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Isaac Albeniz (1860-1909)

The British pianist Jonathan Powell, who lives in Poland with his family, will be giving a London performance of the complete cycle of 12 pieces that comprise Isaac Albéniz’s Iberia. Direct, passionate, complex, haunting and original, this suite of pieces is rarely heard in its entirety. Jonathan’s concert is on Thursday 27th March at Rosslyn Hill church, Hampstead.

I asked Jonathan to explain what makes this music so interesting and challenging for the pianist, and his own particular connection with it.

When and how did you first encounter Albéniz’s Iberia?

In my late teens I was studying Granados’ Goyescas, and someone told me they would like to hear me play them and Iberia in the same concert! Up until then I had only been aware of Albéniz’ collection, so I decided to look at them for the first time then. Oh, and I’ve not yet taken up that challenge …

What is the particular appeal of this suite of pieces to you?

Well, there are really so many things about Iberia that appeal to me greatly: the brightness and vividness of the colours; the amazing sonorities Albéniz conjures from the instrument; the Mediterranean ambiance; the daring originality of the use of folksong-type materials; the sheer brilliance of writing matched with exquisite atmosphere …

What are the technical and musical challenges of learning and performing the entire suite?

Well, most of the pieces have particular technical challenges: there’s a lot of crossing of hands, big leaps, dense textures which require careful stratification, and you have to keep very cool on the metrical front; musically, you need to carry, shape and project a line while maintaining what is often a very complex texture ‘underneath’. Also, it was quite hard to memorise, especially some of the later pieces which, while still completely tonal, use lots of chords with unexpected added notes that are slightly different each time they appear.

Is this the first time you will have performed the entire suite?

Oh no! I’ve been doing it for about two years now. When I passed 40, I thought “you’re a grown up now, stop putting this off”, so I got down and learned it. To date I’ve played the pieces in Belfast, London, Oxford, Glenfinnan, Esbjerg (DenmarK), Levoča (Slovakia), Gliwice (Poland), Kiev (Ukraine), Kirovograd (Ukraine) and probably a few other places I can’t remember just now.…

Do you have any favourite recordings of this work?

Yes, Alicia Delarrocha made three, they’re all good. Other Spaniards like Rafael Orozco and Esteban Sánchez are also outstanding. I’d love to hear Yvonne Loriod’s recording, but unfortunately (and, to me, completely inexplicably) it’s out of print.

Which works by Albéniz would you recommend for someone just beginning to explore his piano music?

Well, Albéniz wrote a huge amount of piano music, completing some 200+ opus numbers – most of which are for the piano – before he even embarked on Iberia in the mid-1900s. The Chants d’Espagne might be a good starting point, as might the Recuerdos de viaje; there are also Suitas Españolas, several sonatas and hordes of miniatures. Rest assured that pretty much none of the pre-1900 pieces contains any of the challenges of Iberia!

Jonathan Powell performs Iberia at Rosslyn Hill Chapel, 3 Pilgrim’s Place, Hampstead, NW3 1NG London on Thursday 27th March 2014 at 7.30pm

Meet the Artist……Jonathan Powell

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All the enjoyable and engaging features of ‘Pianist’ magazine are included in this new piano techniques app: informative and easy to understand articles on technique and repertoire, how to play a particular work with guidance from a top teacher, free sheet music (18 pieces in fact, from beginner to advanced level), an interview with Lang Lang, contributions from expert teachers, and more, all presented in an interactive and accessible format.

The organisation of the content will be familiar to anyone who reads Pianist magazine regularly. Clear, well laid out articles are enhanced by video tutorials by renowned teachers and pianists, and soundclips, which enable the reader to listen to the pieces presented in the free sheet music section.

The app is easy to navigate, with clear swipe commands and helpful notes and asides which enhance the articles. In effect, the app offers the very best of ‘Pianist’ magazine in a user-friendly and portable format – read it at the piano or in bed – and is ideal for the beginner, intermediate or more advanced pianist.

Download the app from the iTunes app store

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Ingrid Fuzjko Hemming

Who or what inspired you to take up the piano, and make it your career? 

It was my pianist mother who wanted me to be a piano teacher and in a way, she forced me to learn the piano. She initially taught me, and as I continued my studies in Europe, I began developing a busy concert schedule.

Who or what were the most important influences on your musical life and career? 

Leonard Bernstein while I was studying in Europe, and my pet cats, dogs and birds who have been there throughout my life and career.

What have been the greatest challenges of your career so far? 

Just when I was launching my career and I was about to perform with Leonard Bernstein in Vienna, I contracted a really high fever and I ended up losing much of my hearing, much of which is lost still today. My search for medical treatment took me to Stockholm though, and I ended up broadcasting on the Swedish and German radio there, so the positive in me sees the opportunity it brought for me.

