SATURDAY & SUNDAY, 6 & 7 MARCH 2027
CLOSING DATE: 31 JANUARY 2027
Performing Arts Centre, Redmaids’ High School, Westbury Road, Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol BS9 3AW
PIANO SECTION INFORMATION
GRAHAM FITCH
Graham Fitch, based in London, maintains an international career not only as a pianist, but also as a teacher, adjudicator, and writer. His workshops and classes, which he has given all over the world, have received high praise for their creative and illuminating approach to the subject. First Prizewinner in the Mieczyslaw Munz Piano Competition, he graduated with honours from the Royal College of Music in London as Hopkinson Gold Medallist. His teachers at the RCM included Stephen Savage, Peter Wallfisch and Roger Vignoles. A Fulbright Scholarship then took him to the United States, where he completed his studies with Ann Schein and Nina Svetlanova, as well as participating in weekly classes with Leon Fleisher. Other teachers for postgraduate studies include Julian Martin and Peter Feuchtwanger.
During much of the 1990s, Graham Fitch’s career straddled the Atlantic with solo and chamber performances in England (where he taught piano at the Purcell School, St. Paul’s Girls’ School, and the Centre for Young Musicians) and in Europe and North America. The New York Times spoke of his playing as “unalloyed pleasure”. In the UK he was recitalist at the Bournemouth Festival, and appeared in repeated engagements with the London Chamber Soloists on London’s South Bank. US activities included concerts with his trio, the Trio dell’Arte, various solo appearances (including a performance of Bach’s Goldberg Variations in Merkin Hall during the 250th anniversary of the composer’s death) and a performance of Bartok’s Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion with Jonathan Haas.
From 1997 to 2008, Graham Fitch was Head of Keyboard at the South African College of Music, University of Cape Town, from where he travelled to Australia, New Zealand and the USA to perform and teach. Graham gave recitals, masterclasses and keynote addresses at four successive Australasian Piano Pedagogy Conferences across Australia from 1999 to 2005. He was in residence at the Royal Academy of Music in London in 2006, giving a masterclass, directing a performance class and teaching the Head of Piano’s studio.
Graham is a guest tutor for the Piano Teachers’ Course UK, Britain’s flagship training programme for piano teachers. He is also a tutor at the Summer School for Pianists in Stowe and gives regular courses for pianists and teachers in London, Finchcocks, and in Blonay, Switzerland. Graham is a regular contributor to Pianist Magazine, with articles on technique, style, practicing and performance as well as producing an ongoing series of video demonstrations on YouTube. Graham was commissioned by Trinity College London to write the teaching notes for a series of graded piano pieces, Raise the Bar as well as for the advanced grades for the new syllabus. He has also done consulting work for the ABRSM on the 2021 piano syllabus (advanced grades), and is presently co-authoring two chapters for Oxford University Press (Handbook of Piano Pedagogy).
Graham teaches privately in South West London and online, and counts among his students professional pianists, piano teachers, adult amateurs as well as youngsters. Schedule permitting, Graham’s philosophy is to be available to anyone who wishes to study with him who is serious about developing their piano playing.
MARK TANNER
Mark Tanner is a concert pianist, composer, BIFF adjudicator, teacher and writer. His performing and academic work takes him regularly to all five continents. Solo appearances include many recitals at London’s Wigmore Hall, South Bank Centre and St John’s Smith Square, as well as St George’s Bristol, where he performed in piano duo with Alan Schiller at the Mozart 250th Anniversary Celebrations. He appears regularly on luxury cruise liners, having given in excess of 300 recitals on all of the Cunard, P&O and Saga ships.
Mark’s recordings have spotlighted many previously unrecorded works by British composers, receiving widespread critical acclaim. These include the complete piano works of Peter Wishart, Graham Fitkin’s Furniture, a double-disc of York Bowen, Constant Lambert’s Prize Fight (with Allan Schiller), Graham Lynch’s White Book, John McLeod’s Haflidi’s Pictures and Bach’s Flute Sonatas with Gillian Poznansky.
World première broadcasts have been given on BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM, and in 2018 Mark gave interviews on BBC Radio 3’s ‘Music Matters’ and BBC Radio Ulster’s ‘Classical Connections’. He commissioned, premiered, broadcast and recorded works by John McLeod, Philip Martin, Graham Lynch, Mervyn Burch and Frederick Stocken.
