Guest post: Frances Wilson introduces a special artist in a rather wonderful venue

Please welcome Frances Wilson of The Cross-Eyed Pianist blog, with news of a wonderful young artist playing in a very special place... Great to see the South London Concert Series having to upgrade to a bigger venue, too!

Emmanuel Vass at Brunswick House

Guest post by Frances Wilson

Hard to believe it’s six months since I introduced readers of JDCMB to the South London Concert Series (SLCS), an innovative concept which gives amateur pianists the chance to take to the stage alongside the professionals. The series was launched to a full-to-bursting house at the 1901 Arts Club in November 2013 with a programme of music ranging from Scarlatti to Corea – with some Mozart, Szymanowski and Feuchtwanger along the way – and much enjoyable piano chat at the noisy post-concert reception in the 1901’s elegant upstairs bar and sitting room.

Now the series is two concerts in, both of which sold out within a couple of weeks of being advertised, with a third on 21^st March, also sold out way in advance. Buoyed up by the obvious success and popularity of the concept, my partner in piano adventures, Lorraine Liyanage, and I decided that perhaps we should find a larger venue for our events. It was Lorraine who discovered Brunswick House: just five minutes from London’s Vauxhall Station, this fine Georgian mansion is incongruously flanked by the brand new 5-star hotel and luxury apartments of One Nine Elms.

Part of the London Architectural Salvage and Supply Co (LASSCo), Brunswick House is a treasure trove of antiques and reclaimed curiosities – including, conveniently, a pretty little John Hopkinson baby grand piano in the first floor Saloon, a room festooned with colourful oriental rugs, salvaged stained glass windows, glittering chandeliers, and even a life-size cut out of the actor Tony Curtis.

It wasn’t difficult to find an artist to grace the space, someone who could create the stylish, retro atmosphere of a salon concert from a bygone era: Emmanuel Vass, BBC Music Magazine’s March “rising star”, had already wowed the SLCS audience with his suave showmanship and his ability to seamlessly merge mainstream classical piano repertoire with his own transcriptions.

Emmanuel’s concert at Brunswick House comes hot on the heels of his West End debut in a DEC/Philippines appeal benefit concert, and his successful ‘From Bach to Bond’ national tour and CD launch in 2013. Described as “one to watch” by The Independent, Emmanuel will perform music by Bach, Turina, Liszt and some of his own new transcriptions. And in keeping with the original ethos of the South London Concert Series, he will be supported by performances by talented amateur pianists from the London Piano Meetup Group, playing music by Bach, Mozart, and Chopin. Added to that, guests can enjoy a glass of Prosecco on arrival, and are invited to join performers and hosts in the stylish restaurant at Brunswick House for a post-concert dinner. This promises to be a very special event, an evening of music making and conviviality in a unique and eclectic London venue.

Date: Thursday 3^rd April 2014

Time: 6.45pm for 7.15pm concert

Dress code: smart

Venue: LASSCo/Brunswick House, 30 Wandsworth Road, London SW8 2LG

Buy tickets: http://www.wegottickets.com/event/255923#.UyDJEV5qXdK

‘Emmanuel Vass at Brunswick House’ is presented by the South London Concert Series. Endorsed by top international concert pianist Peter Donohoe as "a wonderfully creative idea", SLCS concerts recreate the atmosphere of the 19th-century musical salon with music and socialising amongst friends in some of London’s most beautiful and intimate small venues.

www.slconcerts.co.uk

Twitter @SLConcerts

Guest post: Frances Wilson introduces the South London Concert Series

A little way round the South Circular from my neck of the woods, pianist, teacher and blogger Frances Wilson - whose blog The Cross-Eyed Pianist has become a must-read for the keyboard-inclined - has been busy organising a brand-new series of very social concerts involving both professional and amateur pianists. Here she is to introduce it. JD

Music for Friends: the South London Concert Series

By Frances Wilson

The South London Concert Series is a unique new concert concept, created and curated by myself and fellow pianist, harpsichordist and piano teacher Lorraine Liyanage, in which we offer professional and amateur pianists the opportunity to perform in the same formal concert setting.

The series developed out of the London Piano Meetup Group, which we took over hosting in May 2013. The group, run via Meetup, a social networking platform which allows people with shared interests to plan events and get together, had been rather dormant up to this point, but it has now been transformed into a lively and friendly “club” for amateur pianists, with monthly performance platforms, masterclasses and workshops with visiting teachers and professional pianists, concerts and courses, and social events in and around London.