However, I would not really say that I think of that as my greatest musical challenge – every collaboration with other musicians and orchestras is a challenge in its own way. One of the greatest recent challenges was the Chopin piano concerto I played with Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra last year. The conductor as well as the whole orchestra were impressed with my performance and I was incredibly honoured to be asked to play with them again.

Which performance/recordings are you most proud of?  

I am my worst enemy and have never been happy with any of my performances!

Which particular works do you think you play best? 

I think quite a few by Debussy, Chopin and Ravel.

How do you make your repertoire choices from season to season? 

I always try to decide my repertoire with the concert and tour audience in mind, to ensure they enjoy listening; after all, they are the ones who are buying the tickets. I would never choose my repertoire to please the critics.

Do you have a favourite concert venue to perform in and why? 

I like venues with a retro feel to them, particularly ones in Paris. I do not remember the name but love the castle in Manheim, Germany where Mozart played just once. It is not famous at all…

Favourite pieces to perform? Listen to? 

I love playing pieces by Debussy, Ravel and Chopin, and listening to recordings by the Moscow Philharmonic and Royal Philharmonic.

Who are your favourite musicians? 

Sergei Rachmaninoff and Georges Cziffra for the piano, and Maria Callas and Luciano Pavarotti.

What is your most memorable concert experience? 

I do not think I have one – since I am always dissatisfied with my performance, I try to forget about it every time I finish playing!

What do you consider to be the most important ideas and concepts to impart to aspiring musicians? 

To be artistic and not to care too much about technique. I think the music schools nowadays tend to teach their students only technique. The teachers are not artistic enough and focus too much on the technique which is sad.

What are you working on at the moment? 

I am doing a lot of concerts in Europe and Japan this year. I am about to tour in Germany will be performing in London at Cadogan Hall on 23 March 2014.

Where would you like to be in 10 years’ time? 

I am planning to be retired by then, surrounded by my cats and dogs under a big tree and peacefully listening to the music such as Debussy’s “La Mer” and praying to God.

What is your idea of perfect happiness? 

Believing in God and God’s promises.

What is your most treasured possession? 

My pet cats and dogs.

What do you enjoy doing most? 

Listening to music while sewing.

What is your present state of mind? 

I feel life needs patience.

Ingrid Fuzjko Hemming performs works by Chopin, Liszt, Beethoven, Brahms and Sukegawa with violinist Vasko Vassilev at London’s Cadogan Hall on 23rd March. Full details here

Born in Berlin to a Japanese pianist mother and a Russian-Swedish architect father, Fuzjko relocated to Tokyo at the age of five to be raised only by her mother, and also received piano lessons under her guidance. At the age of ten, Leonid Kreutzer, a Russian-born German pianist and her father’s longtime friend, started giving her piano lessons. At this point, he had predicted Fuzjko’s international success as a pianist. At 17, Fuzjko made her concert debut while still a high school student, and later won various prizes in major domestic competitions, such as the NHK Mainichi Music Contest and the Bunka Radio Broadcasting Co. Music Prize. She then began her professional career by collaborating with the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra and other Japanese Orchestras. Samson François who had just happened to be visiting Japan, heard her play and praised her musicianship and interpretation of Chopin and Liszt.

Fuzjko’s full biography

Interview date: 4th March 2014

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1538879_10152137519852220_1092949528_nWho or what inspired you to take up the violin, and make music your career? 

I originally began my studies on the piano, but I was a very bad student and very lazy in my practice.  One day I saw my piano teacher with a student on her main instrument (the violin) and I fell in love.  Over the following months I constantly nagged to learn the violin and eventually my mother and the teacher gave in.  I took to it very quickly, practiced relentlessly and progressed rapidly.  I never really felt that the violin would be my career (my parents wanted me to be a vet), it was always an obsession.  But when it came to higher education I could think of nothing I’d rather do than play my violin.  After my formal education I was quickly asked to perform both recitals and as a soloist with orchestra and I have continued to do so and love every second of it.

Who or what were the most important influences on your playing? 

Drama and imagery. My pianist Daniel Roberts and I always say the music must not interrupt the drama.  Also I often (and without meaning to) associate the pieces I perform with literature.  For example, I often associate The Lark Ascending with Thomas Hardy.

What have been the greatest challenges of your career so far? 

Performing a chamber recital in a windy concert hall, the music blew closed and the pianist’s page turner had to rescue me (this was also broadcast live).  I have also created my own Orchestra (The WPO) which performed in  February 2014 – this has been quite a challenge.

Which performances/recordings are you most proud of?  

