The tutors for the June course will be Christine Stevenson, Ilga Pitkevica and Jill Morton.
The tutors for the October course will be Penelope Roskell, Christine Stevenson, Helen Reid and Nicholas Moloney.
Penelope Roskell
Penelope Roskell is equally renowned as a performer of international calibre, and as an inspirational teacher. She is professor of Piano and Piano Pedagogy at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.
As a soloist, she has played in major concert halls in more than thirty countries. She is the leading UK specialist in healthy piano playing and Piano Advisor to the British Association for Performing Arts Medicine, where she holds a clinic for pianists with tensions or injuries. Her award-winning major book, The Complete Pianist: from healthy technique to natural artistry was described as ‘an encyclopaedic masterpiece of pianistic wisdom’ by The Piano Magazine USA.
Christine Stevenson
Christine Stevenson enjoys a distinguished career as a piano recitalist and concerto soloist throughout the UK and abroad, and is in great demand as a teacher. Her concerts continually draw critical acclaim for her virtuosity, musicianship, and the engaging rapport she establishes with audiences of all ages. Winner of the prestigious Dom Polski Chopin Competition, Christine’s wide experience includes live and recorded broadcasts, chamber music and recordings of solo piano and chamber music on CD and on iTunes, including Liszt’s Années de Pèlerinage – II – Italie, which was released during the Liszt bicentenary celebrations in 2011, receiving excellent reviews.
An inspiring communicator, she has been invited to give masterclasses at Morley College, the City Lit Institute, Jackdaws Music Education Trust, the Hindhead Music Centre, for the Victorian Music Teachers’ Association in Australia and for the London Piano Circle, and she gives annual masterclasses at the Summer School for Pianists at Stowe in Buckinghamshire, where she is Joint Artistic Director. She has taught advanced pianists at Lancaster University, and has been on the staff of the Junior Department of the RCM in London since 2001, with many former pupils now in the profession. She blogs about piano music at www.notesfromapianist.wordpress.com.
Born in Melbourne, Christine graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts with distinction, being twice awarded the Gaitskell prize for the most outstanding student. She studied with pupils of Cortot, of Nadia Boulanger and of Michelangeli, and with the celebrated English pianist, Ronald Smith, also participating in masterclasses given by Sergei Dorensky, Aldo Ciccolini and Vlado Perlemuter.
Ilga Pitkevica
ILGA PITKEVICA-BALDWIN, MA Mus. had an extensive professional training in Latvia. She graduated from the Jazepa Vitola Latvia Music Academy (“LMA”) in Riga with honours and a Master’s degrees in Solo Piano Performance, Piano Teaching, Accompaniment and Chamber Music. The curriculum there was based entirely on the so-called “Russian Piano School”. Furthermore, through her teacher – Professor of Piano Konstantin Blumenthal, who himself was a pupil of Vladimir Sofronitsky, Konstantin Igumnov, Heinrich Neihaus and Pavel Serebrjakov, Ilga inherited the deep traditions and knowledge of the methods and teaching style of the Russian Piano School. As a student, Ilga won prizes at several piano competitions and was also awarded a prestigious Tchaikovsky Scholarship.
While in Latvia, Ilga taught solo piano, accompaniment and chamber music at the Jelgava Music College, at the LMA’s Emils Darzins Special Music School for Gifted Children and at the LMA. During this time, Ilga performed at many concerts and as accompanist at international competitions in the Baltic States, Austria, Poland, Czech Republic, Russia, Germany, Israel, France and UK. She was the official accompanist for the International Cello Competition held bi-annually in Liezen, Austria for fourteen years until this closed in 2015. Recognising her success as a teacher and repetiteur Ilga – with her pupils – was invited to meet two of Latvia’s Presidents, Guntis Ulmanis and Vaira Vike-Freiberga.
