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The tenth London Piano Festival takes place between 9 and 12 October 2025 at Kings Place, London

  • Three world premieres written to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Festival by composers Cheryl Frances-Hoad, Stephen Hough and Elena Langer
  • The central Gala, featuring co-founders Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva with Stephen Hough, Ingrid Fliter, Ronan O’Hora, Seta Tanyel, Mishka Rushdie Momen, and Joseph Havlat performing four-, six- and eight-handed works
  • Solo recitals by Ingrid Fliter, Mishka Rushdie Momen, and festival co-founders Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva
  • A family concert narrated by Michael Morpurgo and featuring Keelan Carew, James Kreiling and Janneke Brits
  • A masterclass led by Stephen Hough
  • A showcase of star pianists from the Julian Joseph Jazz Academy
  • Pre- and post-concert discussions led by Ella Lee, presenter of the Classical Circuit podcast

Pianists and co-Artistic Directors Katya Apekisheva and Charles Owen reveal another dynamic lineup for the tenth-anniversary edition of the London Piano Festival (LPF) which returns to Kings Place from 9-12 October 2025. Four days of classical and jazz piano performances will include three world premieres by internationally renowned composers, each commissioned especially for this year’s Festival. The programme sees Ronan O’Hora, and Julian Joseph returning to perform at the Festival, and Stephen Hough, Ingrid Fliter, Keelan Carew, Zoe Rahman, Joseph Havlat, Mishka Rushdie Momen and more making their Festival debuts.

Under 30s tickets are available for all concerts at a reduced price of £10. The Festival is delighted to be working with International Piano magazine as its media partner for the tenth year running.

Co-Artistic Directors Katya Apekisheva and Charles Owen commented, “It is our great pleasure to be announcing the programme for the 10th London Piano Festival alongside the world premiere of three new commissions by Cheryl Frances-Hoad, Stephen Hough and Elena Langer. When we first dreamt up the idea of starting a piano festival over a decade ago, we hoped to fill a gap in London’s musical offering by creating a festival devoted exclusively to the piano. Ten years on, having presented nine Festivals featuring over 45 exceptional jazz and classical pianists, we are immensely grateful to continue offering world-class piano performances at our Festival home – Kings Place.”


Sam McShane, Artistic Director of Kings Place, commented: “London Piano Festival is back with an epic programme to mark its 10th anniversary year. This year’s theme, ‘Maturity & Youth’, beautifully reflects the festival’s journey—celebrating a decade of artistic excellence while championing the future of piano music. From world premieres to classics, this programme embodies the spirit of sharing, friendship and collaboration that defines Kings Place.”

The Festival opens with a joint recital from Katya Apekisheva and Charles Owen, featuring two world premieres. Katya Apekisheva will perform Seasons by Elena Langer, inspired by Philip Larkin’s poetry and commissioned as a companion piece to Tchaikovsky’s The Seasons. Charles Owen performs Stones of the Sky, a new composition by Cheryl Frances-Hoad inspired by gemstones found in the Austrian Alps and the Gem Poems by Pablo Neruda, and conceived as a complimentary piece to Schumann’s Carnaval. The event will be preceded by a pre-concert talk with the composers, led by Ella Lee, presenter of the Classical Circuit podcast [9 October].

Argentinian pianist Ingrid Fliter makes her LPF debut with a solo recital including Beethoven’s Sonata in E Flat and Sonata in D Major, and Chopin’s Nocturne in B Major and Sonata No. 3 in B minor. Ella Lee will lead a discussion with Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva beforehand, exploring the artists featured across the rest of the program and reflecting on the Festival’s decade-long legacy [10 October].

On Saturday, the Festival hosts a family concert, featuring a world premiere arrangement of Stravinsky’s The Firebird for two pianos, arranged and performed by James Kreiling and Janneke Brits, alongside Keelan Carew performing Poulenc’s Barbar the Elephant, with celebrated children’s author Michael Morpurgo as narrator. World-renowned pianist Stephen Hough will later present a piano clinic masterclass with pianists from the London conservatoires and beyond, closing with a Q&A led by pianist and broadcaster Keelan Carew [11 October].

The Saturday concludes with the Festival’s central event, the Two-Piano Gala, this year featuring no less than eight performers – Stephen Hough, Ingrid Fliter, Ronan O’Hora, Seta Tanyel, Mishka Rushdie Momen, and Joseph Havlat, in addition to Charles and Katya themselves. This year’s programme will include a world premiere composition by Stephen Hough, King’s Cross March, commissioned by the Festival and performed by Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva. Joseph Havlat, Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva will perform the UK premiere of Havlat’s own composition 64 Geese. Stephen Hough also joins Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva for a rendition of Rachmaninov’s Romance for Six Hands, and Ingrid Fliter, Joseph Havlat, Mishka Rushdie Momen and Ronan O’Hora perform Smetana’s Sonata for Two Pianos, (Eight Hands). Other featured composers include Mozart, Brahms, Shostakovich, Britten, Babajanian, Ravel and more [11 October].

