Returning to the studio

 by Frances Wilson  July 15th, 2018

The late great Canadian pianist Glenn Gould made two significant and highly-acclaimed recordings of Bach’s Goldberg Variations, the first in 1955 when he was just 22, the second a quarter of a century later in 1981 when he was nearing the end of his life. Both recordings stand as benchmarks and both offer fascinating insights into the music and Gould’s approach to it. These recordings have never been out of print – a mark of their status and the respect they command in the canon of Bach recordings. The 1955 recording was Gould’s debut disc for Columbia Records and was something of a risk for the record company since at the time the Goldbergs were regarded as one of the obscurities of the repertoire, while the performer was unknown. The 1955 recording is often described as a young man’s recording, full of the exuberance of youth in its extreme tempi and avoidance of some of the repeats. In fact, the swiftness of the playing is partly due to the constraints of the vinyl format and the need to bring the recording within a certain time-frame. No matter: Gould’s Goldbergs became an instant hit, launching both pianist and the work, which entered the standard repertoire of pianists and remains widely performed and recorded to this day.

When Gould re-recorded the Goldbergs in 1981, recording technology had advanced considerably (stereo and Dolby surround sound had been invented and digital recording/editing could be used for mainstream recordings). This gave the artist greater flexibility, with the possibility of multiple takes to create a recording with which he was entirely satisfied. Gould had been unhappy with the tempi in the first recording and felt there was no sense of cohesion or narrative flow between the individual variations. The 1981 recording is undoubtedly that of a mature artist: the tempi are thoughtful, almost autumnal, and there is much greater expression throughout the variations. There are elegance and nobility rather than swooning, nervous energy.  

Gould’s two recordings of the Goldberg Variations demonstrate something profound – that two different approaches to the same notes say a great deal about how one ages and how tastes change over time.

The weather changes. The admirable impetuousness of youth usually yields to a more considered view
– John Humphreys, concert pianist

A recording is a snapshot in time, yet preserved forever, unlike a live performance which is a one-off, never to be repeated. Many artists are dissatisfied with their recordings because they know that they never play the same thing in exactly the same way and no sooner has a recording come out, than they wish they had done things differently. As amply demonstrated by Gould’s Goldbergs, the passage of time allows one to reflect on one’s repertoire and how one plays it. One’s perception of the music changes with time and so it makes perfect sense to re-record from a different, more mature perspective.

Daniel Barenboim

Other notable “repeat” recordings include Daniel Barenboim’s Beethoven Piano Sonatas. Barenboim was a young man when he recorded his first cycle (between 1966 and 1969), and like Gould’s 1955 Goldbergs, there’s an excitement and spontaneity in these readings. He re-recorded the sonatas for Deustche Grammophon in 1981-84 and two decades later Decca released the audio soundtracks of DB’s live performances of the sonatas (performed and filmed in Berlin’s Staatsoper unter den Linden and issued by EMI on DVD). Like Gould’s Goldbergs, these make for fascinating listening, offering one the opportunity to chart the performer’s artistic and interpretative development and maturity, resulting in new or renewed approaches to the music.

That artists choose to re-record works is a mark of how one develops as an artist: one does not and should not stand still artistically. Our responses to our music change with time, experience, growing maturity, and when we return to music we should always find something new within it. For some musicians, capturing the artistic changes that happen across their careers is an important goal and re-recording certain works is a way of marking these changes. In other instances, musicians respond to pressures from a record label: when an artist moves to a new label, they may be encouraged to re-record works to match the success of a previous label.

The best re-recordings don’t recreate, they reinvent. And while listening to them, we try to discover what motivations and inspirations stand behind them.

10 Inspirational & Thought-Provoking Quotes From Musicians and Composers

 by Frances Wilson  December 17th, 2023

“Every time you play a great piece of music, there is a new discovery. Every time.”

