The Sound of Piano

For several years now, The Sound of ... has been a wonderful festival day, with classical and post-classical concerts, with established names as well as undiscovered gems. The 2025 Queen Elisabeth Competition is dedicated to the piano, so this year we are also putting the piano at the heart of the festival.

• These post-classical pianists are already making their appearance.
  

Tania Giannouli ^(GR)

Pianist Tania Giannouli is all about whimsy. Her music has global appeal and has been described as complex, lyrical, exhilarating and highly original. From her classical background, she has evolved into a bandleader with a broad outlook - from jazz and improvisation to influences from all over the world. She draws her inspiration from a variety of traditions and explores the traditional boundaries of different genres.

Effortlessly, she commands attention with a wonderful sense of beauty.

Sofi Paez ^(CR)

Costa Rican Sofi Paez, currently based in Berlin, blends classical piano with her voice and unique experimental sounds, such as field recordings from her hometown of San José. Her debut album Silent stories (Ólafur Arnalds), due for release in May 2024, will take you on an enchanting musical journey.

Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres ^(UK)

British-born Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres is an award-winning film composer and multi-instrumentalist. Her acclaimed music focuses on storytelling, fusing recorded soundscapes with a rich palette of electronica and classical music. BBC Radio 6 has described her music as "hauntingly beautiful".

Her debut album 2 Years Stranger was described by The Guardian as "devastatingly emotional". Her second album, Play Echoes, was described by CLASH as "spacious and dynamic" and by Uncut magazine as containing "catchy compositions that fuse classical instrumentation with electronica".

• These classical pianists will also perform during this festival:

Piano Dialogues

Jan Michiels & Inge Spinette - Kirsten Gedeshi & Lenny Bui-Vandeput

Do two pianos sound better than one? Absolutely! After six intense years at the Royal Brussels Conservatory, young pianists Kirsten Gedeshi and Lenny Bui-Vandeput will share the stage with their teachers Jan Michiels and Inge Spinette.

Be enchanted by the musical mastery of these two piano duos, whose piano playing tells a story full of passion and musical heritage. Admire their dancing fingers in Brahms' Hungarian Dances, immerse yourself in French neoclassicism with Poulenc's Sonata for 2 pianos and experience Ravel's homage to the Viennese waltz with La Valse. Finally, the two duos join forces for the legendary Danse Macabre in an 8-handed version for 2 pianos!

Piano music for two, four and eight hands by Mendelsohn, Brams, Ravel, Poulenc and Saint-Saëns.

Bach to the future

Levi Schechtmann ^(DE)

German pianist Levi Schechtmann is something of a phenomenon. He is incredibly adept at improvisation and has developed his own successful style. He masters a diverse repertoire and moves remarkably smoothly between classical and ... hip-hop.

Levi studies with Anna Vinnitskaya (Queen Elisabeth Competition 2007) in Hamburg. He has won numerous classical piano competitions but is best known for arranging classical works by Bach, Liszt and Chopin. With almost 300,000 followers on Instagram, Levi is one of the most popular crossover artists. Stay tuned for an exciting mix of classical music and hip-hop.

Classical music x hip-hop: discover Bach, Liszt and Chopin and Levi Schechtmann's reinterpretations.

• The SLAC/Conservatory talents will also shine during The Sound of Piano. More information about their performances will follow later.

Press

Tania Giannouli:

• “This music invites the listener to dream of eternity.” - Jazzspace
• “Giannouli's playing is both open and emotional and adventurous and elusive, with manoeuvres that are always unexpected and exciting, and then full of emotion. In perfect balance; restrained and exuberant, then wonderfully dynamic and exploring new sounds using the entire grand piano, Giannouli finds wonderfully fascinating new heights on SOLO.” - Written in Music

More info

photo Ellie Jackson-Smith (Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres), Mariam Wo Ching (Sofi Paez), Daniel Wetzel (Tania Giannouli)
photo Gieke Merckx (Kirsten and Lenny) Tom De Beuckelaer (Jan and Inge)
photo Levi Schechtmann: Ivan Samoshko