The Sunday begins with a morning recital from Mishka Rushdie Momen, centred around her acclaimed album Reformation, exploring the rich sound world of Renaissance repertoire. This recital will include pieces by Byrd, Gibbons, Bull, Sweenlinck and more, and will conclude with a post-performance Q&A with Ella Lee [12 October].

BBC Russia Editor Steve Rosenberg intersperses stories of his life in Russia with piano improvisations at an event hosted by BBC Radio 3 presenter Petroc Trelawny. Running in parallel with this conversation will be a special focus on the historical and political significance of Dmitri Shostakovich, including a selection of his Preludes and Fugues performed by Berniya Hamie and Jeremy Chan, making their Festival debuts [12 October].

Julian Joseph returns to LPF with Zoe Rahman (in her Festival debut),bringing the 2025 Festival to a close with a recital of outstanding young pianists from the Julian Joseph Jazz Academy, including Danny Piers, Emile Hinton, Emily Tran and Nnamdi Nnachi Cole, all performing at LPF for the first time [12 October].

The London Piano Festival was founded by pianists Katya Apekisheva and Charles Owen in 2016 and takes place every October at Kings Place, London. Previous visiting artists have included Alfred Brendel, Alexandra Dariescu, Julian Joseph, Gabriela Montero, Stephen Kovacevich, Jason Rebello, Vadym Kholodenko, Leszek Możdżer, Lara Melda, Reinis Zariņš and Kathryn Stott, amongst many others. The Festival has also commissioned several new works for two pianos, working with composers including Sally Beamish, Jonathan Dove, Elena Langer and Nico Muhly.

Full details at londonpianofestival.com

[Source: press release]

Image: Viktor Erik Emanuel

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3 – 7 October 2018
Kings Place, London
2018 promo video here

Katya Apekisheva | Alexandra Dariescu | Margaret Fingerhut | Ingrid Fliter | Stephen Kovacevich | Konstantin Lifschitz | Leszek Możdżer | Charles Owen | Paul Roberts

“A reminder of what a fabulous variety of sound can be conjured from two pianos”
5* The Telegraph

  • Third annual London Piano Festival at Kings Place with Co-Artistic Directors Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva
     
  • Solo recitals by Konstantin Lifschitz and Ingrid Fliter, amplified jazz performance by Leszek Możdżer and lecture/recital on Debussy by Paul Roberts
  • Two-piano Marathon with Stephen Kovacevich, Margaret Fingerhut, Konstantin Lifschitz, Ingrid Fliter, Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva which will be recorded by BBC Radio 3 for future broadcast in Radio 3 in Concert
  • Family concert of The Nutcracker and I by Alexandra Dariescu with piano soloist, ballerina and digital animation

img2171sim-canetty-clarkecurated

Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva announce the programme of their third annual London Piano Festival, taking place from 3-7 October 2018 at Kings Place, London.  This year the Co-Artistic Directors bring together seven pianists in addition to themselves for a programme of solo recitals, jazz, a family concert, lecture/recital and the highly anticipated two-piano marathon.  The theme of this year’s Festival is the centenary of the death of Claude Debussy which is seen throughout the 5-day series.  This year the London Piano Festival are bringing in a student ticket scheme, offering £5 tickets to a number of events during the 5-day Festival.

The highlight of the London Piano Festival is its Two-Piano Marathon, referred to as “altogether exemplary” by The Times (2016). In various pairings, Stephen Kovacevich, Margaret Fingerhut, Katya Apekisheva, Charles Owen, Konstantin Lifschitz and Ingrid Fliter perform a range of works by Brahms, Bax, Debussy, Adès, Stravinsky, Rachmaninov and more.  The Two-Piano Marathon will be recorded by BBC Radio 3 for future broadcast in Radio 3 in Concert.

The Festival opens with a concert by Co-Artistic Directors Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva performing both solo and duo repertoire.  Katya opens the concert performing Schubert’s Moments Musicaux 1-3, Granados’ The Maiden and The Nightingale and Ginastera’s Three Argentinian Dances before Charles performs Ravel’s Gaspard de la nuit. The second half of the concert sees the duo perform Three Nocturnes by Debussy (arranged by Ravel), marking the composer’s centenary, and Milhaud’s Scaramouche.

