Talk - Susan Tomes

Pianist Susan Tomes, described by Piano Magazine as ‘one of the brightest jewels in Britain’s cultural crown’, is also a writer and broadcaster, and has developed a parallel career opening up about the sort of emotions that professional musicians feel, and the problems they face. “The talk I’ll be giving is called ‘a View from the Piano,’ she tells me, down the phone. “It’s a sort of double meaning - I’ll be talking about how it feels to be behind a piano: what goes on inside the head of a performer during a performance. Although a concert pianist is on stage they don’t often have the chance to speak, so you don’t know what they think. And I’ll also be putting across some of my views about the world of classical music. One bee I have in my bonnet is the fact that since the days of the celebrity 19th century violinists like Paganini, pianists have often been viewed as ‘accompanists’ in duos with another instrument such as the violin or cello. But in actual fact, musicians such as Mozart and Beethoven usually wrote the piano parts for themselves to play, and the role usually carried at least as much, if not more importance in the piece.”

Susan, author of two successful books and a regular broadcaster on Radio 3 and 4, was the first woman to read music at King’s College Cambridge, and has gone on to enjoy an illustrious musical career. Her talk will precede a recital by pianist Julian Broughton and clarinettist Steve Dummer. AG