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Richard Saxel & Mark Weighton (Pianist & Artist)
...a haunting claim for intimacy...to anyone who warms to introspection presented with an enviable taste and clarity, this recital is outstanding.
...a spellbindingly eerie account...Saxel demonstrates a sensitive understanding of the composers' idiosyncratic means of expression.
Cross-Arts/Multimedia Projects
Instrumentation
- Richard Saxel - Piano
- Mark Weighton - Artist
Repertoire
In this exciting collaboration with artist Mark Weighton, projected images accompany live piano music. Richard builds programmes around the relationship between Music and Art, culminating in a performance of Robert Schumann's 'Woodland Scenes' - Mark has painted nine exquisite miniatures in response to this music, and these are projected live whilst the music is performed. Both artists discuss their work and responses to each others' creativity.
Other solo piano works explore the relationship between Music and Art: great paintings are coupled to piano music, and discussed in detail.
Featuring piano music by Debussy, Scarlatti, Roger Quilter, Astor Piazzolla, Robert Schumann.
Biography
Richard Saxel is a concert pianist who has established a reputation as one of the most engaging pianists of his generation, particularly through his easy rapport with his audiences. He has in the past won the National Federation of Music Societies Making Music Award, and works regularly with a huge variety of accomplished singers and instrumentalists. He records as a soloist for the Quartz Music label; his album 'Nocturne' was featured on Classic FM, and he has a wide range of solo and ensemble recordings available on Spotify and Apple Music. He has been a Steinway Artist for many years, and was elected as an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music in their 2016 Honours List, recognising a significant contribution to the music profession.
Richard studied the piano with the late Clifford Benson whilst reading a Music & History of Art degree at the University of York, and then with Michael Dussek as a postgraduate at the Royal Academy of Music. His musical interests owe much to the influence of these two outstanding teachers; whilst happy to explore solo repertoire, he also has a strong affinity for the art of chamber music and piano accompaniment. One of Richard's great attributes as a performer is his versatility. Equally comfortable as a concerto soloist or as an accompanist, his career has taken him around the world. For four years he was one of the six pianists in Piano Circus, who perform and broadcast contemporary music at major festivals, and he has worked with a fascinating variety of artists, from Indonesian puppeteers to ballet dancers, tango musicians, trapeze artists, music theatre performers, opera and jazz singers and also with the Endymion Ensemble under Gyorgy Kurtag. Richard has performed worldwide at many major festivals, including the Abu Dhabi International Festival, Istanbul International Festival, Lucerne Festival, La Roque D'Antheron, The Big Chill, the Victoria Arts Festival in Gozo, the Cheltenham Festival and the Dartington International Summer School as well as at several of London's leading venues including the Queen Elizabeth Hall and St. John's Smith Square, and at St. David's Hall in Cardiff. In 2012, Richard gave two concerts in Rome with Madeleine Mitchell, celebrating the Queen's Diamond Jubilee at the invitation of Her Majesty's British Ambassador to Italy, and was subsequently invited back to perform as a soloist. He is Director of Music at Cranleigh School in Surrey, where he has taught for twenty five years.
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