“At the London Piano Festival we want to bring together a whole range of music appealing to piano lovers of all ages.  As 2018 marks the centenary of Debussy’s death, we felt it was important to mark this within our programming this year.  We also love to present contemporary music at the Festival and this year we’ll be performing an existing piece by Thomas Adès who is a great friend of Charles’.” Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva

Both Owen and Apekisheva will be releasing solo albums to coincide with the opening concert of the London Piano Festival this year.  Katya is releasing an album of Scriabin, Chopin and Fauré impromptus on Champs Hill Records, a programme which she brought to the Festival in 2016.  Charles is releasing a double-disc of Brahms’ late piano works on Avie. This follows the recent release of their duo recording in January 2018, Rachmaninov: The two-piano suites; Six Morceaux, Op. 11 which Gramophone magazine called “a highly recommendable disc”.

The London Piano Festival features two solo recitals by pianists making their debuts at Kings Place. Russian pianist Konstantin Lifschitz performs a programme of works by Schubert, Janáček and Debussy, and Argentinian pianist Ingrid Fliter performs Beethoven Sonatas before they both join the Two-Piano Marathon.   Celebrated Polish jazz pianist Leszek Możdżer brings a night of amplified jazz to the Festival, following his sold-out show at Kings Place in 2017 which London Jazz News called “a great show that held the attention from start to finish”. 

Commemorating the centenary of Claude Debussy, concert pianist and writer Paul Roberts presents a lecture/recital in Kings Place’s Hall Two about Debussy’s Piano Music on Saturday 6 October, focussing on Debussy’s Images books I and II.  Paul Roberts is the leading authority on the music of Debussy and Ravel, having written Images: The Piano Music of Claude Debussy, Debussy: a biography and Reflections: The Piano Music of Maurice Ravel.

For this year’s family concert, Alexandra Dariescu brings her ground-breaking multi-media piece The Nutracker and I, by Alexandra Dariescu for piano soloist, ballerina and digital animation to Kings Place for the first time, following its critically-acclaimed world premiere last year.  Tchaikovsky’s beloved ballet music features throughout and includes favourites such as Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, Arabian Dance, Chinese Dance, Pas de Deux, and the Flower Waltz in 15 virtuosic arrangements by Mikhail Pletnev, Stepan Esipoff, Percy Grainger and three brand new variations by Gavin Sutherland.  Dariescu is releasing an album of The Nutcracker and I on Signum Classics on 27 April.

Full programme

Wednesday 3 October, 19:30pm | Hall One
OPENING NIGHT – Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva
Schubert Moments Musicaux 1-3, D.780 (KA)
Granados Maiden and the Nightingale from Goyescas, Op. 11 (KA)
Ginastera Three Argentinian Dances, Op. 2 (KA)
Ravel Gaspard de la nuit (CO)
Debussy Three Nocturnes (arr. Ravel) (KA & CO)
Milhaud Scaramouche (KA & CO)

Thursday 4 October, 19:30pm | Hall One
ON AN OVERGROWN PATH – Konstantin Lifschitz
Schubert Sonata in A minor, D 784
Janáček ‘On an Overgrown Path’ 1st series
Janáček ‘On an Overgrown Path’ 2nd series
Debussy Preludes Book I

Friday 5 October, 19:30pm | Hall One
LESZEK MOŻDŻER IN CONCERT 

Saturday 6 October, 14:00pm | Hall Two 
IN THE MIND’S EYE – DEBUSSY’S IMAGES – Paul Roberts

Saturday 6 October, 16:00pm | Hall One
TEMPEST – Ingrid Fliter
Beethoven Sonata No. 18 in E-flat major, Op. 31, No.3
Beethoven Sonata No. 17 in D minor ‘Tempest’, Op. 31, No. 2
Beethoven Sonata No. 22 in F major, Op. 54

Saturday 6 October, 19:00pm | Hall One
TWO PIANO MARATHON – Stephen Kovacevich, Margaret Fingerhut, Katya Apekisheva, Charles Owen, Konstantin Lifschitz, Ingrid Fliter
Brahms Variations on a Theme by Haydn, Op. 56 (KL&IF)
Bax The Poisoned Fountain and Hardanger (MF &CO)
Poulenc Élégie (MF & KA)
Poulenc Capriccio (d’après Le Bal masque) (MF & KA)
Poulenc L’embarquement pour Cythère (MF & KA)
Debussy En blanc et noir (SK & CO)
Rachmaninov Russian Rhapsody (1891) (KL & KA)
Arensky Suite No. 1, Op. 15 (IF & KA)
Thomas Adès Concert Paraphrase on Powder Her Face (CO & KA)
Stravinsky Scherzo à la russe (CO & MF)

Sunday 7 October, 14:00pm | Hall One
THE NUTCRACKER & I BY ALEXANDRA DARIESCU

 

(source: Albion Media press release)

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Who or what inspired you to take up the piano and pursue a career in music?

