearsal break
for the world premiere (at the Proms) of his Second Piano Concerto
the Continents the only time, incidentally, that any of his music
has been heard at the Proms. Somehow, when he had a thousand other
pressing concerns, he found time to answer my questions, and
provide me with advice, names and contacts as though there was all
the time in the world. I learned afterwards that this was typical.
I treasure the letters in his idiosyncratic calligraphy, and
especially the dedication in the copy he sent me of Song in Gold
Pavilions (the collection of his writings published by Sun Press):
In unison of friendship and harmony of aesthetic. Ronald Stevenson
was unique. how lucky we were to have him in our midst. how sad his
great talent was not more widely acknowledged while he was alive.
his time will come.
Ronald Stevensonb. 6 March 1928d. 28 March 2015
JereMy Nicholas
Ronald StevenSon (1928-2015)
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tu
lly Potter c
ollec
tioN
Scottish pianist and composer Ronald Stevenson
IP0515_08-09_News_CJ.indd 9 20/04/2015 17:47
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May/June 2015 International Piano 11
r u n n i n g h e a dc o m P e t I t I o n s , aw a r d s s I g
n I n g s &
on 14 march at Londons conway Hall, some of the UKs most
promising young pianists performed in the finals of the european
Piano teachers association (ePta) Piano competition. nearly 300
players had taken part in first rounds, which were scheduled from
the autumn in regional centres as far apart as devon, Belfast and
newcastle. In February, regional finals were held in cardiff,
London and manchester.
the standard at the finals was phenomenally high, and
adjudicators Vanessa Latarche, ronan oHora and niel Immelman were
given a wide range of repertoire to listen to. In the 15 and under
final, one performer from Leeds, tammas slater, tackled tippetts
second sonata, while the winner of the class, Lauren Zhang (a
student at Birmingham conservatoire), gave a breathtakingly agile,
accurate and idiomatic account of Scarbo from ravels Gaspard de la
nuit. not for nothing did one of the adjudicators in jest ask to
see the performers birth certificates!
after nearly six hours of intense and often thrilling listening,
the overall winner was judged to be 21-year-old Iyad sughair, a
student at the royal northern college of music in manchester, who
gave a deeply poetic performance of mozarts intensely poetic B
minor adagio. Victor Lim, a student of graham scott in manchester,
was awarded the angela rinsler Prize for his confident rendering of
the Bartk sonata.
other highlights included 17-year-old James ellis (winner of the
18 and under class) in Beethovens op 110 sonata and graingers In
Dahomey (Cakewalk Smasher), rowel Friers from northern Ireland in
an attractive recital of more modest grade pieces, and rhys
concessao (winner of the 12 and under final) from the Purcell
school in the finale of Beethovens moonlight sonata. opportunities
for future performances by some of these outstanding young pianists
will shortly be arranged by ePta. see the website for full details:
www.epta-uk.org.Murray McLachLan
saetbyeol serena Kim has won the third dallas International
Piano competition, held on 11-14 march.
the event, hosted by the dallas chamber symphony (dcs), saw 19
young pianists from nine different countries compete for the grand
prize, which comprised $1,500 and a concert engagement with the dcs
during its 2015/16 season.
Kristyan Benitez from Venezuela claimed the second prize of
$1,000 for his performance of griegs Piano concerto in a minor, and
Israeli pianist anna arazi took third place and a cash award of
$500 for her performance of Prokofievs Piano concerto no 1. arazi
performed on a steinbuhler alternate-size keyboard, making her the
first person ever to win a prize at an international piano
competition while performing an alternate size action.
Finalists nathan ryland from the Us and Inyoung Kim from south
Korea both received honourable mentions for their performances of
Prokofievs Piano concerto no 3 and saint-sans Piano concerto no 2
respectively. Both receive a cash prize of $400.
saetbyeol completed her masters degree at the eastman school of
music, where she held an accompanying assistantship and served as
the teaching assistant to enrico elisi. she is currently pursuing
an artist diploma at the glenn gould school of the royal
conservatory under marietta orlov.
Piers Lane has been appointed artistic director of the sydney
International Piano competition of australia (sIPca) for 2016. Lane
is currently artistic director of the australian Festival of
chamber music, and will carry out his new role in addition to his
existing position during 2016.
Lane has a longstanding affiliation with the sIPca, having won
the prize for the Best australian Pianist in the inaugural
competition in 1977. He was also one of its international jury
members in 2004.
commenting on his appointment, Lane said: I am absolutely
delighted to be appointed artistic director for the 2016 sIPca. I
have had a long association with the competition and am looking
forward to contributing to its refreshment and to taking it to even
greater heights. International competitions play a very significant
role in the development of young pianists and their careers and
also foster an interest in piano music among audiences, an
important factor for the future of our art.
Iyad Sughair
Piers Lane
UKIyad SUghaIr crowned ePTa UK wInner
USaSaeTbyeol Serena KIm wInS In dallaS
aUSTralIaPIerS lane To head Sydney comPeTITIon
Saetbyeol Serena Kim
C
LIVE B
AR
DA
IP0515_011_CompNews_CJ.indd 11 20/04/2015 14:37
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I N T E R N AT I O N A L
JUNIOR & YOUNG ARTISTSP I A N O C O M P E T I T I O N S
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Live Auditions in 10 International Locations
$60,000 in Prizes
Final Round with theUtah Symphony(Young Artists only)
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G I N A B A C H A U E R
Application Deadline:OCTOBER 1, 2015
Oxford Philomusica
Masterclass with
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Sunday 7 June, 10am-12.30pm Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford
One of the worlds greatest pianists gives a rare masterclass to
exceptional piano students.
Oxford University Residency Programme
01865 980 980oxfordphil.com
In Residence at the University of Oxford
IP0315.indd 12 20/04/2015 17:08:44
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May/June 2015 International Piano 13
e duc at i on
FARGO, NORTH DAKOTATyler Wottrich joins NDSUPianist Tyler
Wottrich has joined the faculty at North Dakota State University
(NDSU). Wottrich studied with Gail Olszewski, Lydia Artymiw and
Gilbert Kalish, and has degrees in music and mathematics from the
University of Minnesota. He has played with Ensemble
ACJW, a partnership between Carnegie Hall, the Juilliard School
and the Weill Music Institute. At NDSU, Wottrich will build a
graduate collaborative piano programme and teach applied piano as
well as theory and analysis.