I’m very proud of a recital I gave at Southwark Cathedral with Daniel Roberts: it was the first time we performed the Franck Sonata together and there was electricity to the performance.  I am also proud of my recording of The Lark Ascending.

Do you have a favourite concert venue to perform in? 

I particularly like the sound of St. Brides (Fleet Street) and would like to record there in the future.  I also quite liked performing in the Foundling Museum.  It’s quite a small venue, but seems extremely well suited to chamber concerts with a perfect balance.  I was performing Mozart, and it felt like I had gone back in time.

Favourite pieces to perform? Listen to? 

I change my mind like the weather on my favourite pieces.  But currently it is Brahms Violin Sonata No. 3, Beethoven Violin Concerto and I really love the contemporary composer Nimrod Borenstein’s work.  His latest piece (If you will it, it is no dream) is extremely good.

Who are your favourite musicians? 

Any musician who can give me inspiration.  This would include pianist Daniel Roberts, violinist Leland Chen.  I love the Primrose Quartet and I’m a huge fan of Julia Fischer.  Plus Heifetz.

What is your most memorable concert experience? 

It was actually when I was a child.  I had joined the county youth orchestra (I was accepted younger than the minimum age restriction because of my standard of playing, so I was the youngest and least experienced there).  I didn’t really know too much about the pieces we were playing or the composers.  In fact, I didn’t even know that the inside player turns the pages.  We played this boring piece with very little melody, which I hated.  On the day of the concert a solo violinist stood up and it turns out our ‘piece with very little melody’ was the accompaniment.  The piece (and the playing) was so beautiful that I forgot to play and just stopped to listen.  The piece was The Lark Ascending, and to this day I have a love of Vaughan Williams’ music.

What do you consider to be the most important ideas and concepts to impart to aspiring musicians? 

Love and enjoy every aspect of music.  Enjoy the physicality, enjoy the technique, and enjoy the emotions.  Read about the composers, watch concerts.  Play solo, chamber and orchestral and love the variety of ways we can make music.  Teach others to play.  Listen and appreciate other instruments and styles.  But most importantly always question and always learn.

How do you make repertoire choices from season to season?

As far as repertoire for my chamber music goes, Daniel and I have developed a close friendship over time and are often suggesting pieces that would suit each others playing, the only problem is that we can’t play it all at once. With Concerto and solo repertoire, I often choose pieces that touch me in some way, that I feel a need to perform.

What are you working on at the moment? 

I am working on Delius Sonata No. 3, which I’ll be performing in the Wales Millennium Centre and Anteros Arts Norwich with pianist Daniel Roberts. I’m also working on ‘Autumn’ from the Four Seasons and the Beethoven Violin Concerto but these are more long-range projects.

Which pieces do you think you perform best?

I think it would have to be ‘The Lark Ascending’, though I am pleased with my performances of the Brahms Violin Sonata No. 3.

What is your most treasured possession? 

My most treasured possession is obviously……my violin

Hannah Woolmer is a highly respected violinist with prolific experience as a recitalist.  She has performed in many of the UK’s classical music venues including St. Brides, Southwark Cathedral, Ely Cathedral, Bristol Cathedral, the London School of Economics and the London Festival of Contemporary Music.

Hannah’s performances have been broadcast on radio and 2012 saw the release of her  single ‘Lark Ascending’ which has been distributed on iTunes and with Amazon and reached #14 in the classical download charts.  Hannah also enjoys performing regularly as a soloist and has performed ‘The Four Seasons’ with Baroque Orchestra in London, Southend and Chelmsford, ‘The Lark Ascending’ with the University of Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra in 2011 and Bruch Violin Concerto in 2012.  

Hannah has performed with conductors Mark Galtry, Patrick Bailey and Jacques Cohen.  She has attended masterclasses and workshops with Bernard Gregor-Smith, John Thwaite, Susanne Stanzeleit and Robin Ireland.  Hannah has a great passion for the tradition of chamber music, and tries to bring aspects of her chamber experience into her solo performance, often resulting in a great rapport with the conductor and an intimacy with the audience very rarely seen in large scale works. 

Hannah’s collaboration throughout 2012 with Ukrainian Pianist Larysa Khmurych was met with critical acclaim.  They toured their recital programme to large scale concert venues, with Bristol and Ely Cathedral standing out as particular highlights in their calendar this year.  They quite quickly made a name for themselves with their fiery and heart-felt performance of Beethoven at the centre of their programme.  Hannah’s most recent collaboration is with pianist Daniel Roberts.  As well as continuing their busy recital schedule together which includes Wales’ Millennium Centre, Southwark Cathedral, the Anglo Japanese Society and The Foundling Museum to name a few.  They are currently recording their debut album together.