Mark has published 65 volumes of compositions, editions and arrangements for Spartan Press; his music is also published by ABRSM Publishing and Trinity College London Publishing. Mark’s edition of McLeod’s Haflidi’s Pictures is published by Europa Edition, and his edition of Peter Wishart’s complete piano works (in 3 volumes) is published by Edition Peters. Thirty of Mark’s compositions and transcriptions have appeared in the recent examination syllabuses of ABRSM, Trinity College and London College.
Mark’s book, The Mindful Pianist, was published in 2016 by Faber; it was shortlisted for Best Print Resource at the 2017 Rhinegold Music Education Awards. The book will be translated for the Chinese market in 2020. His recently commissioned book, Mindfulness in Music: Notes on finding life’s rhythm, was published in hardback and Kindle in 2018 by Leaping Hare Press; the book is also published in Spanish. In Spring 2020 Leaping Hare will be publishing Mindfulness in Sound: Tune in the world around you.
Mark’s latest book, The Piano in Black and White, will be published by Faber in Winter 2019. It is an in-depth, hands-on book for the adult learner/returner. Also in 2019, Mark joined forces with Karen Marshall in the two eagerly awaited latest Piano Trainer books for the Advanced Pianist, also to be published by Faber. Two volumes of favourite piano teaching repertoire have been released by Faber, compiled and edited by Mark, entitled Teachers' Choice. Mark has written 30 feature-length ‘Masterclass’ articles for Pianist Magazine and has published several hundred articles and reviews for International Record Review, Classical Music, Musical Opinion, Piano International, Mensa Magazine and 19th Century Music. He has also guest-edited Piano Professional, the flagship magazine of EPTA.
Mark’s PhD tackled the Hungarian composer, Franz Liszt; he was subsequently elected an honorary member of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. He is a member of Mensa, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and has given masterclasses across the UK, Europe and Asia. For 16 years he was Assistant Director of Music at Taunton School, Somerset. In 2018 Mark was a keyboard judge for the BBC Young Musician and the EPTA Piano Competition; he was also Composer in Residence at Chetham’s International Piano Summer School and gave workshops in the Cayman Islands. In 2019, as well as running his own ever-popular piano summer school at Jackdaws, Somerset, Mark directed a series of CPD events held at Chetham's School and the RNCM in Manchester; he also co-directed the EPTA Teachers Course at Chichester University and performed with Gillian Poznansky on the Queen Mary 2. In 2019/2020 he is examining in China, India, Turkey and USA.
For ABRSM, Mark has undertaken 40 tours to all five continents, examining grades and diplomas; he is also a Moderator, Trainer, Reader and International Presenter. Among recent ABRSM publications, Mark co-authored Teaching Notes to accompany the 2017-18 piano syllabus; he also composed several pieces for inclusion in their popular new series, Piano Star.
Graham Fitch, based in London, maintains an international career not only as a pianist, but also as a teacher, adjudicator, and writer. His workshops and classes, which he has given all over the world, have received high praise for their creative and illuminating approach to the subject. First Prizewinner in the Mieczyslaw Munz Piano Competition, he graduated with honours from the Royal College of Music in London as Hopkinson Gold Medallist. His teachers at the RCM included Stephen Savage, Peter Wallfisch and Roger Vignoles. A Fulbright Scholarship then took him to the United States, where he completed his studies with Ann Schein and Nina Svetlanova, as well as participating in weekly classes with Leon Fleisher. Other teachers for postgraduate studies include Julian Martin and Peter Feuchtwanger.
During much of the 1990s, Graham Fitch’s career straddled the Atlantic with solo and chamber performances in England (where he taught piano at the Purcell School, St. Paul’s Girls’ School, and the Centre for Young Musicians) and in Europe and North America. The New York Times spoke of his playing as “unalloyed pleasure”. In the UK he was recitalist at the Bournemouth Festival, and appeared in repeated engagements with the London Chamber Soloists on London’s South Bank. US activities included concerts with his trio, the Trio dell’Arte, various solo appearances (including a performance of Bach’s Goldberg Variations in Merkin Hall during the 250th anniversary of the composer’s death) and a performance of Bartok’s Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion with Jonathan Haas.