– Mitsuko Uchida, pianist   

“I am interested in music as ecstasy, as something that transports you away from the every day to another place.”
– Terry Riley, composer

James MacMillan © Hans van der Woerd

“Perhaps many a composer of the past would be astonished at how over-cautious we are when we play their works.”
– Helmut Deutsch, pianist

“Be open to the possibility of your ears and soul being challenged, be curious about how that may be done, be hungry for new sounds, be thirsty for what you don’t know yet”
– James MacMillan, composer and conductor   

“The purpose of art is the gradual, lifelong construction of a state of wonder and serenity.”
– Glenn Gould, pianist  

Leon Fleisher © The New York Times

“Schnabel said Mozart is the most inaccessible of the great masters because, with the fewest number of notes, he accesses the deepest levels of human awareness and experience.”
– Leon Fleisher, pianist

“As you grow up, communicate more with scores than with virtuosi”
– Robert Schumann

Arthur Rubinstein

“At every concert, I leave a lot to the moment. I must have the unexpected, the unforeseen. I want to risk, to dare. I want to be surprised by what comes out. I want to enjoy it more than the audience. That way, the music can bloom anew.”
– Arthur Rubinstein, pianist  

“If you play music with passion and love and honesty, then it will nourish your soul, heal your wounds, and make your life worth living. Music is its own reward.”
– Sting (Gordon Summer, pop musician)

“Keep searching for that sound in your head until it becomes a reality”
– Bill Evans, jazz pianist

Nocturnes and the Fascination of Night Music Susan Tomes

 by Frances Wilson  April 24th, 2026

Browse streaming platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube, as well as broadcasters like the BBC, and you will find curated playlists of music for relaxation, calm, winding down, nighttime, and sleep. That Max Richter’s Sleep – his landmark 2015 concept album and “eight-hour lullaby” designed to be listened to while sleeping – has surpassed 2 billion streams across all platforms is a testament to the popularity of this genre of music.

Susan Tomes

Why has the night inspired composers for so many years? In her new book Nocturnes and the Fascination of Night Music, pianist and writer Susan Tomes looks for answers, exploring one of classical music’s most expressive forms. The nocturne is closely linked to the piano and the quiet, thoughtful moods of the evening. Susan Tomes calls the nocturne “the origin of today’s sleep music….a short, lyrical and usually tranquil piece evoking night.”

When we think of nocturnes, Chopin often comes to mind. He elevated the form, transforming charming salon pieces into concert works, full of expression and pianistic detail. His nocturnes are amongst the most loved pieces for pianists and audiences alike, regularly appearing in concerts and recordings.

Maria Wodzińska: Frédéric Chopin, 1836 (Wasaw: National Museum)

But before Chopin, there was John Field, an Irish composer and a pupil of Muzio Clementi, who is credited with creating the genre.

Anton Wachsmann: John Field, ca 1820 (Gallica: btv1b84179686)

Susan Tomes looks back to the early nineteenth century, when composers began to write music that captured the quiet, emotional atmosphere of night. She points to pieces that seem to anticipate the nocturne, such as the first movement of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata and the slow movement of Mozart’s Piano Concerto K. 467.

Field is, of course, the key figure in the development of the Nocturne, and Tomes devotes considerable attention to his life and career, as well as to the emergence of the genre in his hands.

From there, she traces its evolution through some of the most celebrated figures in classical music – from contemporaries of Chopin like the Schumanns and the Mendelssohn siblings to Chopin’s ‘successor’, Gabriel Fauré, whose early Nocturnes seem close to Chopin’s while his later ones are bleaker, more challenging but no less passionate. Close attention is also paid to some of Fauré’s contemporaries, Tchaikovsky, Vincent d’Indy, Rachmaninoff, Scriabin and Chaminade, for example, before Tomes reaches Claude Debussy.

Debussy may have written only one Nocturne, but his sensitivity to the atmosphere of the evening and nighttime is clearly demonstrated in pieces such as Les sons et parfums tournent dans l’air du soir (Preludes, Book 1) and La soirée dans Grenade from Estampes.

Atelier Nadar: Claude Debussy, ca 1890–1910

The piano is at the heart of this story. Tomes explains that its wide range and expressive sound make it perfect for nocturnes. The piano’s intimacy, especially in the smaller, quieter instruments that Field and Chopin played, makes nocturnes feel personal and private, as if they are meant for quiet evening listening instead of big performances. This closeness is a big part of why they remain so appealing.

The latter half of the book brings us right up to the present day. Here Tomes explores wider examples of “night music” – Bartok’s haunting, often unsettling evocations, for example, The Night’s Music from the Out of Doors suite. Tomes highlights the composer Lowell Liebermann (b.1961), who follows “the conceptual line laid out by Faure in his later Nocturnes”, and who, like Bartok, presents nighttime as disquieting and austere. Here, Tomes shows how the nocturne developed from gentle lyricism into a far richer and more complex expressive form.

Lowell Liebermann

A recurring theme throughout the book is the relationship between music and human experience. Night, Tomes suggests, is a time when the boundaries between waking and dreaming blur, thoughts become more fluid and emotions more pronounced. Composers have long been drawn to this atmosphere, using music to explore solitude, memory, and imagination.

