South African pianist Mark Nixon presents much loved works by Mozart, Brahms and Chopin. Beginning with Sonata KV 332, a work of striking cantabile, vivid musical contrasts and lavish embellishments unusually written out by Mozart in the central Adagio, Mark puts Brahms’ Sechs Klavierstücke at the heart of his performance. Comprising four Intermezzi, a Ballade and a Romanze, all contrasting in mood, the six pieces are surreptitiously linked by a three-note motif, cleverly transformed so that each one stands as…

The first half of the programme features Schubert’s second set of four impromptus. Often seen as resembling a cycle, in particular a sonata, the four impromptus cover an array of different characteristics that often bring to mind Schubert’s songs and dances. Liszt, who was an ardent admirer of Schubert’s music, features in the second half, with two mature pieces that express his fascination with Catholic themes. His Bénédiction de Dieu dans la solitude is an expansive, lyrical meditation - and…

The festival directors Samantha Ward and Maciej Raginia open the concert with Mozart’s popular Sonata KV 448, one of only a few works which he wrote for two pianos. Composed in 1781, it follows a strict sonata form in the first movement with a lyrical aria in the middle and a joyful rondo as the final movement. The galant style permeates the piece with interlocking melodies and simultaneous cadences. This is followed by Ravel’s Ma mère l'Oye in its original…

Beethoven’s Tempest Sonata, written in 1801/1802, is reminiscent of a violent storm with periods of calm and peacefulness. This sonata could be interpreted as Beethoven beginning to come to terms with his impending deafness through the anguish and despair of the Adagio, contrasting rage and calm, and the ferocious cadences and rhythms of the finale. Sir Michael Tippett was an English composer who rose to prominence during and immediately after the Second World War. His Sonata No. 2 (1962) is…

In this all-Hispanic recital, pianist Annabelle Lawson evokes the colours and sensuality of Spain and Latin America through music spanning three centuries. Starting at the end - with Mexican composer Javier Álvarez’s salsa-inspired Triple Enclave, the programme juxtaposes Antonio Soler’s dazzling late-Baroque fandango with the sensual, candlelit fandango from Enrique Granados’ Goyescas; often considered the pinnacle of nineteenth-century Spanish piano music. At the emotional heart of the programme lies the ever-popular Quejas o La maja y el ruiseñor, also from…

In this varied programme Nico de Villiers combines song with cityscapes. Schumann’s Widmung, which opens his song cycle Myrthen, is a song of devotion to his new bride, Clara Schumann. Schubert’s Ständchen is a serenade where a man tries to implore a girl to open her window and acknowledge his song. Granados wrote his piano suite Goyescas in 1911 to illustrate various inspirations of the paintings of Goya. He used the music from this piano suite as a basis for…

Stephen Kovacevich returns to the festival as a guest artist for the fourth time with a most profound programme of solo and two piano works. Admired around the globe for his searching interpretations of Beethoven, Brahms, Mozart and Schubert, Kovacevich offers the audience Schubert’s Sonata D960, the pinnacle of the composer’s piano oeuvre. Following the mysterious contemplation and otherworldly sonorities of the first half, Samantha Ward joins forces with Stephen for the rest of the concert in the two-piano version…

South African pianist Mark Nixon presents much loved works by Mozart, Brahms and Chopin. Beginning with Sonata KV 332, a work of striking cantabile, vivid musical contrasts and lavish embellishments unusually written out by Mozart in the central Adagio, Mark puts Brahms’ Sechs Klavierstücke at the heart of his performance. Comprising four Intermezzi, a Ballade and a Romanze, all contrasting in mood, the six pieces are surreptitiously linked by a three-note motif, cleverly transformed so that each one stands as…

Korean pianist Grace Yeo presents a diverse programme, which introduces some of the beautiful and inspiring piano music written by the early 20th century English composers Frank Bridge and York Bowen. Rarely performed after the composer’s death, many of Bridge’s major compositions began to achieve a wider critical acclaim in the early 1970s thanks to Benjamin Britten’s continuous efforts to popularise the music. Opening her programme with Bridge’s A Fairy Tale, masterfully crafted and full of haunting harmonies, Grace moves…

