Pianist Steven Osborne shares his diary of learning and recording Ravel’s fiendish Gaspard de la Nuit with The Guardian. Read the full article here.
January 2009: Among pianists, Gaspard has a fearsome reputation, one of the contenders for the title of Most Difficult Piano Piece Ever Written, but… I’m quietly confident I can rise to the challenge.
May 2009: The hands have to move like lightning and my brain just can’t keep up. I’m starting to wonder if I will ever get to the end of this process.
June 2009: Chained to the piano.
December 2009: I rush outside only to slip on the ice and land on my left hand. I get it x-rayed and discover that I’ve broken my middle finger. Bugger.
September 2010: As the final take ends, I realise I feel more tired than at almost any other time in my life. But there is also gratitude – for music, for this amazing job I have… and above all for being finished.
Steven Osborne performs Gaspard de la Nuit, Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, and music by Prokofiev and Rachmaninov, at Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, Wednesday 5 October. Click here to book.
Filed under: Chamber music, Get to know..., Misc, Queen Elizabeth Hall | Tagged: classical music, Gaspard de la Nuit, International Piano Series, piano, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Ravel, Southbank Centre, Steven Osborne, The Guardian | Leave a Comment »
