“…A disarming technique coupled with an undoubted intellectual mastery made Julian Jacobson’s recital an awe-inspiring experience…” — Daily Telegraph
“…Real poise, delicacy of touch and judicious pedalling… stylish and enchanting…”
— The Guardian
“…this major British voice in world-ranking pianism, so justly celebrated by his faithful following…”
— Music & Vision Daily
Renowned British pianist Julian Jacobson brings his masterful touch to our music salon for an evening of classical music brilliance. The programme includes Haydn’s C minor Sonata, Hob. XVI:20 (also listed as No. 33 in some catalogues), works by Beethoven and Chopin, and a set of three original compositions, bridging the creative voices of his father, Maurice Jacobson, his mother, Margaret Lyell, and his own, celebrating a living family legacy of musical creativity and composition.
Evening Schedule
Doors: 18:45 - with a welcoming glass of wine or soft drink to start the evening.
First Set: 19:30 - 20:15
Intermission / Refreshments: 20:15 - 20:30
Second Set: 20:30 - 21:15
Reception: 21:15 - 22:00 - the post-concert reception with a curated selection of wines and soft drinks, offering a chance to continue the conversation, meet the artist, and savor the evening.
Julian Jacobson - piano
One of Britain’s most creative and distinctive pianists, Julian Jacobson is acclaimed for the vitality, colour and insight he brings to his enormous repertoire across all styles and periods. In a career spanning five decades, he has performed extensively in over 40 countries while maintaining an intensive UK concert and recording schedule. His 70th birthday in 2017 was marked by concerts in London and Paris where he performed Prokofiev’s “War Trilogy” (sonatas 6, 7 and 8) alongside sonatas by Schubert and Beethoven, to critical acclaim.
Born in Peebles, Scotland, to distinguished musicians, his father Maurice Jacobson studied briefly with Busoni, and his mother, pianist-composer Margaret Lyell, trained in Berlin with Else Krause, daughter of Liszt’s pupil Martin Krause. Julian studied piano with Lamar Crowson and composition with Arthur Benjamin from the age of seven, publishing four songs by nine. Further studies at the Royal College of Music and Queen’s College, Oxford, were supplemented by his role as inaugural pianist in the National Youth Jazz Orchestra and lessons with the Hungarian pianist Louis Kentner.
He made his London debut at the Purcell Room in 1974, followed by appearances in the Park Lane Group’s Young Artists series and his Wigmore Hall debut as both soloist and chamber musician. In the 1980s he established himself as a duo and ensemble pianist, collaborating with Zara Nelsova, Sándor Végh, Ivry Gitlis, Lydia Mordkovitch, David Geringas, Christian Lindberg, Manuela Wiesler, and many leading UK instrumentalists including Nigel Kennedy, Steven Isserlis, Moray Welsh, Colin Carr, Alexander Baillie, and Philippa Davies.
Appointed Head of Keyboard Studies at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in 1992, he increasingly focused on solo work. In 1994 he embarked on his first complete cycle of Beethoven’s 32 sonatas, now presented eleven times, including five “marathon” performances from memory in a single day — only the second pianist to attempt this. His 2003 marathon at St James’s Church Piccadilly raised over £6,000 for WaterAid, and his 2013 marathon at St Martin-in-the-Fields was streamed worldwide. In November 2022 he marked his 75th birthday with performances in London and at the Festival of Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay. Since 2014, he is Chairman of the Beethoven Piano Society of Europe, organising concerts, competitions, and events for young players.
Jacobson has performed as soloist with the London Symphony, BBC Symphony, City of Birmingham Symphony, English Chamber Orchestra, London Mozart Players, London Sinfonietta, Bournemouth Sinfonietta, Bucharest Philharmonic, Icelandic Symphony, and Royal Omani Symphony, with conductors including Sir Simon Rattle and Jane Glover. Festival appearances include Edinburgh, Aldeburgh, Bath, Belfast Sonorities, Brighton, Cheltenham, Dartington, Glasgow, Huddersfield, Norwich, and Prussia Cove.
A committed advocate of contemporary music, he gave the UK premiere of Ligeti’s Etudes Book One in 1987, subsequently recorded for BBC Radio 3. Composers who have written for him include Robert Saxton, Simon Bainbridge, Benedict Mason, Philip Cashian, Daryl Runswick, Keith Tippett, Charles Camilleri, and Robert Keeley; Michael Nyman wrote the piano trio Time Will Pronounce for his ensemble, Trio of London.
His discography spans labels including Meridian, Chandos, Hyperion, Decca Argo, BIS, Continuum, Metier, and SOMM, featuring works from Schumann, Dvořák, Balakirev, Weber, Martinu, Enescu, Vaughan Williams, Fricker, Rawsthorne, and Gershwin, including transcriptions of An American in Paris and Second Rhapsody recorded with duo partner Mariko Brown. Other compositions include five film scores (‘To the Lighthouse’, ‘Hard Travelling’, We Think the World of You) and a screen appearance in The Fourth Protocol.
Julian Jacobson is Professor of Piano and Chamber Music at the Royal College of Music and Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Guest Professor at Xiamen University (China), and has given masterclasses worldwide. He was Artistic Director of the Paxos International Festival, Greece, 1988–2004, and in the 2000s added Sprechstimme in Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire to his repertoire, performing it in October 2009 at Jacqueline du Pré Hall, Oxford.