The festival directors Samantha Ward and Maciej Raginia open the concert with Mozart’s popular Sonata KV 448, one of only a few works which he wrote for two pianos. Composed in 1781, it follows a strict sonata form in the first movement with a lyrical aria in the middle and a joyful rondo as the final movement. The galant style permeates the piece with interlocking melodies and simultaneous cadences. This is followed by Economou’s dazzling transcription of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker…

British concert pianist Warren Mailley-Smith presents a varied programme that begins with the B flat Major Sonata; a work considered to be the crowning achievement of Beethoven’s early period, shimmering with bravura whilst pushing the boundaries of existing sonata form. This is followed by Chopin's exquisite Nocturne in D flat which epitomises his bel canto style of piano writing and seductive use of harmony alongside the Waltz in A flat, a display of brilliant pianistic virtuosity. Ravel’s colourful Sonatine follows,…

Niel du Preez opens his recital with Schubert’s gigantic final Sonata in B flat Major D960, which shares a common dramatic arc with the first and the second of his last three piano sonatas. In all of these, Schubert makes a considerable or sometimes identical use of cyclic motifs and tonal relationships to weave musical narratives throughout the works. Scriabin’s 24 Préludes represent impressions of the various places at which the composer performed whilst on his frequent concert tours. Three…

Japanese pianist Aisa Ijiri begins her programme with a movement from Swedish composer Wilhelm Stenhammar's Nights of Late Summer, considered to be both an homage to his native Swedish landscape and a metaphor to the late summer of life. This is followed by one of Carl Nielsen's most well-known compositions, Chaconne Op. 32, an emulation of Bach's famous work for solo violin. Franz Liszt was also inspired by Bach's incredible body of work, and in this transcription of his Prelude…

Maiko Mori begins her recital with the inventive imagination and character of four of Domenico Scarlatti's Sonatas. These are followed by one of Beethoven's greatest and most technically challenging piano sonatas, the Appassionata, which is certainly his most impassioned work and his most violent musical utterance. Kapustin’s Variations Op.41 follow next, combining elements of jazz style with classical form. Kapustin regards himself as a composer rather than a jazz musician, implying that all his improvisation is written out and not…

Japanese pianist Aisa Ijiri opens her recital with two works by British composer Melanie Spanswick. The swirling semiquvers of Frenzy moving in repetitive patterns up and down the piano keyboard eventually give place to an expressive and slightly sentimental mood of Aisa, written in 2018 and dedicated to tonight’s performer. This is followed by Chopin’s late C minor Nocturne with its solemn, mournful opening which gradually erupts into a flurry of cascading chords and double octaves underpinning the simple melody…

In an eclectic programme of repertoire for four hands, festival directors Samantha Ward and Maciej Raginia combine famous works by Fauré and Brahms with new piano transcriptions of some of the most iconic compositions by the Argentine tango composer and bandoneon player Astor Piazzolla. Opening with a suite of six short pieces, which Fauré wrote for Hélène Bardac (the title Dolly), daughter of the French singer Emma Bardac who was a mutual love interest of both Debussy and Fauré, Samantha…

Since the inception of the festival six years ago, excellence, friendliness, a passion for music and imagination have shaped the DNA of PIANO WEEK. Opening doors to pianists of any age and ability and offering them world-class tuition from concert pianists and leading educators in their field resulted in a steadily growing community of inspirational musicians, music lovers and piano enthusiasts from around the world. Our showcase at Steinway & Sons in Tokyo offers a rare opportunity for those audience…

Japanese concert pianist Yuki Negishi presents a passionate programme that begins with the G Major Sonata D894; completed in October 1826 it was the last of Schubert’s sonatas published during the composer’s lifetime. Hailed by Robert Schumann as the ‘most perfect in form and conception’ amongst all of Schubert’s works in this genre, it is sometimes called the ‘Fantasie’, a title which originates from its very first edition of 1827 by Tobias Haslinger. This is followed by Chopin's Sonata in…