AINRING, GERMANYRalf Halk to head KulturvereinGerman pianist
Ralf Halk has been named head of the Kulturverein (cultural
association) of Ainring in Upper Bavaria, Germany, near the
Austrian border. Halk will use his keyboard experience to develop
the local cultural scene. A resident of Feldkirchen, Upper Bavaria,
Halk teaches piano, organ, coaching and conducting at the Musikum
Salzburg. He was born in Karlsruhe in 1968.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIAFabio Bidini inaugurates piano chairThe
Colburn School in Los Angeles, California has announced that the
Italian pianist Fabio Bidini will be the first holder of its Carol
Grigor Piano Chair. Currently teaching at Berlins Hochschule fr
Musik
Hanns Eisler, Bidini will assume his duties at the Colburn
School in autumn of this year. The endowed chair is the result of a
$5m gift from pianist Carol Grigor. Bidini, who was born in Arezzo
in 1968, came sixth at the 1993 Van Cliburn International Piano
Competition, which was won by his compatriot Simone Pedroni.
PIANISTS REMEMBEREDFrank GlazerFrank Glazer, longtime
artist-in-residence at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, died in
January aged 99. He had given his last recital at Bates two months
before. The subject of the 2009 biography The Fountain of Youth:
The Artistry of Frank Glazer (VDM Verlag Dr Mller), Glazer studied
with Artur Schnabel in the 1930s. His New York debut was in 1936 at
the Town Hall. He died a month before his centenary, for which he
had planned a recital. Glazer relished contemporary composers,
favouring Coplands Piano Variations, Barbers Excursions and Griffes
Roman Sketches. He studied anatomy, the Alexander Technique and
Otto Ortmanns The Physical Basis of Piano Touch and Tone to conquer
physical challenges of lifetime keyboard performance. Having
survived quadruple bypass surgery at the age of 86, he told The
Maine Magazine in 2011: I learned that if you can do it with one
muscle, dont do it with three. I learned how not to tense a muscle
that
raises the arm. You have to have tension, but its the
relationship between tension and relaxation thats important. Most
people make the mistake of working too hard.
Dorothy MavrichHaving taught the piano for half a century at the
Joliet Conservatory of Music, 40 miles south west of Chicago,
Dorothy Mavrich died in February aged 94. Mavrich spearheaded a
1970s grassroots effort to preserve the Rialto Square Theatre, a
local landmark, from demolition. Her conservatory was across the
street from the Rialto, which was scheduled to be destroyed to make
room for a parking garage. Possessing Americas largest hand-cut
crystal chandelier and with grandiose architectural references to
the Hall of Mirrors in Versailles, the Arc de Triomphe in Paris and
the Roman Pantheon, the Rialto Square Theatre reopened in 1981 with
a gala concert featuring pianist Victor Borge and continues to
thrive today.
Joseph Alfidi American pianist Joseph Alfidi, who died in
February aged 65, was a much-publicised child prodigy who came
third at the 1972 Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels, ahead of
Emanuel Ax. Among admirers of the young Alfidis playing was Arthur
Rubinstein, who particularly praised the young pianists LP of
Rachmaninovs Third Piano Concerto. In more recent years, Alfidi
taught at the Royal Conservatory of Lige, Belgium.
Vera Gornostayeva Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory mainstay Vera
Gornostayeva died in January aged 85. Gornostayeva taught Alexander
Slobodyanik, Elena Gilels and Dina Yoffe, among many others, and
was herself a pupil of Heinrich Neuhaus. Her many recordings for
Philips and other labels won international acclaim.
FACULTY NEWSIP presents the latest updates from international
keyboard departments
Fabio Bodini
Tyler Wottrich
sv
ho
epck
er
IP0515_013_FacultyNews_CJ.indd 13 20/04/2015 16:58
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Peregrines Pianos, 137A Grays Inn Road, London WC1X 8TU Tel: 020
7242 9865
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Sale and hire options for the musical family.
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Programme2015.ai 1 12/02/2015 16:55:48
IP0315.indd 14 17/04/2015 16:55:41
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May/June 2015 International Piano 15
Before the LSo Performed [mahlers Sixth], they offered another
piece of barnstorming romantic rhetoric in the shape of the Second
Piano Concerto by franz Liszt. the soloist was Alice Sara ott, who
despite her sylph-like frame made the military rodomontade of
Liszts piece ring out with heroic force. As if to prove that this
is not really her thing, she played the diffident opening pages
with a delicate, quiet tenderness that the notes didnt really
deserve. All her efforts, and the deft accompaniment by the
orchestra under conductor Gianandrea Noseda, couldnt disguise the
tinny emptiness of the music. When ott came back on stage for her
encore, she apologised for almost destroying the piano, and the
limpid, graceful way she played the Second romanza of robert
Schumann suggested she was apologising for Liszts concerto as
well.
the quote above is part of a recent concert review in the Daily
Telegraph by one of the UKs leading music critics. It is not
untypical of the view of Liszt held by him and others of a certain
mindset. their love and knowledge of classical music is as deep and
passionate as it is wide and erudite, but they dont get Liszt. they
get mahler all right. they get Bach, Beethoven, Britten, Boulez and
Birtwistle. these are the untouchables. Criticise them at your
peril. Liszt, though, is one of those composers who it is safe to
sneer at or dismiss entirely.
Lets leave aside the improbability of Alice Sara ott apologising
for the concerto she had just chosen to perform. her Lisztian
credentials are well known and I doubt she would waste her time on
a composer whose music she felt apologetic about
playing. Look at how the Second Piano Concerto is characterised:
barnstorming rhetoric [] military rodomontade [] played with a
delicate, quiet tenderness that the notes didnt really deserve []
the tinny emptiness of the music. our critic would surely be aware
of the A major Concertos originality and inventiveness. So why not
enlighten readers and point out that, for example, it is a work of
unique conception that was revised, honed and polished several
times after its initial conception in 1839/40 and was not to be
published in its final version until 20 years later? or that its
structurally ambiguous single-movement form is not unlike a
symphonic poem (one genre among many invented by Liszt)? the tinny
emptiness of Liszts labours as set forth in this bit of romantic
rhetoric has always remained popular with the public. And why has
it attracted great pianists down the generations, among them
ferruccio Busoni, emil von Sauer, Nelson freire, Lazar Berman,
Sviatoslav richter, John ogdon, Claudio Arrau, Grigory Ginzburg,
Julius Katchen, Jorge Bolet and egon Petri? If its good enough for
them, its good enough for me and it should be good enough for any
other music lover too.
