Mark Bebbington Set for Central Synagogue's International Concerts Series, 2/4

Mark Bebbington has a knack for finding and bringing to the spotlight either lost or forgotten pieces by important musical personalities - having already premiered (and recorded) the Vaughan Williams Fantasy For Piano and Orchestra, a complete John Ireland CD cycle and the piano music of Mario Castelnuovo-Tadesco. Most recently he opened the American Symphony Orchestra's Carnegie Hall season with Richard Strauss's little-known left-had piano concerto, Parergon. That's in addition to all the expected Rach 2's and Griegs and Schumanns. But his latest discovery should hold particular fascination, especially for Londoners.

At his Feb 4th concert in Central Synagogue's International Concerts Series, Bebbington will give the world premieres of four miniatures by Harriet Cohen. Largely forgotten now she was, says Bebbington, one of the most influential musical figures in the first half of the last century. A force of nature pianist, almost all of the British composers wrote or arranged for her - among them Vaughan Williams, Elgar, Walton, Ireland, Bliss, Bax (who regarded her as his muse and had a widely-known affair with her). Further afield, the likes of Pablo Casals and Wilhelm Furtwangler asked for her. Bartok dedicated works to her.

Outside of music she was also a force. She was a leading voice in the drive to save Jews from Germany, and likewise turned her formidable drive and energy to the establishment of a new homeland for the Jews. Chaim Weizmann, Eleanor Roosevelt, Ramsay MacDonald, Lord Beaverbrook, H.G.Wells, D.H.Lawrence (who based a character in one of his novels on Cohen) and George Bernard Shaw were all in her social sphere.

And yet she is not best-known as a composer, so these four charming teaching pieces are expected to provide insight into a fascinating person. "She had an influence on almost the entire evolution of British piano music in the Twentieth Century," says Bebbington, "Talented and irresistible, she was almost a kind of English Alma Mahler. There was tragedy in her too, and she was devastated when she discovered that Bax had other affairs. To his day nobody knows whether the subsequent cutting of her wrists, which ended her two-hand playing career, was deliberate or not. I hope that these lovely little works remind people of her importance and give us an idea of how she thought, and how she felt."

The concert, entitled "You Don't Have To Be Jewish", focusses on famous non-Jewish composers who were influenced by Jews (Arthur Bliss, Debussy), Jewish composers whom history has forgotten (Cohen, Castelnuovo Tadesco, Felix Blumenfeld) and one very famous, and famously Jewish, composer - George Gershwin. The Blumenfeld works to be featured in the concert are also thought likely to be premieres.

Mark Bebbington's most recently-issued recording, of British piano concertos together with CBSO players, has been named "CD of the Month" by Musicweb International and "IRR Outstanding" by International Record Review. His previous recording, of music by William Alwyn, was named "revelatory" by The Guardian. Other upcoming highlights include a major UK tour with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, and London performances with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and at St John's, Smith Square.

The International Concerts Series at Central Synagogue are presented by Central Synagogue with Inverne Price Music Consultancy. Media partner is the Jewish Chronicle, and sponsors include the Office of the Chief Rabbi.

£20 tickets are available via www.centralsynagogue.org.uk, by emailing bookings@centralsynagogue.org.uk or by phone at 020-7580-1355. The concert starts at 7.30pm on Wednnesday 4th February, at Central Synagogue, 36-40 Hallam Street, London W1W 6NW.

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