Lorraine and I met in September 2011 on a weekend course hosted by my teacher, Penelope Roskell. We hit it off almost immediately, not least because we were both working for diplomas and had the same two pieces by Liszt and Messiaen in our programmes. Talking during the coffee and lunch breaks on the course, we discovered a mutual love of all things piano, in particular a desire to support and inspire amateur pianists to perform, share repertoire and meet other like-minded people.

‘We both enjoy performing and we love meeting other pianists!’ says Lorraine, who is very active in her local community in south-east London, running the busy and successful SE22 Piano School and Dulwich Music Festival (now entering its third year). ‘We set up the London Piano Meetup Group because we felt amateur pianists lack opportunities to perform, particularly on a really fine piano and before an audience.’

In many ways, I have Lorraine to thank for encouraging me to start performing regularly again (something I had not done since school in the 1980s), and the opportunities she gave me – at her student concerts, and via the London Piano Salon (the precursor to the London Piano Meetup Group) – undoubtedly helped me gain confidence and an ability to communicate with an audience which led to success in both of my performance Diplomas. I understand the value of being able to put repertoire before a non-critical audience, whether in advance of an exam, festival or concert, or simply to share music.

I come across many amateur pianists who are extremely talented, who play at what can be considered a “professional” standard in terms of repertoire, technique and artistic flare, but who have chosen a career path other than music. Many of these pianists lack performance opportunities: our Meetup group provides regular performance experience in a central London location, enabling pianists of all levels to put repertoire before an informal and friendly audience in a supportive and encouraging environment (most events are held at Peregrine’s Pianos). Our events are nearly always sold out almost as soon as they are advertised, and the feedback afterwards is incredibly positive. We enjoy a varied range of repertoire, from Baroque to contemporary classical and jazz, and we often extend the meeting into the pub afterwards, where the “piano chat” can continue over a glass or two of wine.

The South London Concert Series is our latest initiative. The idea grew out of the London Piano Meetup Group's launch event in May 2013, at which Emmanuel Vass, a prize-winning recent graduate from the Royal Northern College of Music, gave a short recital, including his stunning Lisztian ‘James Bond Concert Étude’ (his own “mash up” of three iconic themes from the James Bond films, complete with sparkling cadenzas and vertiginous virtuoso passages). It was so popular with members, especially the opportunity to meet and talk to Emmanuel afterwards, that we decided to extend the format. 

Keen to support young and emerging musicians, and pianists focusing on lesser-known and rarely-played repertoire, we hope the series will provide a unique way of presenting classical and contemporary music in an intimate venue. My many conversations with professional pianists reveal, by and large, a great willingness to support and inspire amateurs, for we are all quite humble when we sit at the keyboard. Lorraine and I hope that by bringing together professional and amateur pianists in the same concert setting we can provide opportunities for young musicians (students in conservatoire or people who are just embarking on a professional career) while also offering inspiration and encouragement to amateur pianists.

The concert format is quite simple: an hour of music, including a recital by a guest artist of around 30 minutes, followed by socialising and a chance for everyone to meet the performers. The venue, the beautiful 1901 Arts Club near Waterloo Station, is ideal for this: it recreates a nineteenth-century salon in its décor and ambiance, and boasts a fine Steinway C grand piano. We hope the atmosphere will be very much one of “music for friends and amongst friends”.

The South London Concert Series launches on Friday 29^th November 2013 at the 1901 Arts Club with a recital by Helen Burford, featuring works by Satoh, Magi, Butler and Rakowski, and guest performances by Susan Pickerill, Daniel Roberts, Emma Heseltine and Mark Zarb-Adami. Future concerts will include performances by pianists Emmanuel Vass and Angelo Villani.

Tickets cost £15 and are by application only: please contact southlondonconcerts@gmail.com to apply for tickets. The 1901 Arts Club's exclusive bar and lounge will be open for the enjoyment of ticketholders after the concert.

South London Concert Series

http://www.slcs1901.wordpress.com

Twitter: @SLConcerts

London Piano Meetup Group

http://www.meetup.com/LondonPMG/

Twitter: @LonPianoMeetup

Frances Wilson is a pianist, piano teacher, concert reviewer and blogger on music and pianism as The Cross-Eyed Pianist. Twitter @CrossEyedPiano