dISdAIN for LISzt ANd hIS music is, of course, nothing new. With
the notable exception of richard Strauss, the Austro-German lot
(mahler, Schoenberg et al), with their influential grip on the
course of classical music, had little time for him. they viewed
Liszt primarily as a virtuoso pianist and a superficial composer
who indulged in the near-criminal offence of writing ornamentation
for its own sake (the french and russians were more generous: one
can see the influence of Liszt in the works of debussy, ravel,
Glinka, Balakirev, rachmaninov, Lyapunov and many others). right up
until the 1950s, in some quarters he was viewed as a charlatan, a
meretricious showman, a lothario whose music was empty, frivolous
and non-authentic. All-Liszt recitals were
rare events indeed. A decade ago when I was asked to write a
book on the 50 greatest composers, my cultured, music-loving editor
questioned my inclusion of Liszt as a suitable subject. Is he
really a great composer? he queried. Certainly, I countered. No
question. one of the most influential of the 19th century. Who
would
you put in his place if it were between him and someone else?
heinrich Schtz, came the reply. Im pleased to say I won the
argument.
Liszt was not only a great composer. I think he was one of the
great men of the 19th century in any sphere. his championship of
struggling composers, his encouragement of the younger generation
(composers and performers) and his generosity in not charging his
students for lessons was musical philanthropy on a grand scale. how
he managed to do what he did in one lifetime remains baffling. his
achievements in any single role, whether pianist, composer,
conductor, writer or teacher, would have been enough for a normal
person. Quantity does not, of course, equal quality, but there is
little that is tinny or empty in the extraordinary creative output
of this genius.
C o m m e N t
Jeremy Nicholas writes in defence of franz Liszts piano
music
The tinny emptiness of Liszt
t
ull
y po
tte
r c
oll
ecti
on
IP0515_015_Comment_CJ.indd 15 20/04/2015 14:39
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blo
ssom
com
mun
icat
ion
Khatia BuniatishviliJan Lisiecki
Menahem Pressler
Andrs SchiffGrigory SokoloDaniil Trifonov
Morningside Music Bridgeat Mount Royal Conservatory
July 2-31, 2015Calgary, CanadaAn international
classical music festivaland training program
for the worlds bestemerging young artists.
Apply by Feb. 18, 2015
mtroyal.ca/musicbridgeSUPPORTED BY
IP0315.indd 16 17/04/2015 16:55:42
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May/June 2015 International Piano 17
o n e t o w a t c h
Bachs last mIghty, unfInIshed masterPIece the Art of Fugue is
something of a musical enigma. the composer never specified that
the work should be played on a solo keyboard instrument. the music,
a deeply complex exploration of counterpoint, may well have been
intended as an exercise for the mind, rather than the fingers. Its
relentless nature ensures there is no light relief for the
performer or listener; the work expands like a dividing cell for
nearly an hour and a half, until it comes to an abrupt halt midway
through the final, unfinished quadruple fugue.
Its a work that french pianist climne daudet knows inside and
out. daudet recorded the Art of Fugue three years ago
(en.celimene-daudet.com), before angela hewitts recent hit
recording for hyperion put the work back on the map. however, it
wasnt until a chance meeting with marc monnet, enterprising
artistic director of the Printemps des arts de monte-carlo (see
pp62-63), that daudet was given the opportunity to perform the work
in its entirety. Other directors are afraid and want little pieces
of it, she says. some people say it is cold and dry. Its not really
written to be performed its very difficult for the pianists hands
and it does not feel natural. the goldbergs were written for
keyboard but the Art of Fugue is more like a monument,
architecture. Its a strange trip.
the trip became even stranger under monnets careful curation.
the Art of Fugue was paired with Anamorphoses, Johannes schllhorns
abstract rendering of the Bach fugues, which was
performed by the remix ensemble casa da msica. If that wasnt
daring enough, the chosen venue was monacos historic aquarium.
daudet, unfazed, was kind enough to speak to me on the morning of
the concert. I think the acoustic [in the Oceanographic museum] is
good for Bach because it is a little bit [she searches for the
right word] resonant? like a church. But you wont see the fish. (In
fact, I spent a very pleasant interval with the sharks.)
daudets performance was one of those special, one-off musical
events that concert goers spend their lives searching for. It was
long and arduous but as our ears adjusted we experienced clarity
and beauty. daudets dedication, stamina and sheer technique were
breathtaking. Perhaps there were shades of one of her idols, glenn
gould (even he did not perform the Art of Fugue). however, such
musical marathons are not to everyones taste; some audience members
shifted in their seats, my neighbour checked his emails (until his
wife elbowed him in the ribs) and there was the odd rustle and
murmur. hewitt said of the Art of Fugue that its perfection is such
that when I perform it, even the slightest cough feels like a stain
on a beautiful canvas. she makes an excellent point.
daudet, 38, studIed at the ParIs cOnservatOIre and is still
based in that city, when shes not travelling. I had really good
teachers but I dont define myself by a teacher, daudet says. this
is probably the first time an interviewee has not jumped to
name-check a famous mentor; I am impressed. daudets inspiration
comes from elsewhere. I learn from my music colleagues, she says.
some pianists say that they prefer to play just solo or chamber
music, but I play fifty per cent solo and fifty per cent
chamber.
to that end, daudet is about to embark on a major recording
project for the fledgling label nomadmusic. We are recording the
Beethoven sonatas for violin and piano. Its an interesting label as
they are curious about new technologies; its a cd and video
recording. and is she happy to be filmed in performance? If its
what people want then I say lets do it, she smiles. after that, I
have a recital programme in asia where Ill perform in china and
singapore.
daudet is a quietly determined artist with a first-rate mind.
like most touring pianists, she often has to cope with limited
practice time on the instrument itself, and has amassed various
ways to study en route mostly, she admits, playing the music in my
head, with and without the score. Its difficult to be alone and
practising alone is really hard, she concludes. Playing with
another musician makes you more open minded.
french pianist climne daudet is an intellectually curious
musician on an adventure in counterpoint. By Claire Jackson
fugues and fishes
A
LAIN
HA
NEL
Climne Daudet performs The Art of Fugue at the Printemps des
Arts de Monte-Carlo
IP0515_017_OnetoWatch_CJ.indd 17 20/04/2015 17:45
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CLARA RODRIGUEZ, Piano recitalA poet of the piano (Antonio
Estvez)Sunday 7 June 2015 at 4.00 pmPurcell Room at Queen Elizabeth
Hall
Venezuelan pianist Clara Rodrguez performs music by Albniz,
Gershwin, Villa-Lobos, Lecuona, Moleiro, Ruiz, Astor and Nazareth
accompanied by her amazing musician friends in an afternoon of rich
rhythms and fabulous melodies of beloved popular pieces from
Europe, the USA, Cuba and South America.
