So! We’re very excited for the coming Lamb & Hayward Masterworks: Variations and to have you part of our official season opener.

It's definitely a wild opener. That piece [Rachmaninov Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini] is quite a ride. It’s a great piece.

Can you tell me a little about the piece?

It’s Rachmaninov’s last works for orchestra and piano based on Paganini’s 24th Caprice for violin and he pumped everything in to it. It's a little bit different from the other concertos, which all consist of 3 single movements. And this one is 24 variations, which are shorter and very snappy, following each other.

So, it's a different piece, and it's great fun.

Rachmaninov has some sense of humour here as usually the endings are these incredible big climaxes, but he doesn’t do it on this occasion. He takes it all back at the end with his quiet little gesture. The audience is always a little bit baffled by that, everything builds up, everything gets louder and faster, and then suddenly the last bar comes sort of out of nowhere. He was quite a crafty composer and I suppose after composing all those concertos, I think he wanted to do it slightly differently.

It is quite an amazing piece that has been interpreted in many different ways. It is often played extremely fast, though I don't think speed is of the utmost essence here, because the sparkling and temperament needs time and needs to be set.

Of course, wouldn’t it be terrible if you all played with the same tendencies? My Juilliard teacher Jacob Lateiner was Russian trained, and the Russians always dig deep, they take their time – I suppose I have picked up that trait.

This is the third time this concert has been programmed, as the first two concerts had to be cancelled due to illness and COVID. Are you excited?!

Yes, it nearly became the piece that never happens! The first time it was my detriment, a bad back, the second time we had COVID and we were hopeful restrictions would be relaxed, but the week before the call had to be made to cancel the performance. It’s wonderful to finally be here.

The last few years have been quite something, haven’t they?

They have not been as you'd like them to be, that’s for sure!

What are you most looking forward to about actually playing this piece in Christchurch?

There is a lot of things to look forward to!

I always enjoy performing with the CSO. It is a great band, and the spirit is there. I’m now living in Rangiora, and so this is really my hometown now. and Ben is a great conductor for me, very inspiring, just straight down to music making and I’m really looking forward to it. And last not least: Christchurch Town Hall is simply fantastic, one of the best halls there is, that really is a pleasure in itself.

When did you move to Waitaha Canterbury?

It’s sort of a complicated story! In the Spring of 2009 I came to the University of Canterbury, I had been working in Cologne and Berlin when there was an opening here. My wife Susan, a violinist and ceramicist, is a kiwi, so we thought ‘why not’? Then the earthquake happened and we weren’t sure if we wanted to stay, so I went to Norway, Oslo, for five years while my wife remained in Aotearoa New Zealand. After five years of going back and forth, we decided to come back and here we are. I’m no longer working with universities but I do have my private students.

What is the quality and potential like of new students coming through?

Oh, yeah, the level of music making is amazing now. Given where this country is located, and it’s size, it really is astonishing.

When did you start playing the piano?

I was Five or six.

What made you choose the piano?

There was a piano across the street at the Catholic priest’s house, and I went there and tried it out. And that was it. I became obsessed. When you’re young and interested in something and don’t have too many distractions – that can be it. No Tik Tok, no Instagram, no Smartphone, thank God for that...

What's your most memorable playing experience? Or what is your most memorable experience?

There's a few. I’ll just pick two.

The first was in Santiago, Chile. I was to play ta solo recital there and no one really knew me. I arrived at this enormous theatre, it’s about 1500 seats or something. I thought ‘what if there is no audience’ because I had never played in Chile... but every concert was totally full. People came for the music, not just for the big names. If it’s a big name I’m sure they appreciate that too – but this was a very special and memorable performance for me.

And the second, probably the most memorable of all took place in in 1997, a series of 6 Schubert recitals with Baryton Hermann Prey. The venue was Suntory Hall in Tokyo, all concerts were televised. And on Schuberts’s 200th birthday, the exact day, we performed the Winterreise, his last song cycle, live on National Television. It was a very special moment in my life as a musician. And the Japanese audiences were incredible. ...totally knowledgeable and on the edge of their seats, enraptured with this very special and deeply moving work.

Who is your favourite composer? To play and to listen to?

I like to listen to Baroque music very much. Not necessarily playing it, but listening to it. Bach, Telemann, Graupner, Hasse, Haendel, Vivaldi, Rameau, Couperin, the list is endless...

To play... Schubert. Yeah. That's for sure.

Quick round of questions! Cats or Dogs?

Cats, we have three.

What are their names?

Brian, Lottie and Lupin.

Tea or Coffee?

Coffee

Breakfast or Dinner?

Both.

Favourite movie:

Yi Yi by Edward Yang

Are you watching anything on Netflix at the moment?

Still Game... for the third time.

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