From 1997 to 2008, Graham Fitch was Head of Keyboard at the South African College of Music, University of Cape Town, from where he travelled to Australia, New Zealand and the USA to perform and teach. Graham gave recitals, masterclasses and keynote addresses at four successive Australasian Piano Pedagogy Conferences across Australia from 1999 to 2005. He was in residence at the Royal Academy of Music in London in 2006, giving a masterclass, directing a performance class and teaching the Head of Piano’s studio.
Graham is a guest tutor for the Piano Teachers’ Course UK, Britain’s flagship training programme for piano teachers. He is also a tutor at the Summer School for Pianists in Stowe and gives regular courses for pianists and teachers in London, Finchcocks, and in Blonay, Switzerland. Graham is a regular contributor to Pianist Magazine, with articles on technique, style, practicing and performance as well as producing an ongoing series of video demonstrations on YouTube. Graham was commissioned by Trinity College London to write the teaching notes for a series of graded piano pieces, Raise the Bar as well as for the advanced grades for the new syllabus. He has also done consulting work for the ABRSM on the 2021 piano syllabus (advanced grades), and is presently co-authoring two chapters for Oxford University Press (Handbook of Piano Pedagogy).
Graham teaches privately in South West London and online, and counts among his students professional pianists, piano teachers, adult amateurs as well as youngsters. Schedule permitting, Graham’s philosophy is to be available to anyone who wishes to study with him who is serious about developing their piano playing.
MARK TANNER
Mark Tanner is a concert pianist, composer, BIFF adjudicator, teacher and writer. His performing and academic work takes him regularly to all five continents. Solo appearances include many recitals at London’s Wigmore Hall, South Bank Centre and St John’s Smith Square, as well as St George’s Bristol, where he performed in piano duo with Alan Schiller at the Mozart 250th Anniversary Celebrations. He appears regularly on luxury cruise liners, having given in excess of 300 recitals on all of the Cunard, P&O and Saga ships.
Mark’s recordings have spotlighted many previously unrecorded works by British composers, receiving widespread critical acclaim. These include the complete piano works of Peter Wishart, Graham Fitkin’s Furniture, a double-disc of York Bowen, Constant Lambert’s Prize Fight (with Allan Schiller), Graham Lynch’s White Book, John McLeod’s Haflidi’s Pictures and Bach’s Flute Sonatas with Gillian Poznansky.
World première broadcasts have been given on BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM, and in 2018 Mark gave interviews on BBC Radio 3’s ‘Music Matters’ and BBC Radio Ulster’s ‘Classical Connections’. He commissioned, premiered, broadcast and recorded works by John McLeod, Philip Martin, Graham Lynch, Mervyn Burch and Frederick Stocken.
Mark has published 65 volumes of compositions, editions and arrangements for Spartan Press; his music is also published by ABRSM Publishing and Trinity College London Publishing. Mark’s edition of McLeod’s Haflidi’s Pictures is published by Europa Edition, and his edition of Peter Wishart’s complete piano works (in 3 volumes) is published by Edition Peters. Thirty of Mark’s compositions and transcriptions have appeared in the recent examination syllabuses of ABRSM, Trinity College and London College.
Mark’s book, The Mindful Pianist, was published in 2016 by Faber; it was shortlisted for Best Print Resource at the 2017 Rhinegold Music Education Awards. The book will be translated for the Chinese market in 2020. His recently commissioned book, Mindfulness in Music: Notes on finding life’s rhythm, was published in hardback and Kindle in 2018 by Leaping Hare Press; the book is also published in Spanish. In Spring 2020 Leaping Hare will be publishing Mindfulness in Sound: Tune in the world around you.
Mark’s latest book, The Piano in Black and White, will be published by Faber in Winter 2019. It is an in-depth, hands-on book for the adult learner/returner. Also in 2019, Mark joined forces with Karen Marshall in the two eagerly awaited latest Piano Trainer books for the Advanced Pianist, also to be published by Faber. Two volumes of favourite piano teaching repertoire have been released by Faber, compiled and edited by Mark, entitled Teachers' Choice. Mark has written 30 feature-length ‘Masterclass’ articles for Pianist Magazine and has published several hundred articles and reviews for International Record Review, Classical Music, Musical Opinion, Piano International, Mensa Magazine and 19th Century Music. He has also guest-edited Piano Professional, the flagship magazine of EPTA.
