News Flash

2026-02-23

John Williams' Piano Concerto in New York

Dedicated to his late wife, the concerto blends memory and jazz influence. Inspired by Art Tatum, Bill Evans and Oscar Peterson, it reflects virtuosity, touch, and imagination through their contrasting relationships with the piano.
Read more at playbill.com

2026-02-22

Drury on Rzewski

Fifty years on, Frederic Rzewski’s iconic variations are revisited by Stephen Drury, marking the anniversary with a Jordan Hall performance alongside Franz Liszt and Nikolai Roslavets.
Read more at wgbh.org

2026-02-21

Pianists' Pianist

Born in 1870, Leopold Godowsky showed uncanny musical instinct early, teaching himself piano, improvising and composing without formal plans. Curiosity drove a restless education, shaping a prodigy who amazed audiences worldwide as a globe-trotting virtuoso.
Read more at interlude.hk

2026-02-20

Practice Man, Practice

A famous Carnegie Hall joke - often credited to Jascha Heifetz or Artur Rubinstein - boils success down to “practice.” Surveying Steinway Artists shows how masters sustain that discipline amid careers.
Read more at steinway.com

2026-02-19

World's Most Expensive Piano

For minutes in the 1940s, a piano shaped cinematic myth in Casablanca. Neglected for decades, it resurfaced as history; its 2014 Sotheby’s sale stunned collectors, transforming prop into priceless screen icon.
Read more at classical-music.com

2026-02-18

Yunchan Lim on the Goldbergs

In a new Carnegie Hall recording, Yunchan Lim, the 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition’s youngest winner, presents Johann Sebastian Bach’s Goldberg Variations with luminous clarity, treating the Aria’s return as a humane, spiritual circle of life and quiet transcendence.
Read more at interlude.hk

2026-02-17

All Schubert Sonatas Project

Da Vinci Classics launches a complete Franz Schubert sonata cycle with South Korean pianist Hyewon Chang; a daunting project entrusted only with confidence - confirmed here - by label patron Edmondo Filippini, whose faith signals artistic authority clearly.
Read more at

2026-02-16

Who Tops New Classical Chart?

Launching last week, a new weekly chart from the Official Charts Company, backed by BBC Radio 3, spotlights recent classical releases, ranking UK sales and streams to champion discovery across the past year.
Read more at officialcharts.com

2026-02-15

The Bill Evans Biopic

Though biopics brim with clichés, this drama on tortured jazz legend Bill Evans, starring Anders Danielsen Lie, falls short of capturing genius, yet remains atmospheric, strikingly visualised, and eloquent on the poisoned gift of creativity.
Read more at bbc. com

2026-02-14

An Absolutely Authentic Left Hand Concerto

Only in 2025, when Nicholas McCarthy joined the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra under Mark Wigglesworth, did the concerto return to its original intent: a one-handed performance, striking, expansive, intimate, McCarthy dancing across the keys in black.
Read more at classical-music.com

2026-02-13

Five Stars for Piemontesi's Brahms

Piemontesi captures the score’s rugged velvet, answering horn calls with transparent empathy, then unleashing octave-fuelled force. It’s unvarnished Brahms: exultant, superhuman yet natural, spanning introspection, grandeur and wit, crowned by a playful finale, overall mastery.
Read more at classical-music.com

2026-02-12

A Chopin Variation's Variation

Composed at seventeen, Chopin’s Variations on “Là ci darem la mano”, Op. 2 - his first piano-and-orchestra work - announced his genius, later inspiring Schumann’s famous praise and now revealed in multiple versions highlighting its brilliant virtuosity.
Read more at interlude.hk

2026-02-11

Tamás Vásáry Dies at 92

Born in Debrecen in 1933, Tamás Vásáry was a prodigy pianist turned world-renowned performer and conductor, whose international career, recordings, teaching, philanthropy, and honors shaped Hungarian and global musical life for more than seven decades.
Read more at moto-perpetuo.com

2026-02-10

Listen and Vote for BBC Awards

The BBC Music Magazine Awards honour classical recordings from the past year, across nine categories. Three nominees per category are chosen by critics, with public voting open online from 29 January to 3 March 2026.
Read more at classical-music.com

2026-02-09

PIANIST's Podcasts

The Pianist Podcast from Pianist Magazine features editor Erica Worth in conversations with pianists, exploring artistry, repertoire, technique, and careers, with guests including Danny Driver, Paul Wee, and Charles Owen, available on Spotify and website.
Read more at rss.com

2026-02-08

Talking with Bruce Liu

Bruce Liu quickly transformed from playing piano for pleasure to winning international competitions, earning acclaim as one of Canada’s top pianists. He uniquely describes classical music, likening complex compositions to decadent desserts.
Read more at cbc.ca

2026-02-07

Spotlight Józef Hoffman

An exhibition celebrating piano virtuoso Józef Hofmann has opened at Kraków Airport, marking his 150th birth anniversary. Curated by Tygodnik Powszechny, it traces his global artistry, inventive genius, and enduring legacy.
Read more at polskieradio.pl

2026-02-06

The Goldberg Journey

Pianist Yun-chan Lim admits he’s uncertain if his interpretation of Bach’s Goldberg Variations will evolve - or if he’ll ever play it again. His live Carnegie Hall recital album is set for release Friday.
Read more at koreatimes.co.kr

2026-02-05

Piano Inspires!

Host Sara Ernst interviews Logan Skelton on the Piano Inspires Podcast, exploring his Mississippi roots, composition and poetry, teaching philosophy, and his roles as Artur Schnabel Collegiate Professor and Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of music.
Read more at pianoinspires.com

2026-02-04

Hungarian Greats Focus

Opening February 20 at the Old Academy of Music, the exhibition traces Hungarian piano pedagogy from Liszt to Cziffra, culminating in a Cziffra Festival matinee, highlighting methods that shaped Bartók, Dohnányi, Fischer, and other legends.
Read more at hungarytoday.hu

2026-02-03

Andsnes at Stanford Live

Often dismissed as slight, piano miniatures compress emotion into fleeting gestures. Leif Ove Andsnes’ Stanford recital showed their true power, revealing how Kurtág, Janáček and Schumann achieve striking expressive depth within the smallest forms.
Read more at sfcv.org

2026-02-02

Masterly Schumann

A central figure of Romanticism, Robert Schumann fused poetic imagination with formal invention. His introspective piano works find a compelling modern voice in Piotr Anderszewski, whose performances illuminate their lyrical depth and rhythmic subtlety.
Read more at interlude.hk

2026-02-01

Dame Cooper Retires

British pianist Dame Imogen Cooper has announced her retirement, with the 2025/26 season marking her final appearances. She will undertake a thirteen-month farewell tour, including major orchestral collaborations, international recitals, and a new Beethoven recording.
Read more at theviolinchannel.com

2026-01-31

The Stirring Fazil Say

Turkish pianist Fazıl Say pairs his own expressive compositions with Bach’s Goldberg Variations, recorded for Warner Classics. A fiercely individual artist, his performances transcend convention, offering an immediate, personal intensity that connects directly with listeners.
Read more at themontrealeronline.com/