PerformersClara Rodrguez pianoCristbal Soto guitar, cuatro,
mandolinWilmer Sifontes, Ernesto Marichales percussion
Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall
Tickets from:www.southbankcentre.co.uk Tel: +44 (0)20 7960 4200
Photography by Antoln Snchez
[email protected] www.epta-uk.org
EPTA UKEnquiries to The Administrator, 4 Pen-y-Garn Terrace,
Maesteg,Mid Glamorgan CF34 9AUTel: 08456 581054
European Piano Teachers Association (UK) Ltd
Inspiring all piano teachers,performers and enthusiasts
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Try our pianos at the following pop-up displays in 2015:
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Seattle International Piano Festival
2015 Competition. The Sixth Seattle International Piano
Competition is a two-round c o m p e t i t i o n a l l o w i n g
developing artists of all ages to make a truly personal
mark on the concert stage. Invited nalists may select a short
program of solo works that denes ones unique strengths and allows
his or her most eloquent artistry to shine through. Finalists
perform in beautiful and prestigious Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital
Hall at Benaroya Hall, in downtown Seattle during October, 16-19,
2015.
Prize Money: up to $2,000Final Round Program: up to 20
minRepertoire: free to chooseApplication Deadline: May 15, 2015
June 30, 2015 (revised date)
Competition Divisions: * youth (age 9 or under) * youth (ages
10-13) * youth (ages 14-18) * amateur * collegiate *
professional
www.seattlepianocompetition.org
IP0315.indd 18 17/04/2015 16:55:43
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May/June 2015 International Piano 19
d I a r y o f a n a c c o m P a n I s t
THURSDAY UnUsUal event: am to accompany cor anglais auditions
for top london orchestra. Ponder repertoire. composers generally
save the instrument for doleful/funereal atmosphere, so anticipate
day full of long notes, easy and hopefully not too boring.
reach venue, meet panel, familiar faces from own orchestral
keyboard days. ask How many victims, sorry, clients? fourteen, is
answer. Blink. and another twenty tomorrow. and thats just the ones
weve called: We had 200 applications altogether. Wince. so much
talent (presumably), so little available work. scan orchestral
extracts am not required to accompany them but interesting
nonetheless. Usual suspects, including rodrigo (Concierto
dAranjuez), sibelius (Swan of Tuonela), stravinsky (Rite of Spring,
prelude) and ravel Piano concerto slow movement; idly mention this
to panel as familiar warhorse from own concerto-playing days. also
respighi (Pines of Rome finale), famous for oft-forgotten
accidentals at ends of very long bars, similar to places in Bach
fugues exasperatingly familiar from piano lessons.
first auditionee offers donizetti concertino, obvious choice
among limited repertoire but in fact poor audition piece since all
in high register, where orchestrators seldom write. Preliminary
talk-through backstage (to ascertain tempo, etc) replaced by
painstaking selection of correct reed. Performance oK, though
stopped (as expected) after two minutes. leave stage to rehearse
with next auditionee, currently wrestling with reeds. Warm-up piece
also
donizetti concertino. foresee getting to know piece intimately
first two minutes anyway before day is out.
day proceeds: donizetti prevails, other selections including not
sibeliuss Swan but saint-sanss, perfect for the instrument in terms
of range and mood. Piano part familiar enough: ponder, as so often,
why arrangers (for any instrument) simply copy original first piano
part without ever noticing that whole piece should end on full G
major chord rather than just two notes. fifth auditionee of day is
the first not to complain about reeds. Wonder how many cor anglais
players
consider alternative careers as reed-makers: demand presumably
inexhaustible.
scan days schedule: mornings last-scheduled auditionee female,
and well known for generous cor! factor. secluded post-audition
lunch deux beckons. sadly, has cried off, place being taken by
afternoon candidate arriving early, ready to play immediately, and
emphatically male. lunch companionable nevertheless. compliment him
on warm-up piece, unremarkable sonata movement by Pierre-max dubois
but whose every en-route tempo-change is dictated by cor, not
piano, totally eliminating risk of setting wrong speeds in
performance. ah, the perfect pianist-proof audition piece, he says.
took me ages to find. and do you know the real
range of the cor anglais? he asks. mention text-book answer. oh
no, is reply, range d to d, one octave; all trills and tremolos
impossible. thats what I tell young composers. anything for a quiet
life. recall countless ungrateful or unplayable piano parts from
times past, and consider he has a point.
lunch ends. Back to business. next two auditionees arrive at
once: first one has thoughtfully brought unaccompanied warm-up
pieces, leaving self free for prolonged backstage talk-through with
second, extremely pretty and gratifyingly nervous. tlc session
beckons, prematurely interrupted by panellist. We need to hear
previous player for tuning with piano, he says, Would you mind
doing ravel with him? you said you knew it. Weve got a full score.
suddenly feel like auditionee myself.
final auditionee arrives. day has been kind so far, but
come-uppance imminent: warm-up piece is Quartet (with string trio)
by Jean franaix, composer notorious for high speeds and fast-moving
complex harmonies. Worse, auditionee only has score, not piano
reduction. Poor choice in all: consider outright rejection, but
auditionee also tearfully apologetic, and very beautiful. cross
fingers, and hope panel will be either in very good mood or else
fast asleep. ah, wide-awake panel tells me, We only want to hear
her orchestral extracts. see you tomorrow. deliverance. leave
slowly, hear auditionee start respighi. Wish had had time to warn
her of accidentals. too late now, but never mind: another 20
potential cors! beckon tomorrow. eIllu
stra
tIo
n
urs
ula
ro
un
d
In which Michael Round samples the cor! factor
Wonder how many cor anglais players consider
alternative careers as reed-makers
Diary of an
accompanist
IP0515_019_Diary_CJ.indd 19 20/04/2015 14:40
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20 International Piano May/June 2015
c o v e r s t o r y
Ma
rie stag
gat/d
g
IP0515_020-023_Coverstory_CJ.indd 20 20/04/2015 17:02
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May/June 2015 International Piano 21
c o v e r s t o r y
AlIce sArA ott fIrst mAde a name for herself as a precocious
virtuoso versed in core romantic repertoire (issue 6, march/April
2011). However, in recent times she has entered unpredictable
collaborations. two years ago, I found myself sitting on the floor
of a converted swimming pool in Berlin as the German-Japanese
pianist and luxembourg native francesco tristano, both wearing
1920s-style fedoras, tore through a four-hand arrangement of ravels
La valse. the work would become the last track on their recently
released album Scandale, a tribute to the impresario sergei
diaghilev, who famously commissioned provocative works such as
stravinskys The Rite of Spring. In this spirit, ott and tristano
went the full stretch to market the album (deutsche Grammophon 479
3541). one image shows the young pianists strapped to a concrete
floor with pink tape, both barefoot in tight black trousers and
white t-shirts.
