Kathryn Stott
pianist
biography (full version)
Kathryn Stott is one of Britain’s most versatile and imaginative musicians. Her curiosity and wide-ranging musical interests have taken her in many different directions, forging a unique career and establishing a rare reputation. A natural collaborator, she is greatly in demand for chamber music alliances, playing with some of the world’s leading instrumentalists, as well as appearing on major international concert platforms in recitals and concerto performances. She has also directed several distinctive concert series and festivals and has built up an extensive and exceptionally varied catalogue of recordings.
Born in Lancashire, she studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School with Vlado Perlemuter and Nadia Boulanger, then at the Royal College of Music in London with Kendall Taylor. In 1978 she attracted critical attention as a prize-winner at the Leeds International Piano Competition. In addition to her busy career as a performer, she is a professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London, as well as teaching at Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester.
As a concerto soloist she enjoys associations with major orchestras in Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, France, Hong Kong and Australia, and she recently toured Japan with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. Among her chamber music partnerships, she has long-standing musical relationships with cellists Yo-Yo Ma, Truls Mørk and Christian Poltéra, with violinist Janine Jansen, and pianist Noriko Ogawa. She has also collaborated with the cellist Natalie Clein and – on the borders of, and beyond, the classical arena – she has developed shared musical interests with the guitar-playing Assad Brothers, bandoneonist Nestor Marconi, double-bassist Edgar Meyer, and the legendary clarinettist Paquito d’Rivera. A close involvement with many leading string quartets has led to regular guest appearances with, amongst others, the Belcea, Skampa and Endellion Quartets, as well as The Lindsays, in whose farewell concert series she was invited to appear.
Kathryn Stott has a special interest in contemporary music and concertos by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Michael Nyman head the impressive list of major world premieres she has given. Along with Noriko Ogawa she gave the first performance of Graham Fitkin’s Circuit for two pianos and orchestra in Manchester, with subsequent performances in Japan, and has recorded it on the BIS label.
Her constantly expanding horizons have led her to become a remarkable exponent of tango and other Latin dance music, reflected in her collaboration with Yo-Yo Ma and leading South American musicians on the Grammy Award-winning Sony CD Soul of the Tango and its successor Obrigado Brazil. The release of Obrigado Brazil was accompanied by a hugely successful tour of Japan, the USA and Europe.
In the recording studio she has created an eclectic body of work including the complete solo piano music of Fauré (Hyperion), concertos by Kabalevsky and Lennox Berkeley and solo pieces by Koechlin (Chandos), music by John Foulds and Erwin Schulhoff (BIS), La Habanera featuring music by Ernesto Lecuona (EMI), and a recital of French cello sonatas Paris – La Belle Epoque with Yo-Yo Ma (Sony). Recent recording releases include solo music by Smetana and works for cello and piano with Christian Poltéra (both Chandos) and due out is a solo piano CD, Dance, (on Chandos).
Kathryn Stott has been the artistic vision behind several major festivals and concert series in the north of England, in which she has played a dual role as director/performer. For ‘Fauré and the French Connection’ (Manchester,1995) she was appointed Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres by the French Government. ‘Out of the Shadows’ featured music by Clara Schumann and Fanny Mendelssohn (Liverpool, 1998); ‘Piano 2000’ and ‘Piano 2003’ (The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester) established her reputation as an astute programmer; and in 2004/05 she devised ‘Chopin: the Music and the Legacy’ for Leeds. In 2008 she was appointed Artistic Director of the Manchester Chamber Concert Series and in December she will celebrate her 50th birthday with 25 colleagues in a charity gala concert at the Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool.
Her diverse career remains truly international, as she continues to captivate audiences worldwide with her poetic musicality and engaging personality. Current and future plans include tours of both North and South America, and performances in Australia, Hong Kong and Japan as well as throughout Europe.
Kathy Stott has one daughter, Lucy, and lives in Manchester. In the precious little time she has away from the concert platform and rehearsal studio, she collects black-and-white photographs and studies Italian. One of her most memorable experiences was walking the Great Wall of China, raising funds for Cancer Research.
Kathryn has recently accepted a position on the
boards of Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy fundraising
committee, and the Hallé.
www.kathrynstott.com
June 2008
For use in the 2007/08 season only. Please contact Jane Ward for an updated version.
biography (short version)
One of Britain’s most versatile and imaginative musicians, Kathryn Stott studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School with Vlado Perlemuter and Nadia Boulanger, and at the Royal College of Music in London with Kendall Taylor. She is a frequent guest at the world’s major leading concert halls and appears as a concerto soloist and recitalist in Britain and throughout Europe, the Far East and Australia.
Greatly in demand as a chamber musician, she has long-standing partnerships with, among others, Yo-Yo Ma, Truls Mørk and Christian Poltéra, Janine Jansen and Noriko Ogawa. A champion of contemporary music, she has given the first performances of many major works including concertos by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Michael Nyman, and, with Noriko Ogawa, Graham Fitkin’s Circuit for two pianos and orchestra. She is an enthusiastic exponent of tango and other Latin dance music, a passion reflected in her collaboration with Yo-Yo Ma and leading South American musicians on the Grammy-winning Sony CD Soul of the Tango and its successor, Obrigado Brazil.
The diversity of Kathryn Stott’s performing career is reflected in her discography which includes the complete solo piano music of Fauré on Hyperion, the concertos of Kabalevsky and solo music by Koechlin on Chandos, music by John Foulds and Erwin Schulhoff on BIS, La Habanera featuring music by Ernesto Lecuona on EMI, and a recital of French cello sonatas with Yo-Yo Ma on Sony. She has directed, and taken a leading role in, several highly successful festivals and concert series. These include ‘Fauré and the French Connection’ (Manchester, 1995); ‘Out of the Shadows’, featuring music by Clara Schumann and Fanny Mendelssohn (Liverpool,1998); ‘Piano 2000’ and ‘Piano 2003’ (The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester); ‘Chopin: The Music and the Legacy’ (Leeds, 2004/05). In 2008 she was appointed Artistic Director of the Manchester Chamber Concert Series and in December she will celebrate her 50th birthday with 25 colleagues in a charity gala concert at the Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool.
Kathryn Stott’s diverse career remains truly international and, continuing to captivate audiences with her poetic musicality and engaging personality, her current and future plans include further recordings and tours of both North and South America, and performances in Australia, Hong Kong and Japan as well as throughout Europe.
Kathryn has recently accepted a position on the
boards of Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy fundraising
committee and the Hallé.
www.kathrynstott.com
June 2008
For use in the 2007/08 season only. Please contact Jane Ward for an updated version.
