Mark Bebbington's Embarks on a Busy New Season

After Gershwin success, Mark Bebbington embarks on busy new season - in concert hall
and studio. After his "Recording of the Month" Gershwin album, the British pianist's new season ranges from the London Philharmonic to the Buffalo Philharmonic, from Grieg to John Ireland, from two national tours to a new CD.

Mark Bebbington may have raised a few eyebrows with his recent all-Gershwin CD (featuring the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Leon Botstein, in the Rhapsody In Blue, Concerto In F, I Got Rhythm Variations and the first-ever integral recording of the Eight Preludes for Solo Piano, on a bonus disc) issued by Somm Recordings earlier this year. Although Bebbington plays a wide range of music in concert - recent seasons have seen plenty of Rachmaninov and Beethoven as well as the seldom-heard Richard Strauss left-hand Paregon at Carnegie Hall - on disc he is best-known for his extensive championing of British composers. So, a much-praised Mozart concertos disc notwithstanding, this Gershwin was a decisive foray into core repertoire.

MusicWeb International named it their "Recording of the Month", while All Music gave it a coveted five-star rating. "Bebbington brings a nice balance of swagger and thoughtfulness," wrote The Guardian in a four-star review. BBC Music Magazine joined the praise for Bebbington's playing, with, "Bebbington is an adept soloist with a real flair for jazz...''

His next recording, also for Somm, will be a return to English fare; the complete Vaughan Williams piano music due for release later this year. And away from the studio, the season is as packed and varied as ever.

Some highlights include a multi-city UK tour this November, with Mark playing the Grieg Piano Concerto with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra; with conducting duties shared between their music director Libor Pesek and Heiko Mathias Forster. In April, he joins the London Philharmonic Orchestra in their Brighton Dome residency, playing the Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.2 under conductor Joshua Weilerstein.

In May he brings a touch of England to the United States, when he brings to the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra the John Ireland Piano Concerto - a once-staple work in the UK for which Bebbington, who has recorded four CDs of music by Ireland, is a tireless advocate. He brings that same work to Israel in his second tour of the season, when in June he joins the Israel Camerata under music director Avner Biron for five concerts. The Ireland concerto, interestingly, was a favourite work for Arthur Rubinstein, who is of course an iconic figure in Israel.

Watch this space, as they say, for further announcements as the season continues. And in the meantime, enjoy this extract from that recent Gershwin CD!