When I meet 26-year-old ott in a caf in Berlins mitte district,
she appears less dangerous, wearing no make-up, an elegantly
knotted silk scarf and a cream coloured sweater. Nowadays it is
much more difficult to provoke, she says. Nudity isnt shocking. the
only thing that still shocks people is criminality. Besides that,
people have seen everything. ott believes the art world today could
learn from the explorations of diaghilev with his troupe, the
Ballets russes. He gave his artists a free space that wasnt
dependent on commercial success. that means they
could do what they wanted. It was a time when people came
together around the creation of art which is the ultimate dream.
today, everything revolves around money and time. It is important
to make people aware of this message.
realeased in september 2014, Scandale has brought together two
artists who couldnt be more different. ott is best known for
playing music by composers such as chopin and Grieg; tristano is
into Baroque and electronic beats. she plays
a steinway; he plays a yamaha. But it is exactly those contrasts
that have nurtured the partnership.
Before teaming up with tristano, ott avoided public appearances
in four-hand music, with the exception of one occasion alongside
her younger sister, mona Asuka ott. We tried it once with a
presenter, she recalls. It isnt what we want, at least for now. But
the partnership with tristano complements her solo career. the
funny thing is that when one plays alone, there is a certain
boundary where the body stops. But when there are two of us, there
is none. When one person goes higher, the other tries to go even
higher.
ott ANd trIstANo met fIve years ago at a conference in london
organised by deutsche Grammophon, where both hold contracts. the
two quickly became friends, attending each others concerts as often
as possible. ott originally invited tristano to play the Bach
double concertos for a recording project that never materialised.
When the two subsequently discussed the possibility of a complete
album for duo, The Rite of Spring which stravinsky himself
arranged
for four hands the theme of 1920s Paris quickly came to the
table. But both agreed that the programme wouldnt be complete
without a contemporary work, since diaghilev revolutionised his
era. enter tristano, a composer of both classical and electronic
music, who penned A Soft Shell Groove Suite just for the
occasion.
As the title implies, it is a work driven by groovy rhythms,
with interlocking textures evoking detroit techno. It has a very
four-on-the-floor feel, says tristano by phone from Barcelona. It
is a nice counterweight to The Rite of Spring, which is highly
complex and virtuosic. I wanted to write something a little softer,
a little easier on the listener.
In harmony
Pianists Alice sara ott and francesco tristano seek to thrill as
they embrace the provocative side
of four-hand repertoire. Rebecca Schmid reports from Berlin
The breathing of the artist, the sound of the pedal, the hammers
inside the instrument
that is what is beautiful and individual
IP0515_020-023_Coverstory_CJ.indd 21 20/04/2015 14:41
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22 International Piano May/June 2015
c o v e r s t o r y
It maintains that dance feeling. ott also believes the work is a
perfect match, calling techno the trend of our times. It was also
the most challenging part of the project for her. Its a genre I
like but had no physical experience with, she admits. I understood
it in my head but didnt know how to implement it. But Francesco was
patient with me. I almost had a breakdown the day before the
concert, and he said, Alice, I think you need a drink! And then
everything worked better. Now the piece is a part of me.
tristano, in turn, had difficulty easing into the melodies of
ravels La valse, a sardonic waltz that Diaghilev decided not
to stage, denouncing the work as a mere portrait of a ballet.
While tristano takes the bass line, or second piano, in most of the
programme with ott, here he plays the upper voice. this viennese
back- and-forth tempo bending has a different feeling from steady
groove, he says. I love to play that cheesy melody. In a bold move
that drew its share of scepticism from the duos friends and
colleagues, tristano has also created an arrangement of ravels
widely performed and sometimes choreographed Bolro, which features
as part of the duos scandale recital tour (but isnt on the
record).
there are essentially two ways to transcribe it, maintains
tristano. the
first is to trade the melody back and forth to create the
repetitions and variations. But I decided ultimately to be the
groove machine I play snare drum throughout the piece, growing from
a single note to an octave to a chord and Alice plays all 17
variations of the melody, sometimes by less orthodox means. I
wanted to have her really shine in the treble. ott considers the
work demanding but also fun. All the colours are created by
orchestral instruments, beginning with the flute, then the
clarinet, oboe and everything else it becomes more and more
bombastic, and to play that on the piano is a huge challenge. But
when we started rehearsing, we asked ourselves
how we could change the colours so that it builds into this
incredible force at the end. It is a very, very physical programme.
We wouldnt be able to pull through without a lot of espresso and
chocolate.
ott hAs Put herselF oN the line in another fashion with her most
recent release, The Chopin Project. the album, on Deutsche
Grammophon sister label Mercury classics, weaves together the
ethereal electronic scores of Icelandic composer lafur Arnalds with
arrangements of chopin as well as straight performances of his
piano music. ott performs not on a steinway, but on old bar pianos,
an element she believes captures
the musics intimacy. the recording captures ambient sounds both
inside and outside the piano. ott admits that while she was
sceptical when Arnalds request first arrived, his ideas ultimately
convinced her. When one thinks back to the time of chopin, things
were performed in smaller spaces, she says. there were no concert
halls for 3,000 people, there werent the instruments we need today
to fill such spaces, and they were certainly not all perfectly
tuned. one heard much more: the breathing of the artist, the sound
of the pedal, the hammers inside the instrument. that is what is
beautiful and individual.