The book also looks beyond music to examine how the idea of the nocturne appears in other arts. Painting, literature, and modern culture all share a fascination with night as a source of inspiration. By placing music in this broader context, Tomes reveals the nocturne not just as a genre but as part of a larger tradition focused on mood, atmosphere, and the passage of time.

Nocturne by Whistler Nocturne: Blue and Silver – Chelsea (1871), James McNeill Whistler (Tate Gallery, London)

What sets Tomes apart is that she doesn’t see nocturnes as merely soothing or decorative. She presents them as deeply expressive pieces that span a wide range of emotions. Some nocturnes evoke calm, reflection, or a dreamlike feeling, while others suggest restlessness, unease, or even drama. In this way, the nocturne is not just a musical ‘lullaby’ but a genre that captures the uncertainty of night itself.

Susan Tomes writes with clarity and warmth, combining scholarly knowledge with the perspective of a practising musician, offering detailed analyses of works and notes on performance – invaluable insights for pianists and teachers.

As with all her other writing, her approach is accessible, with her reflections grounded in her lived experience as a performer, thereby offering readers a sense not only of how nocturnes are constructed but also of how they feel to play and to hear. Rich in insight, detail, and musical examples, this engrossing, highly readable book is a must for musicians and music lovers.

Nocturnes and the Fascination of Night Music reminds us that night is not merely the absence of day, but a rich and evocative world in its own right, full of nuance, mystery, and creative possibility.

The Performing Teacher

by Frances Wilson  June 20th, 2017

© auralize.com

I meet many piano teachers, at courses, workshops and masterclasses. It is always good to meet other piano teachers, to exchange ideas, and to enjoy a collective grumble about the exigencies of the job. Many of the teachers whom I meet are also performing musicians, professional or otherwise, and many regard performing as a necessary, indeed crucial, part of the job as a teacher.

I also meet many teachers who do not perform, for one reason or another. Some cite lack of time, others anxiety or lack of confidence. I actually met one teacher who claimed she was “too afraid” to perform for her students in case she made a mistake.

As teachers, performing is, in my opinion, a necessary part of the job, and we need to be able to guide and advise our students on how to present themselves in a “performance situation” (exam, festival, competition, audition), and to prepare them physically and emotionally for the experience. A whole new and different range of skills are required as a performer, and it is important to stress to students the difference between practicing and performing. We also need to be able to offer support for issues such as nerves and performance anxiety, and to offer coping strategies to counteract the negative thoughts and feelings that can arise from anxiety. How can you train others to perform if you have never done it yourself?

A successful performance demonstrates that you have practised correctly, deeply and thoughtfully, instead of simply note-bashing. Preparing music for performance teaches us how to complete a real task and to understand what is meant by “music making”. It encourages us to “play through”, glossing over errors rather than being thrown off course by them, and eradicates “stop-start” playing which prevents proper flow. You never really demonstrate your technique properly until you can demonstrate it in a performance. Performing also teaches us how to communicate a sense of the music, to “tell the story”, and to understand what the composer is trying to say. It adds to our credibility and artistic integrity as musicians. And if you haven’t performed a piece, how can you say it is truly “finished”?

I always perform in my student concerts, not to show off, but to demonstrate to my students (and their parents, who pay my bills!) that I can actually do it, that I too am continuing my piano studies by preparing repertoire for performance, and that I have managed my performance anxiety properly. I also feel that by performing with my students, we transform our concerts into a shared music-making experience. I hope that by hearing and watching me playing, my students can better grasp aspects of technique or interpretation we might have discussed in lessons, as well as enjoying the sheer pleasure of listening to piano music, and perhaps draw inspiration from it as well.

Hastings International Piano Competition 2026: A Showcase for Young Talent

 by Frances Wilson  February 23rd, 2026

Forty of the world’s best young pianists will soon converge on the White Rock Theatre for this year’s Hastings International Piano Competition (HIPC), which takes place from 26th February to 7th March.

Hastings International Piano Competition 2026 competitors

HIPC is a biennial classical piano contest held in Hastings, a seaside town in the south of England, with a long history dating back to the early 20th century through the Hastings Musical Festival. Piano luminaries such as Vladimir Horowitz, Artur Rubinstein and Sergei Rachmaninoff performed at the White Rock Theatre in the 1930s. Previous festival adjudicators include Lady Barbirolli and composer Ruth Gipps.