Following marriage in 2002, Ilga moved to Cambridge in the UK where she continues to perform solo and chamber music in the UK and abroad, and to work as accompanist for the Lucy Cavendish Singers in Cambridge and RCM in London. She also teaches pupils at her private Piano Studio near Cambridge. Among her pupils are EPTA UK Piano Competition winners and other competition and festival prize holders. Many of Ilga’s existing and former pupils hold music scholarships at Eton College, Westminster School in London, King’s College School and Perse School in Cambridge. Some of her former students continue to study music at universities in Oxford and Durham.
Since 2014 Ilga has taught as a Principal Tutor of the internationally-acclaimed Piano Teachers’ Course UK (www.pianoteacherscourse.org). Ilga has also collaborated with Trinity Exam Board in publicizing and lecturing on their piano syllabuses, and with ABRSM in helping to choose repertoire for their piano exam syllabuses. Ilga has contributed video lectures and talks to the https://online-academy.informance.biz and The Curious Piano Teachers (www.thecuriouspianoteachers.org).
Ilga often organises masterclasses and concerts in Cambridge. These have included the annual Cambridge Piano Weekends, organised jointly with Gonville and Caius College for several years. These have involved prominent pianists and teachers such as Noriko Ogawa, Vanessa Latarche, Graham Fitch, Penelope Roskell, William Fong, Michael Young, Masayuki Tayama, Roshan Magub and Murray McLachlan.
Since 2006 Ilga has been Cambridgeshire Regional Organiser for European Piano Teachers’ Association UK. She served nine years on the Management Committee of EPTA UK from 2009 to 2018.
Jill Morton
Jill Morton enjoys a highly successful career as piano soloist, chamber musician and teacher. Her performances, including a performance as soloist with the BBC Concert Orchestra on Radio 2 for Friday Night is Music Night, have taken her throughout Britain and across Europe. She is Musical Director of “Encore! Concerts for all, big and small”, a monthly concert series for preschool children and their carers to experience the thrill of live music. Jill has a successful YouTube channel showcasing the repertoire from the ABRSM and Trinity Graded exam syllabuses, and other solo piano works. She has given masterclasses at universities and specialist music schools, and is becoming recognised as a competition adjudicator. She also teaches at the Perse School in Cambridge and is a Principal Tutor on the Piano Teachers’ Course UK.
Helen Reid
“It was clear we were in not only capable but rather a special pair of hands…Reid’s beautifully poised, tenderly imagined and finely focused playing re-educated and refined the ear.” Hilary Finch, The Times
Helen Reid first came to public attention when she appeared on BBC2 in the National Keyboard Finals of the BBC Young Musician competition. In 2000 she won first prize in the Karic International Piano Competition.
Helen has given recitals all around in England, at venues including the Wigmore Hall, Purcell Room, Fairfield Halls and Blackheath Halls, London, St. George’s, Bristol, Cheltenham, the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester and the Aldeburgh and Buxton Festivals. She has performed in Spain, Slovakia, Hungary, Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic. Performances have included Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.2, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and the world premiere of David Matthews’ Piano Concerto at Dartington International Summer Festival, a work written for Helen.
Helen studied at Chetham’s School, Royal Holloway University and Cologne Music College, completing a Master’s Degree at City University and the Guildhall School of Music. She is currently professor of piano at Bristol University, Teaching Fellow in Music at Bath Spa University, and plays regularly with the Bristol Ensemble, as well as giving solo and smaller ensemble recitals.
Nicholas Moloney
Nicholas Moloney is a British pianist and artistic manager currently residing in London. An active recitalist, chamber musician and concerto soloist, Nicholas played in numerous venues around the U.K and abroad as well as on live radio broadcasts. His festival appearances so have taken him to Switzerland for the Tibor Varga festival in Sion.
As a passionate teacher Nicholas held the post of Visiting Teacher of Piano at Wellington College as well as chamber music coach at Pro Corda. He also taught undergraduate students at the Royal College of Music.
Nicholas studied at the Royal College of Music in London with Leon McCawley and Norma Fisher. Previous studies have been undertaken at the Vienna Conservatoire and in Scotland where Nicholas was lucky enough to study with some of the world’s most distinguished teachers. He now works with English Touring Opera to help cast and manage the production of their operas as well as maintaining a small studio of students.
pianissimi 