Although the project includes elements of crossover, ott is
quick to reassert herself as a core classical artist. the parts
that I contributed are just chopin on the piano, she says. We did a
lot of sound experiments, but in the end I only play what he wrote,
so its not a new direction. Although I very much respect my
colleagues who do crossover because I think its a way of reaching a
new audience. she is also committed to new concert formats that can
attract uninitiated listeners: she and Arnalds performed the
concert premiere of the chopin Project alongside DJ acts during
Deutsche Grammophons yellow lounge album launch series at the
Konzerthaus Berlin last March, with coloured lighting and
electronic dance music creating a brash prelude to the albums
hushed sound worlds. you all look tired! she said through the
microphone, suggesting that the audience members take a seat on the
floor.
ott considers it the artists responsibility to break down
barriers and false prejudices. there are often too many rules in
concert halls: one cant talk; many people think you have to get
dressed up. It is so tense that I can understand why young people
would think classical music is only something for people who have
money and knowledge. that isnt true. education comes with listening
and appropriation of knowledge as one listens to more and more. It
is of course easier to communicate that in a club setting, where
the younger generation trusts itself to come in. I think that it is
the first step. the pianist believes that, if given the chance,
classical musicians can reach young listeners just like rock
stars.
S
teph
an
e-pa
ul
ch
arp
enti
er/d
g
IP0515_020-023_Coverstory_CJ.indd 22 20/04/2015 14:41
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May/June 2015 International Piano 23
c o v e r s t o r y
I mean, Liszt and chopin were wilder than the rolling stones,
she says. People can either connect to lyrics, or lifestyle or even
the clothes of the artist. that is why they listen to albums and go
to concerts. Because what does one ultimately want from music? to
be moved.
ott Puts her Ideas to work as a visual artist as well, posting
imaginative sketches on her twitter feed. while rehearsing with the
London symphony orchestra last February, she depicted herself in
conversation with the conductor Gianandrea Noseda, whose features
she recreated with astounding accuracy: where is Liszt? he asks
from the podium. Busy flirting! says a cartoonish figure, who
conjures an image of the composer surrounded by fawning ladies. the
pianist considers drawing the opportunity to do capture a snapshot
of the moment, while also attributing the hobby to hyperactive
hands. whenever I talk on the phone, I notice that Ive scribbled
something. My hands always have to do something! while she dreams
of taking a painting course, she believes her personality type is
better suited to shorter-term activities. the problem is that I
dont have a lot of patience. I cant sit for ten hours at the piano,
either. I have
to understand it up here first, she says, pointing to her head.
I of course practiced a lot as a child and dont have to work on
technique for hours at a time now. so much happens in the head and
heart, and the connection between them. that is something I learned
young.
when away from the piano, ott prefers non-classical genres for
casual listening especially when her own instrument is involved.
the worst is when youre invited to a dinner party and piano music
is playing in the background! she admits. I lose my appetite. I am
more into Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, tom waits, Leonard cohen, also
jazz sometimes. since moving to Berlin three years ago, she has
engaged with both electronic dance music and contemporary music.
although she was exposed to composers such as kurtg and Ligeti at a
young age and, in 2000, performed a world premiere by German
composer wilhelm killmayer, she has yet to dive into 21st-century
repertoire. there are so many great composers, she says, citing
recent encounters, both musical and personal, with esa-Pekka
salonen, Magnus Lindberg, thomas ads and George Benjamin. the only
problem is that one has to invest a lot of time and energy because
it is new territory: there are no clues, no recordings. I hope
I will be able to invest myself more to it in the future.
Meanwhile, whenever possible, she takes time to enjoy her
recently adopted home city. what I like about Berlin is that nobody
cares, ott reflects. there are so many cultures that one doesnt
stand out. It is a good balance to all the jet-setting, when one is
the centre of attention. For me it is very important to have
moments when I can stand on the ground and be just like any other
person, with all their flaws. you can do that easily here. youre
just a small particle in this tangle of different religions,
cultures and mentalities. It is always an issue to arrange ones
schedule so that there is time for new things. I am also not
someone who plays one hundred concerts in a year. I experienced
that once, in the negative sense. I think happiness means something
very different for everyone, also in terms of career.
and with that, ott gathers her things and heads out onto the
quiet street, her inconspicuous presence still difficult to
reconcile with the image of the onstage artist. Alice Sara Ott and
Francesco Tristano bring their Scandale recital to the Queen
Elizabeth Hall on 11 June as part of the International Piano Series
at the Southbank Centre
When one person goes higher, the other tries to go even
higher
M
ari
e st
ag
gat
/dg
IP0515_020-023_Coverstory_CJ.indd 23 20/04/2015 17:02
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For information on Steinway & Sons pianos or to arrange a
private appointment to visit our London showrooms, please call 0207
487 3391 or email [email protected]
WWW.STEINWAYHALL.CO.UK
The Steinway is not only an instrument, it is a work of art of
the first rank." Christoph Eschenbach
16096 Steinway International Piano_Layout 1 17/04/2015 15:52
Page 1
IP0315.indd 24 17/04/2015 17:31:45
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May/June 2015 International Piano 25
produc t s
SteInway haS revealed one of its most ambitious projects to
date: a modern-day player piano system that makes live performances
by Steinway artists available at the touch of a button. Steinway
has referred to the development as the companys most significant
product innovation in over 70 years.
although manufacturers such as yamaha have offered in-built
self-playing options on acoustic and hybrid instruments for several
years, Steinway had, until recently, resisted the trend. with
companies such as Mason & hamlin offering to retrofit
instruments with Pianodisc a system that enables owners to control
their pianos via iPads and other devices the demand for accurate
reproduction of performances is on the rise.
the new Spirio system coyly dubbed the worlds finest player
piano system will be available on select Steinway grand pianos, and
promises to offer delicate pedalling, subtle phrasing, soft trills
and thundering fortissimos. the system is said to replicate the
damper and keyshift pedalling with minute accuracy, following the
pianists depressions and releases smoothly and precisely over the
entire range of motion. Spirio will be in-built specifically for
Steinway instruments and is therefore not available as a retrofit
option.
the technology was created in partnership with wayne Stahnke, an
innovator in the field of contemporary player pianos.
the featured music will comprise a new catalogue of recordings
from Steinways enviable roster of 1,700 artists performing across a
range of genres; the player system will include contemporary music,
classical and jazz. Crucially, the entire catalogue will be
provided to Steinway Spirio owners at no additional charge a first
for the player piano industry. Steinway will also throw in a
complimentary iPad to wirelessly control the Spirio system.
as with other player systems, the components do not affect the
touch, sound or outward appearance of the piano in any way. the
manufacturer claims that
with routine maintenance and occasional updates, the Spirio
system should last the full life-time of the piano.
the system is currently available on three existing piano
models: Model B (Music room Grand, available worldwide), Model M
(Medium Grand, available in select US and Canadian markets), and
Model o (living room Grand, available in select european and asian
markets). Pricing is available upon request through local Steinway
& Sons dealers and Steinway & Sons retail locations.