No one. My sister 10 years my senior played the piano so I followed in her footsteps, and it sort of developed from there. I did already realise when I was quite young that music would play a huge part of my life.

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

I was fortunate enough to earn a place at the Yehudi Menuhin School and there teachers came and went, but were many of Yehudi’s friends and colleagues. Amongst them was the great Nadia Boulanger who gave classes when I was a student there, and Vlado Perlemuter who inspired my love for Ravel, as did the even more elderly Marcel Ciampi, my love of Debussy.

You are performing in the London Piano Festival this October – tell us more about this?

This is my first appearance at the Festival and I am looking forward to it immensely. One of the highlights for me is the world premiere of Kevin Volans’s piece L’Africaine for Piano solo. I have known Kevin for years but this is the first piece I am performing by him. The programme will also comprise Ravel’s great set of 5 pieces Miroirs, as well as his Valses Nobles et Sentimentales, and Weber Invitation to the Dance.

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

There have been many, but a few are etched firmly in my memory. Spitalfields Festival invited me to perform Messiaen’s great piece the Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant Jesus a few years back, and after much deliberation I decided to go for it. Learning that piece changed my life, not just musically, but as a person. Its one of the strongest pieces of music I know.

Another occasion was my coming back recital in Singapore after an absence of nearly 34 years, and I simply did not know how the audience would respond and react. It proved to be a memorable occasion, not least for my parents who waited so long for that day to happen.

Which performance/recordings are you most proud of?

I have fond memories of everything I have done. But I would specially mention my latest CD ‘Master and Pupil’ which traces Liszt’s influences back to Beethoven and especially Czerny, who was devoted to his talented pupil and continued to be an inspiration all through Liszt’s life.

Which particular works do you think you perform best?

My performing range has widened significantly over the years. From Beethoven and Mozart through the French Impressionists and the 21st century. It would be very difficult to choose a period or type. I really do feel at home in everything I do.

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

Depending on the engagements that come up. Sometimes one does not have a choice. I tend to keep or try to keep a nice balance between concertos and solos, but there is always a new solo repertoire each season which I like to try out.

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

The concert halls in Asia are superb, and I am very proud to go back to Singapore to perform in the wonderful halls there, particularly the Esplanade and the Hall at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of music. Having said that the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam is wonderful as is the Wigmore Hall and Kings Place in London.

Who are your favourite musicians?

I love the golden oldies – Schnabel, the Busch Quartet, Arrau, and many many more – too many to mention here.

What is your most memorable concert experience?

The occasion when I first performed Weber’s wonderfully funny witty piece the Konzertstuck with Roger Norrington and the London Classical Players at St John’s Smith Square many many years ago. It was the one of the most exhilarating evenings I can remember and on the strength of that concert EMI eventually invited me to record with them and Sir Roger.

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

To believe in what you are doing. To take the rough with the smooth. We can’t always have success. Sometimes failure can teach us more about something than success ever can.

Humility. Nothing I detest more than diva-ish behaviour. We are all human.

 

What is your most treasured possession?

My 60th birthday present from my partner Paul by sculptor Geoffrey Clarke and his son, who designed the altarpiece at Coventry Cathedral. It’s of a phoenix about to take flight… Maybe quite appropriate at this stage in life!

 

Melvyn Tan performs music by Weber and Ravel and premieres a new work by Kevin Volans at King’s Place on Saturday 7 October as part of the 2017 London Piano Festival

www.melvyntan.com

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Who or what inspired you to take up the piano and pursue a career in music?

Seeing Herbie Hancock perform in 1983

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

Herbie Hancock, Julian Joseph, John Coltrane.

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

Playing ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ with the Hallé Orchestra and arranging for them too.

Which performance/recordings are you most proud of? 

‘Enter the Fire’ – Tim Garland, ‘Make it real’ – me, and ‘Anything but look’ -me.

Which particular works do you think you perform best?

Hard to say, I enjoy many styles of jazz.

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

I go with what feels right to me.

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

Anywhere with a nice piano and a nice sounding room is fine with me.

Who are your favourite musicians?

I like Ivo Neame, Julian Joseph, Gwlym Simcock and Wayne Shorter at the moment…

What is your most memorable concert experience?

Playing at the Albert Hall with Sting.

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

To never forget that music is for enjoyment and communication.