One of the world's leading violists, Lawrence Power, plays works by Bloch, Martinu and Brahms, among others, in a duo with Simon Crawford-Philiips.
"Musical Odyssey"
with Lawrence Power, viola, and Simon Crawford-Phillips, piano
Frank Bridge (1879-1941): Allegro appassionato
Ernst Bloch (1885-1977): Lento (third movement from the Suite for Viola and Piano)
Bohuslav Martinů (1890-1959): Allegro non troppo (Sonata No. 1 for viola and piano)
Rebecca Clarke (1886-1979): Sonata for viola and piano
Thomas Tallis (1505-1585): Come Holy Ghost
Rebecca Clarke (186-1979): Passacaglia on an Old English Tune
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897): Sonata for Viola and Piano in F minor op. 120 No. 1
Lawrence Power
Power [has] the ability to transform even the most banal phrase into something magically eloquent and memorable. (The Guardian)
Lawrence Power is one of the leading violists of our time and is in demand worldwide both as a soloist and as a chamber music partner. He is particularly passionate about new music and, with the help of the Viola Commissioning Circle which he founded, is constantly expanding the repertoire for viola to include works by important contemporary composers
Power regularly collaborates with first-class international orchestras, from the Chicago and Boston Symphony Orchestras to the Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, and with conductors such as Osmo Vänska, Lahav Shani, Parvo Järvi, Vladimir Jurowski, Andrew Manze, Ilan Volkov and Esa-Pekka Salone. In the 2024/2025 season, Power made his Berlin debut with the Konzerthausorchester under the baton of Ivan Fischer and his debut with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester under Alan Gilbert. He has already appeared twelve times at the BBC Proms. Due to his dramaturgically well thought-out and innovative program design, Power is regularly invited by concert halls and festivals as a curator, including for a concert series at London's Kings Place. As a chamber musician, he regularly works with Steven Isserlis, Nicholas Altstaedt, Simon Crawford-Phillips, Antti Siirala, Vilde Frang, Maxim Vengerov and Joshua Bell. In 2020, Lawrence Power was honored with the Royal Philharmonic Society's Instrumentalist Award for the outstanding quality and scope of his work as a solo artist. Since 2021 he has been Associate Artist at London's Wigmore Hall for five years. Lawrence Power is also a professor at the Zurich University of the Arts and gives masterclasses worldwide, including at the Verbier Festival.
He plays a rare viola by Antonio Brenzi (Bologna, ca. 1590) and a viola by the Amati brothers from 1580, on loan from the Karolina Blaberg Foundation.
Simon Crawford-Phillips
Simon is a pianist of "deep sensitivity and technical brilliance, achieving an intensity of expression that makes for captivating listening". (The Guardian)
Simon is a multi-festival director, conductor, renowned pianist, creative programmer with a passion for promoting contemporary repertoire and a chamber musician who regularly collaborates with artists such as Lawrence Power, Roderick Williams and Anne Sofie von Otter in repertoire ranging from Haydn and Schumann to Adès, Byström, Dean and Reich. As a pianist, Simon performs at major festivals and concert halls across Europe, including Verbier, Schleswig-Holstein, Edinburgh and at Wigmore Hall, where he appears as a regular pianist with the Chamber Ensemble in Residence, the acclaimed Nash Ensemble and in concerts with Daniel Hope, Lawrence Power and Phillip Moore. Notable concerto debuts include the NHK Symphony Orchestra conducted by Alan Gilbert, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra conducted by Ilan Volkov and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Keyboard. Passionate about contemporary music, Simon has recently premiered music by Thomas Adès, Britta Byström, Steve Reich and Mark-Anthony Turnage and collaborated with composers Sofia Gubaidulina, Simon Holt, Colin Matthews and Huw Watkins.