www.steinwayspirio.com
Pianoworld
Steinway has unveiled its new player piano system, the Steinway
Spirio, which brings unparalleled
reproduction of concert performances into living rooms at the
touch of a button. IP reports
IP0515_025_027_Products_CJ.indd 25 20/04/2015 17:03
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IP0315.indd 26 17/04/2015 16:55:44
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May/June 2015 International Piano 27
P R O D U C T S
The latest innovations for pianists and pianos KLANGSPIEGELThis
rather unusual-looking construction is not a piece of modern art;
it is a sound refl ector that is designed to move the sound in the
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SOLEMATEIts never too early to adopt best posture practices and
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lyre. Bsendorfer |
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IP0515_025_027_Products_CJ.indd 27 20/04/2015 16:18
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28 International Piano May/June 2015
c o m p e t i t i o n r e p o r t
The TenTh Franz LIszT Piano Competition, which ran from 26
October to 8 november in Utrecht, the netherlands, was fortunate to
find a winner like Mariam Batsashvili. her charismatic appearance,
natural and poignant interpretations and varied tone quality
enchanted jury members and the many Liszt enthusiasts who came to
Utrecht. even as a child, Batsashvili (born 1993, Georgia) dreamt
of a peripatetic life as a virtuoso. having previously won first
prize at the International Franz Liszt Competition for Young
Pianists in Weimar in 2011, she arrived in Utrecht accompanied by a
loyal fan club and natalia natsvlishvili, her first teacher, who
still coaches her. I will continue to study with her as long as I
can, says Batsashvili. she knows me better than anyone.
Batsashvili is also studying with Grigory Gruzman at the
hochschule fr Musik in Weimar, where she now lives. Weimar is a
great city. I feel happy there. You can meet Liszt, Wagner, Goethe,
schiller and Bach, so to speak, on every street corner!
although Batsashvili plays a wide repertoire, Liszt found a
special place in her heart at a very early age. I completely fell
in love with him. Playing Liszt is like a necessity of life for me,
and it really hurts me to see that hes so misunderstood. I hope
this will change because his music is not a circus act of fast
notes and octaves. he is such a profound thinker and philosopher.
and his sonata, for example, for me, is a Divina Commedia in music.
Literature being her other passion, she has now read Dantes magnum
opus five times.
Batsashvili took not only the first prize of 20,000 (which also
comes with an
LIFe WITh LIszTMariam Batsashvili has become the first woman to
win the triennial International Franz Liszt Piano Competition since
its inception in 1986. Eric Schoones reports from the tenth
instalment
Liszts music is not a circus act of
fast notes and octaves. He is
such a profound thinker and
philosopher
IP0515_028-029_Comp Report_CJ.indd 28 20/04/2015 14:44
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May/June 2015 International Piano 29
c o m p e t i t i o n r e p o r t
extensive career development programme) and the press prize
(5,000) but also a new prize that of the junior jury (1,500), group
of judges aged 12 to 18. For this, the Liszt Competition joined
forces with the Young Pianist Foundation (YPF), another important
Dutch institution, in a joint effort to help young, talented
pianists. Winners of the YPF Competition played at lunchtime in
Utrecht, while a hundred students participated in workshops
conducted by jury members including Paul Badura-Skoda and Leslie
Howard, using a wide range of historic instruments that were on
display during the whole competition. This fascinating exhibition
had been sourced from various collections in France, Germany and
the Netherlands, and included two Erards from 1795 and 1828, a Graf
from 1827 and a Boisselot identical to the instrument Liszt used on
his tours. Also on display was a Bechstein from the Liszt Museum in
Weimar, and Liszts last Steingraeber piano from 1873. Another
rarity was the piano that Liszt, during one of his visits to the
Netherlands, played on for the Dutch King Willem III. All this was
made possible by the opening in July 2014, after years of delays
and much discussion, of the spacious Tivoli Vredenburg, Utrechts
grand new concert hall.
THIS YEAr, THE CoMPETITIoN continued its experiment with new
media. one innovation was to announce the names of the 24
candidates selected for the quarter-finals in a YouTube and
Facebook film clip. Additionally, a special app for smartphones
made it possible for Liszt fans worldwide to cast their votes for
the audience prize. However, the webcast shown in the hall on a
huge screen failed to add a more profound experience to the music:
the image was not synchronised with the live sound.
Another novelty in this years competition was introduced in the
semi-finals. Candidates had to perform two songs by Liszt with
soprano Maria Estefana Perdomo Nogales and tenor Peter Gijsbertsen.
Gustav Alink, director of the Alink-Argerich Foundation, an
independent worldwide information and service centre for musicians
and competitions, told me that a song accompaniment is rarely
added
to the programme of a piano competition (exceptions being the
Grieg Competition in Bergen, Norway and the Honens Competition in
Calgary), though quite a few, notably the Van Cliburn, Hamamatsu
and Tel Aviv Arthur rubinstein, have included chamber music with
instrumentalists, ranging from duo to quintet.
Gijsbertsen, recipient of the Glyndebourne John Christie Award
and the Lieder prize at the International Vocal
Competitions-Hertogenbosch (now also a partner of the Liszt
Competition), shared his impression of the finalists. Peter Klimo,
who took second prize, was the most relaxed, taking time for a
coffee one minute before we had to go on, saying, If you dont know
it by now, its simply too late. Mengjie Han [third prize] who was
the most risk-taking by trying new colours I liked very much.
Mariam Batsashvili was extremely well prepared, if perhaps a bit
timid. But that is still to be preferred above the candidates who
know exactly what they want, leaving no room for dialogue.
Gijsbertsen found a huge difference between the candidates and the
specialised Lieder accompanists he usually works with. They bring
so much to a rehearsal; so many ideas, and they also take the
initiative. Knowing the repertoire and the special collaboration
between singer and pianist inside out, they realise a singer is
also searching, and that travelling together takes you further. But
still, if you are a great musician, you can do all that just by
looking at the score.
Gijsbertsen feels that adding the Lieder to the competition is a
good idea. It shows
the ability of the pianist to communicate. That is very
important. As a pianist, you have to get along with conductors and
orchestras and even if you only play solo recitals, you still have
to communicate with the public.
