Frank Braley

After this there is one thing you'll know for sure - that the piano is the most beautiful instrument in existence, especially when Frank Braley takes his seat at the keyboard. You will undoubtedly remember him from the Queen Elizabeth competition in 1991. Braley stood out for his poetic expressiveness and his endearing naturalness. He deserved to win first prize. His interpretations have gained in expressiveness and precision ever since. With a light and flexible touch, Braley draws out the subtlest of colours from the piano. What's more, he is really quite a chameleon, adjusting himself easily to the various styles of different composers. From a classic Mozart rondo to early romantic clair-obscur effects by Schubert, to playful miniatures by Kurtág, and visiting Ravel and Gershwin on the way. The leap from Ravel to Gershwin is actually not as great as you would imagine. It is famously known that Gershwin travelled to Paris to study composition with Ravel. However, Ravel turned him down, and felt that Gershwin should stay true to himself and not become a 'second-rate Ravel'. In Braley's version of 'Rhapsody in Blue' you get the chance to sample first-rate Gershwin with scattered nods to impressionism.