Frédéric Chopin - Scherzo No. 3 in c-sharp minor, Op. 39
Tanya Gabrielian (Piano)

Frédéric Chopin - Fantasy, Op. 49
Ja-Sing Lin (Piano)

Frédéric Chopin - Fantasy, Op. 49
Christopher Falzone (Piano)

Frédéric Chopin - Fantasy, Op. 49
Alessandra Maria Ammara (Piano)

Frédéric Chopin - Fantasy in F minor Op.49
Jozef Kapustka (Piano)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - String Quartet in B-flat Major, K. 589
Simon Roturier (Violin)
Lauriane Vernhes (Violin)
Avishai Chameides (Viola)
Joan Bachs (Cello)

Frédéric Chopin - Etude Op 10 N°7
Davide Polovineo (Piano)

Simone Dinnerstein

August 29, 2011. Boyce Lancaster interviews the pianist Simone Dinnerstein. Simone Dinnerstein launched her career in the most unusual way: she raised funds and recorded Johann Sebastian Bach’s challenging Goldberg Variations, apiece that usually crowns a well-developed career, rather than lays its foundation. She played the same piece at her New York recital debut in November 2005 at the Weill Recital Hal. Her Goldberg recording became a sensation and in 2007 was picked up by Telarc and released worldwide in 2007.

Boyce Lancaster talks to Simone as she prepares to release yet another CD, Bach: A Strange Beauty. You can listen to snippets of Simone’s pianism: Variation XXV from the Goldberg recording here, and Sarabande, from Suite no. 5 in G Major, BWV 816 here. The complete interview is here, and below is Boyce’s introduction to his conversation with Simone.

In the music world, much as in the world of sports, it’s the flashy ones who get most of the ink. A case in point is Lang Lang. He has made himself larger than life, plays the piano with flourishes and dramatic flair, and sells Rolexes, Adidas, and Audis. His piano talent was nurtured from a very early age. He won numerous piano competitions. Over four billion people saw him perform before the 29^th Olympiad. He has even accompanied world champion figure skaters, playing a piano positioned on the ice. By contrast, Simone Dinnerstein begged for piano lessons at the age of four, but was given a recorder. When she was 15, she wanted to travel to London to study piano, but was encouraged to go across the river to Juilliard, where she stayed for a few years, dropping out at eighteen. (She did eventually return and finish her degree.) She entered no competitions. By the time she was thirty, she had a degree, lots of talent, but no manager, no recording contract, no bookings, and limited prospects for a concert career. On top of that, she was going to have a child.