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We welcomed acclaimed pianist Hiroaki Takenouchi to Trinity Laban in March for a special event celebrating International Women’s Week.

Hiroaki Takenouchi presented a lecture-recital exploring the work of four female British composers: Doreen Carwithen, Dorothy Howell, Caroline Reinagle and Madeleine Dring. For the final performance piece of the session, Dring’s Sonata for Two Pianos, the celebrated pianist was joined by frequent collaborator Simon Callaghan; their CD Danza Gaya: Music for Two Pianos is now available on Lyrita. Hiroaki complimented the lecture-recital with a morning of 1-to-1 lessons with select piano students.

TL student Lucas Saraiva Cunha (BMus2 Piano) commented on the concert: “I really enjoyed Prof. Takenouchi’s lecture recital, which had a focus on Female British Composers. What made it especially captivating for me was how strongly he felt about shining a light on these underrepresented composers, and how that resonated with his personal experience as a musician. It was a thought-provoking session that brought me to consider my own connections to the music I play, as well as inspiring me to keep bringing rarely played works into the concert space. The performance had a captivating emotional intensity that I think can only come from a strong sense of identification and understanding of both the composer and the music they wrote.”

About Hiroaki Takenouchi

Hiroaki Takenouchi’s curiosity and a natural penchant for integrity makes his playing and vast repertoire unique amongst his generation of pianists. His love for the music of classical masters – particularly Haydn, Beethoven and Chopin – sits side by side with his passion for the music of Medtner, lesser-known British composers such as Sterndale Bennett and Parry, and the contemporary repertoire.

As a soloist, Takenouchi has appeared on many concert platforms including Wigmore Hall, Tokyo Opera City and the South Bank Centre, and has given recitals across Europe and North America. 2022 saw the release of his latest solo disc on French specialist piano label Artalinna, featuring works by Grieg, Medtner and Dupré. Hiroaki is also editor of the published scores of Sherwood’s two-piano works (as recorded for Lyrita), now available from Nimbus Music Publishing. He is frequently invited to make recordings for BBC Radio 3’s Composer of the Week.

Hiroaki Takenouchi is a Blüthner Artist and owns a beautiful 1922 Blüthner piano. He gave a concert in Leipzig’s Weißes Haus as part of the Blüthner Master Series in September 2020. Hiroaki teaches piano at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (Glasgow). He also returns every summer to give masterclasses at the ingenium International Music Academy (UK).