JAPANESE pianist Noriko Ogawa, an Associate
Artist of the Bridgewater Hall, devised her first piano festival there three
years ago – ‘Reflections on Debussy: in the Mirror of the East’.
Now she’s been asked to mastermind another:
‘R & R: Ravel and Rachmaninov’, focussing on two great composers for the
piano, near-contemporaries but very different people.
“Ravel was very small – and Rachmaninov a
very big man. Ravel’s writing is incredibly precise – miniatures that are
beautifully crafted and carefully made. Rachmaninov was a Russian, with a big
heart and not shy of being Romantic – his music is on a huge scale.
“I’ve visited Ravel’s house near Paris (now a private
museum), and his personality is still there. What shocked me most was the
bathroom – there were so many nail files on the cabinet! They explained it was
because he had a different one for each of his fingers.
“And there is a cupboard in the lounge, full
of letters awaiting answers. People are still studying what kind of man he was,
but really his music is the only thing that signifies his personality.
“Rachmaninov revealed his heart in every
piece: he was vulnerable, but never secretive. He said it was important to find
the climax in every piece of his music – Russian players know that, and I’ve
noticed they always want to make it happen.”
The festival stretches over several weeks
and involves top pianists including Peter Donohoe, Martin Roscoe, Kathryn
Stott, Murray McLachlan and Clare Hammond, as well as Noriko herself.
It will include a children’s concert and
workshop (April 17), a Mid-day Concert (April 23) and a four-concerto finale
with the BBC Philharmonic (April 24). Specially dear to Noriko’s heart will be ‘Jamie’s
Concert (April 22) for parents and carers of children with autism and other
learning disabilities.
“Since I did this at the Debussy festival
in 2012, the idea has grown quite big,” she says. “I’m now an official cultural
ambassador of the National Autistic Society, and the Guildhall School of Music
and Drama is supporting me to do research through these concerts. I’d like many
people to join us – those with an autistic member of the family or who want to
understand more about the condition.”
The first date is Tuesday, March 31, and
features a lecture recital by Murray McLachlan, and Peter Donohoe performing
Scriabin’s Sonata no. 7, Ravel’s Miroirs and Book Two of Rachmaninov’s
Preludes.
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