Rising Stars
Three to look out for…
Delyana Lazarova Conductor
Born: Plovdiv, Bulgaria Career highlight: Working with the wonderful Hallé orchestra at the Siemens Hallé International Competition this year – and winning! Musical hero: I adore conductor Carlos Kleiber for his incredible musicianship and clarity of expression, and Nadia Boulanger for being the ‘complete musician’ as a composer, conductor and teacher. From the present, though, it would be conductor Kirill Petrenko.
Dream concert: Every future performance is my dream concert. I don’t have just one – I have many.
Marcin Patrza ek Guitarist
Born: Kielce, Poland Career highlight:
Despite how experimental my playing is, I’ve still managed to reach a wider, more mainstream audience. My videos online have so far amassed over 120 million views.
Musical hero: I’m inspired by Chopin’s originality, Beethoven’s dynamism, Stravinsky’s experimentation and Hans Zimmer’s vision.
Dream concert: Sometimes I dream of playing in a concert hall with a major symphony orchestra, combining percussive guitar with orchestral music. Other times, I dream of combining my music with electronic tracks for people to dance to at the Glastonbury Festival.
Cherise Adams-burnett
Jazz singer
Born: Luton, UK
Career highlight:
It was always my goal to release original music before I turned 25, and I produced my EP just in time. Another milestone was sharing the stage with such seasoned performers as Ian Shaw, Clarke Peters and Dee Dee Bridgewater in Kurt Elling’s The Big Blind at the Southbank Centre this year.
Musical hero: I’d have to say Debussy.
His String Quartet is beyond beautiful – it’s rich with technical brilliance.
Dream concert: The American singer Solange’s live performances are so immersive and the way she has showcased black culture in her music has inspired a whole generation.
Toilet humour
Many readers will have experienced the dispiriting sight of empty supermarket shelves during the early stages of the coronavirus outbreak. A big cheer, though, to composer Cheryl Frances-hoad, who rose to BBC Music Magazine’s Twitter challenge to write a piece to reflect on this sorry state of affairs. Importantly, her Bog roll, bog roll, where is the bog roll? for solo piano (above) uses up just two sheets of lavatory paper.
Doctor in the House
Early March saw the Royal Opera House’s music director Antonio Pappano and tenor Jonas Kaufmann head over to the Royal College of Music in London, where they were presented with honorary doctorates by HRH The Prince of Wales. Also appearing at the ceremony were conductor Martyn Brabbins as well as composers Debbie Wiseman and Rachel Portman, all of whom have been made honorary fellows of the RCM.
Winning notes
Maybe one day Edward Nelson will join Pappano and Kaufmann on the RCM honours board? In the meantime, the US baritone, 31, can congratulate himself on a job well done as the winner of the Glyndebourne Opera Cup. Arias by Ambroise Thomas and Rossini proved the winning formula for Nelson in the final.
Adaptable maestro
Over the forthcoming months, we will doubtless be reporting many instances of musicians adapting in various ways to life in today’s drastically changed circumstances. One example is conductor Osmo Vänskä. When government restrictions prevented soloist Martin Grubinger flying in for the Israel Philharmonic’s planned performance of Kalevi Aho’s Percussion Concerto in
Tel Aviv, Vänskä did the sensible thing – dusting down his old instrument, he played the solo role in Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto with the orchestra instead.