The competition was revived in 2005 as the Hastings International Piano Competition, and over the last twenty years it has grown into an internationally recognised showcase, drawing young concert pianists from around the world who have the opportunity to perform with leading UK orchestras, such as the Royal Philharmonic and Sinfonia Smith Square. The competition is unique in that participants are required to perform movements from a piano concerto (accompanied by another pianist) from the very first round. Those competitors who progress to Round 2 will give a solo performance of 30-35 minutes, which must include a new piece commissioned especially for the competition by pianist and composer Sir Stephen Hough.

Sir Stephen Hough

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for a composer to hear a piece played many times and brought to life under many different hands. I simply want to write something which younger colleagues want to play – not so much a test piece as one which they will enjoy performing beyond the competition.” – Sir Stephen Hough, patron of HIPC

Vanessa Latarche

“There’s not a composer alive who understands the instrument better than Stephen, after all, and it will be fascinating to hear twenty different interpretations of the piece during the competition….” – Vanessa Latarche, Artistic Director

(Test piece for 2024 competition) Chengyao Zhou – ‘Time Unredeemable’ by Lera Auerbach   

Chosen by an experienced pre-selection jury, who watched video auditions of 356 applicants from 46 countries, the 40 selected pianists – aged between 19 and 29 – will travel from 18 nations to compete in one of the world’s leading competitions for rising stars. They will be judged by, amongst others, Jean-Paul Gasparian, Scott Dunn, Boris Slutsky and Professor Vanessa Latarche, Artistic Director (since 2020) and Head of Keyboard at the Royal College of Music, London. Previous prize winners include Curtis Phill Hsu, Roman Kosyakov, and Kenneth Broberg.

2024 Competition FINAL – Curtis Phill Hsu   

Interlude spoke to Vanessa Latarche, Artistic Director of HIPC, about the pleasures and challenges of managing an international piano competition, and what she and her fellow jurors are looking forward to in this year’s competition:

‘The pleasures include hearing fabulous music played by young people who are at the very top of their game, working with distinguished colleagues and the HIPC team to support young musicians. It is a particular pleasure to work with Steinway & Sons, who provide and prepare the beautiful instruments for the competition and look after them carefully throughout. We’re also very lucky to work with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – it’s such a draw for the young pianists who reach the finals to be able to perform with one of the world’s truly great orchestras.

The challenges are many, including fundraising, audience building and logistics of arrangements in the seaside town of Hastings on the south coast of England.

We’re looking forward to hearing the array of talent we have, to hearing so many piano concertos with both orchestras and to hearing how the competitors handle the Stephen Hough piece and how they plan their programmes. And of course, to finding worthy winners who we will support long after the competition with engagements, mentoring and advice – we look forward to seeing them flourish!’

HIPC offers a prize package worth approximately £35,000, which includes career development opportunities, professional engagements (such as a recital at London’s Wigmore Hall and a concert with the Royal Philharmonic), and mentoring support. The competition is generously supported by Steinway & Sons and numerous sponsors and benefactors, including the Kowitz Family Foundation, which has supported the competition since 2009.

HIPC Music in the Meadow

Beyond the main competition, Hastings International Piano engages in education outreach and community activities through its Learning & Participation programme, bringing classical music to all – from school workshops and community concerts to pop-up pianos across the town and free tickets to the competition for community groups. For aspiring pianists of any age or ability level, Music in the Meadow is an opportunity to showcase the musical talents of the people of Hastings. A grand piano is installed in the Priory Meadow shopping centre, giving everyone the chance to play.

The competition opens on 26 February, and all initial rounds are free for the public to watch.

Find out more at https://hastingsinternationalpiano.org/.

The Enduring Melody: The Significance of Childhood Piano Memories

 by Frances Wilson  February 4th, 2026

Do you remember the first piece of music you learnt as a child?

Girl playing the piano

The journey of learning to play the piano is a great deal more than the acquisition of a skill; it’s a wonderful voyage of memory and emotion. The memories of piano pieces learned during childhood or as students often linger in our minds – and indeed our fingers – creating a mosaic of experiences and memories that extend far beyond the piano keyboard.

As musicians, we can easily relate to this – the memories of those pieces – where we learned them, with whom, and who taught us – and these memories only deepen with time.

