How do you cope with being on the road, or the time between?

The issues of being ‘on the road’ are pretty obvious- getting enough sleep, catching trains or whatever, taking all the right stuff. Necessity is the mother of invention and we mostly all get through. There are constant deadlines which have to be met- one after the other! I find the time in between is more of a challenge because the discipline has to come from within; making all the right choices of which works need most preparation and judging how long they will take, has a certain uncertainty and therefore, anxiety. Yes it’s lovely to relax at home, but that is actually where the real work/preparation is done.

What was the first ‘spark’ with regards to chamber music for you?

That’s a difficult one, but I do remember attending Dartington Summer School when I was 12 years old because I was playing in my teacher’s master classes. It wasn’t ALL piano, of course. I remember hearing the Brahms D minor violin Sonata and me and my family all fell in love with it. On joining the NYO as a keyboard/percussionist I met a young violinist from Leeds, where I was studying, who was working on the same piece and we started to play together, arguing about tempi! We were further inspired by Isaac Stern’s great recording with Alexander Zakin. I’d got the bug....

What do you consider a good balance of contemporary music and music of an earlier era in programmes, or in your workload?

This is quite difficult to get right, and of course it will vary with the opportunities that present themselves. The sense of discovery that an entirely new score presents cannot be bettered; however our musical and technical grounding has to be referred back to on a pretty regular basis, one helping the other. Contemporary music can be scary, but going out of your comfort zone is a big part of developing as a musician. Good to try to find what’s extraordinary about the earlier music, keeping it as fresh as the new!

Intimate venues versus a huge concert hall: which do you prefer?

Being more actively engaged in chamber performance these days, I meet mostly smaller venues, but there is always a time when a chamber concert is in a big space or I might find a big piano at a house concert! I like and liked both; it’s just a question of being able to adapt to the circumstances. The acoustic is probably more important than the size of the hall- how wet or dry. I still think you need pianissimo in a big hall and a well rounded forte in a small one. We mustn’t generalise; each one on its own terms. The good thing about the big venue is you don’t notice who’s in the audience!

The last piece you listened to

This was ‘In a Summer Garden’ by Delius conducted by Sir Thomas Beecham on a vinyl I recently bought from our local Oxfam; a performance from the late 20s, last century. It was interesting to hear how strict he was with the little bird calls in the winds, compared to some contemporary performances. Being very close to Delius and his great champion- however making his own edition of the score- I feel that his interpretation contains much validity. Beautiful string playing!