Piano
The Piano Faculty has a world-wide reputation for training aspiring pianists as soloists, chamber musicians and accompanists. The world-wide spectrum of professional expertise represents many pianistic traditions, and follows an acclaimed historical lineage which includes such names as Tobias Matthay and Harold Craxton. While some students (especially postgraduates) enter the Academy with a considerable level of performing experience, the primary teaching emphasis is on encouraging students to find their individual identity as performers and to develop technique as a means of realising their artistic personalities.

A comprehensive range of performance classes, taken by both professors and visiting teachers, is supplemented by numerous concert opportunities to play as soloists or in ensembles. Specialist classes are held in piano duo playing and in contemporary piano repertoire, and regular coaching is given in chamber music. In addition, students are encouraged to explore early keyboard instruments such as harpsichord and fortepiano. Recent masterclasses have been given by Pierre- Laurent Aimard, Pascal Devoyon, Leon Fleisher, Richard Goode, Stephen Hough, John O’Conor, Christina Ortiz, Michael Roll, Alexander Satz, Howard Shelley and many others.

Pianists can undertake a range of performance electives (e.g. working with singers in song classes and developing skills in piano improvisation), contributing towards their final degree/diploma profiles.

Piano Accompaniment and Repetiteurs

Recent competition successes by Academy students
3rd, Warsaw International Chopin; 1st, London World Piano; 3rd, Tchaikovsky International Piano; 1st, Horowitz International Piano; 2nd and 5th, Dublin International; Leeds prizes in 2000, 2003 and 2006; 2nd, Vendôme; 1st (twice), Viseu; Young Concert Artists Trust Awards; New Orleans 2005 and 2006; Leipzig Bach; Finalist, Queen Elizabeth of the Belgians; 3rd, Gyeongnam International Competition Korea; 1st, Prix AmadeO, Netherlands; Royal Over-Seas League Accompanist and Ensemble Awards; Accompaniment Prize, Kathleen Ferrier; Gerald Moore Awards; Osaka International Chamber Music Competition; 1st, Internationaler Commerzbank Piano Trio

Recent Academy students include:
> Benjamin Grosvenor (‘to call such playing that of a master-pianist will invite accusations of exaggeration and hyperbole, but what else can I say?’ — Gramophone)
> Rustem Hayroudinoff (‘a commanding performance’ — Gramophone)
> Freddy Kempf (‘If it is true that an artist’s finest years come with age, then the mind boggles at the possibilities’ — The Guardian)
> Yevgeny Sudbin (‘an extraordinary disc by anyone’s standard’ — BBC Music)
> Ashley Wass (‘Wass has a magic touch’ — Gramophone)
> Qian Wu (‘virtuoso brings joy’ — The Independent)