Music learned in our formative years often carries an emotional resonance that transcends the notes and rhythms. The melodies become intertwined with the memories of our youth, evoking nostalgia. These pieces serve as sonic bookmarks in the chapters of our lives, preserving the emotions felt during each practice session and performance. Looking back through old scores can create a “Proustian rush” of memories: my old ABRSM edition of Bach’s ‘48’, replete with my then teacher’s annotations, takes me back to piano lessons in the early 1980s, when I was an eager, precocious teenager. My then teacher had a big black Steinway grand in her living room, and her two dogs, a shaggy, rather smelly Old English Sheepdog, and a ginger spaniel, would sit under the piano’s belly as I played.

J.S. Bach’s Preludes and Fugues

The process of learning and memorising piano pieces demands a high level of cognitive engagement. The brain forms intricate connections between motor skills, auditory processing, and memory recall during the practice and repetition required to master a piece. These cognitive networks established in childhood persist into adulthood, contributing to enhanced cognitive abilities, including improved memory, attention, and spatial-temporal skills. The act of memorisation itself becomes a mental exercise that strengthens neural pathways, leaving an indelible mark on our cognitive development.

Learning music involves acquiring a unique musical language. The ability to interpret and reproduce intricate patterns of sound develops a deep understanding of musical structures, harmonies, and phrasing. This early exposure to the language of music lays a foundation for future musical endeavours. Whether one continues to pursue a musical career or simply enjoys music as a listener, the memories of piano pieces learned in youth contribute to a lifelong appreciation and fluency in the language of music.

Piano pieces often serve as gateways to cultural and artistic heritage. Many students are introduced to classical compositions that have withstood the test of time, and which form what is known as the “core canon” of classical piano. The ability to play and internalise these timeless pieces connects one to a broader cultural context and fosters a sense of continuity with the past. These musical memories become part of one’s artistic identity, influencing not only how one perceives and engages with music but also how one expresses oneself creatively across various aspects of life.

The memories of piano pieces learned in childhood or as students persist not only as musical recollections but also as integral components of our cognitive, emotional, and creative selves. Woven into the fabric of our formative years, these memories accompany us through life, resonating with music’s unique ability to evoke emotions, enhance cognitive abilities, and contribute to our cultural and artistic identity.

As we navigate the symphony of life, the enduring melodies of our piano memories serve as a constant reminder of music’s transformative power.

Pianists and Their Composers: Franz Liszt

by Frances Wilson 

Franz Liszt divides opinion. For some he is regarded as one of the greatest pianist-composers of the Romantic era; for others, he is a showman and a charlatan who wrote vulgar, showy music.

3D rendering of Franz Liszt by Hadi Karimi

In fact, he was a remarkable musician and human being. Sure, as a performer he could be flamboyant and extravagant in his gestures, but he helped shape the modern solo piano concert as we know it today and he also brought a great deal of music to the public realm through his transcriptions (he transcribed Beethoven’s symphonies for solo piano, thus making this repertoire accessible to both concert artists and amateur pianists to play at home). He was an advocate of new music and up-and-coming composers and lent his generous support to people like Richard Wagner (who married Liszt’s daughter Cosima).

His piano music combines technical virtuosity and emotional depth. It’s true that some of his output is showy – all virtuosic flourishes for the sake of virtuosity – but his suites such as the Années de Pèlerinage or the Transcendental Etudes, and his transcriptions of Schubert songs demonstrate the absolute apogee of art, poetry, and beauty combined.

Martha Argerich

Martha Argerich

Martha Argerich brings fire and fluency to her interpretations, underpinned by a remarkable technical assuredness. Her 1972 recording of the B-minor Sonata and Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6 is regarded as “legendary”.

Leslie Howard

Leslie Howard

Australian Leslie Howard is the only pianist to have recorded the solo piano music of Liszt, a project which includes some 300 premiere recordings, and he is rightly regarded as a specialist of this repertoire who has brought much of Liszt’s lesser-known music to the fore.  

Lazar Berman

Lazar Berman

Berman’s 1977 recording of the Années de Pèlerinage remains the benchmark recording of this repertoire for many. Berman brings sensibility and grandeur, warm-heartedness, and mastery to this remarkable set of pieces.

Alim Beisembayev

Alim Beisembayev

Winner of the 2021 Leeds International Piano Competition, the young Armenian pianist Alim Beisembayev’s debut recording of the complete Transcendental Etudes is remarkable for its spellbinding polish, precision, and musical maturity, all supported by superb technique.  

Yuja Wang

Yuja Wang

Yuja Wang has been praised for her breath-taking interpretations of Liszt’s First Piano Concerto which combine force and filigree, emotional depth, and technical mastery to create thrilling and insightful performances.