So might the competition just as well have had a violinist play
some Liszt with the candidates? Gijsbertsen laughs. You know,
singers might be the most difficult type of musician to work with,
so perhaps its not a bad choice. And in collaborating, you can
share the tension. It might feel less like an examination. I think
most candidates enjoyed that. They all did their best to really
make music. www.liszt.nl
www.mariambatsashvili.com
www.petergijsbertsen.nl
www.alink-argerich.org
Queen Mxima of the Netherlands congratulates Batsashvili
Peter Gijsbertsen
IP0515_028-029_Comp Report_CJ.indd 29 20/04/2015 17:05
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Two recent CD releases on the Prima Facie label contain almost
all Gilberts piano music:
CHIMES IN TIME (PFCD 013)Pianist/composer Panayiotis
Demopoulos
performs eight short poetic pieces, along with works by Goehr,
Ellis and himself
~PIANO MUSIC by Anthony Gilbert
(PFCD 007)Pianists Richard Casey and Ian Buckle
perform the 3 Sonatas and a range of shorter pieces,a disc voted
among the Sunday Times Top Ten
contemporary releases for 2012
ANTHONY GILBERT
50 years of piano music
FAND MUSIC PRESSwww.fandmusic.com
Sir Arnold Bax
Piano musicFour PiecesThe Happy ForestIn the
NightLegendNympholeptSalzburg Sonata
Forthcoming firsteditions this SpringScherzoSuite and Variations
on the name Gabriel Faur
BookIDEALA: The collected poems and some early love letters of
Arnold Bax (Dermot OByrne), edited by Colin Scott-Sutherland
[IDEALA] is truly a beautiful book and an extraordinarily
important one Richard R. Adams The Sir Arnold Bax Website
Fand Music Press: The First Edition Publishers
Fand also publishes an extensive range of contemporary
scores
IP0315.indd 30 17/04/2015 16:55:45
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May/June 2015 International Piano 31
r o g e r s a c h e v e r e l l c o k e
The hIsTory of musIc Is littered with the names of composers
whose stars briefly shone and were then extinguished. But what of
those who laboured in obscurity during their lifetimes, without
significant public recognition, and who have been deprived of even
posthumous fame? such a figure was the english pianist and composer
roger sacheverell coke (1912-1972).
little of his music was (or, indeed, is) published. No
commercial recording of anything was made during his lifetime.
Though there were several broadcasts of his work (moura lympany in
a couple
of cokes Preludes and, in the 1980s, alexander Baillie and Piers
lane in the cello sonata No 2), nothing of his extensive output
appeared on disc until 2013, when em records released a disc of the
violin sonata in D minor with rupert marshall-luck and matthew
Pickard.
Now, a second disc of cokes music is about to be released. The
enterprising British pianist simon callaghan has recorded the 24
Preludes, op 33-34 (1938 and 1941) and 15 variations and finale in
c minor, op 37 (1939). It will be callaghans fifth disc for the
somm label. I was given the music by a friend of a friend,
he tells me. several people had looked at the scores and werent
particularly interested. and when I played through his 24 Preludes
I also didnt get it. But then something a few months later made me
go back and play them again and they somehow made more sense. a few
other friends have had the same experience of the music not
immediately opening up to them. on the other hand, there are pieces
that are immediately appealing and charming. his harmonic language
is quite advanced and it took me a while. I dont think thats
necessarily a bad thing. Theres a lot of detail that is reflected
in the
British brilliance
roger sacheverell coke (1912-1972) was an under-appreciated
composer during his career and deprived of posthumous fame until
now. Jeremy Nicholas speaks to simon callaghan, who has made a
world premiere recording of cokes Preludes and variations
Simon Callaghan pores over source material in the British
Library
IP0515_031-035_Coke_CJ.indd 31 20/04/2015 17:07
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32 International Piano May/June 2015
r o g e r s a c h e v e r e l l c o k e
scores. For every note there are so many different details and
sometimes conflicting dynamics for each hand or within voices.
The family archive is in Chesterfield Library, dumped there when
the house in which Coke lived was sold. He only died in 1972 and
yet these albums are disintegrating, just wrapped in paper, tied
with string and shoved into a box. Eventually, theyll simply be
gone.
So completely forgotten is Coke that reading the bare facts of
his life, one might be forgiven for thinking he was the invention
of a romantic novelist or a mischievous critic (it has happened
before). First, the name: Coke is pronounced to rhyme with cook
(not, as youd expect, cloak); and he is known as Coke rather than
Sacheverell Coke (unlike, for
example, the similarly unhyphenated Vaughan Williams). He was
one of two children, and the only son, of Lieutenant Langton Coke
of the 1st Battalion Irish Guards, who was killed aged 36 in the
first Battle of Ypres in 1914. Roger was just two years old and
inherited the family estate.
The Cokes can trace their family back in a direct male line for
over 600 years. The family home for centuries was the handsome
Elizabethan pile of Brookhill Hall in Pinxton, Derbyshire. Here,
Coke lived with his mother (ne Dorothy Maye Sacheverell
Huntingford) and a detested governess before being packed off to
Eton. It was after he left school at 18 that he heard a piano
recording by the great Benno Moiseiwitsch. It made a deep
impression on him (Moiseiwitsch was later to become
his friend) and he determined to become a concert pianist and
composer. From then on, nothing but music mattered to him.
In 1933 a Torquay newspaper reporter tracked him down at the
Pavilion: Seated at the grand piano with his flaxen hair streaming
over his face and eyes in a fine frenzy rolling, he rehearsed the
compositions he was due to play the next afternoon [] Like most
artistes of exceptional ability, he appeared extremely
temperamental, and when I asked him for some information about
himself he finished off a crescendo with an impressive sweep of the
keys, bounced off the stool, grasped my hand, loaded me with a
stack of literature and press cuttings, and disappeared like some
old-time magician.
He studied the piano with Mabel Lander (1882-1955), Moisewitschs
assistant and a fellow pupil of Leschetizky, who besides teaching
Malcolm Sargent at some stage also taught the piano to the young
Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. Coke took composition lessons
from Frederick Staton (and later from Alan Bush). Here is Staton on
his pupil, who had already (1935) seen the premieres of his first
two
He squandered the family fortune on his music. There was no
electricity, no running water except in certain places in the
house, and the paint was peeling off the walls
Roger Sacheverell Coke pictured at his beloved Steinway
IP0515_031-035_Coke_CJ.indd 32 20/04/2015 17:07
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May/June 2015 International Piano 33
r o g e r s a c h e v e r e l l c o k e
Piano Concertos, the second of which, dedicated to Mabel Lander,
had been broadcast in a performance conducted by no less a figure
than Dan Godfrey: Here I had a pupil of undoubted ability,
perseverance, wealth, and an entire disregard for anything that did
not a