Mark’s PhD tackled the Hungarian composer, Franz Liszt; he was subsequently elected an honorary member of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. He is a member of Mensa, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and has given masterclasses across the UK, Europe and Asia. For 16 years he was Assistant Director of Music at Taunton School, Somerset. In 2018 Mark was a keyboard judge for the BBC Young Musician and the EPTA Piano Competition; he was also Composer in Residence at Chetham’s International Piano Summer School and gave workshops in the Cayman Islands. In 2019, as well as running his own ever-popular piano summer school at Jackdaws, Somerset, Mark directed a series of CPD events held at Chetham's School and the RNCM in Manchester; he also co-directed the EPTA Teachers Course at Chichester University and performed with Gillian Poznansky on the Queen Mary 2. In 2019/2020 he is examining in China, India, Turkey and USA.
For ABRSM, Mark has undertaken 40 tours to all five continents, examining grades and diplomas; he is also a Moderator, Trainer, Reader and International Presenter. Among recent ABRSM publications, Mark co-authored Teaching Notes to accompany the 2017-18 piano syllabus; he also composed several pieces for inclusion in their popular new series, Piano Star.
- Teachers, parents and performers are advised to read the Festival Rules and the following Piano Rules carefully.
- Age of performers is as on 1 March of the Festival Year. Adults are those who are 18 years or over on or before 1 March of the Festival Year.
- In all classes, a copy of the music must be provided for the Adjudicator before performing. Performers may use a copy or purchased copy for performance, but a purchased copy must be available at the time of playing.
- Only one piece to be performed unless playing in the Repertoire class or where otherwise indicated.
- Time limits must be strictly adhered to.
- The title and composer of items to be performed should be submitted at the time of entry. Please include the movement, key and opus number where relevant. Pieces must be stated on the online entry form before the closing date. The timetable will be published in mid-February.
- Substitution of duet or ensemble partners is only allowed at the discretion of the Piano Section Secretary.
- Own choice classes are designed to include players of different standards. It is important to understand that each performance is judged primarily on the quality of playing regardless of the grade of the piece. Performers playing at a much higher standard than their age group may consider entering classes above their age group. This may be necessary in order to remain within the time limit of the class.
- Performers may not enter more than one class of the same type in different age groups. For example, a performer may play in either Repertoire class 13 years and under or Repertoire class 15 years and under, but not both. This does not apply to the Grade classes.
- In the event of a class having a large number of performers, the Piano Section Committee may decide to split the class into two. Performers will be allocated a section at random. Two different trophies may then be awarded.
- No performer may perform any piece more than once during the Festival.
Bristol Festival Syllabus
1. How do I make an online entry?
Click ‘enter online’ above. Create an account with your details. Then add each player’s details by pressing ‘Create a New Individual’ pink box. When you have added all your players you can then enter them into classes. Click on the green ‘Enter’ button. Find the relevant class and click ‘Add to Basket.’ You will then need to give permission, or not, for the official photographer, and enter the details of the piece to be played and composer. You can then press the green ‘Add to Basket’ button. You can continue to enter all players in this way. You will need to add the ages of the performers when prompted if you are entering a class with an age restriction. When you have everything you need in the basket, you can then click ‘Checkout’ and pay the fee.
2. How do I enter a duet or ensemble in the Festival?
You will need to click on the pink box ‘Create A New Group With People’. From there you can select a performer by clicking on their name and then the arrow facing right. You can also remove a performer by clicking the arrow facing left. When all the performers are in the right hand box called ‘Members of Ensemble’, you can click Save. Then you will be able to enter the group into a class in the normal way.
3. When will I be notified of the day and time of my class(es)?
The programme will be created after all the entries are in, and entrants will be informed of their class times shortly after.
4. Will there be parking?
There is plenty of parking on the Redmaids school site and surrounding roads.
5. Will there be any food at the Festival?
Yes, there will be snacks and drinks available to purchase. There will be a dining room where you can eat your own food and drink too.
6. Can I bring anyone with me?
We strongly encourage you to bring as many friends and relations as possible. A friendly audience is as important as the performers. You can listen to as many classes as you like.
7. What is the entry cost for the audience?
For a 1-DAY PASS: An adult ticket is £3 (concessions £2), child £2, and family ticket (2 adults and 2 children) £8. For a 2-DAY PASS: An adult ticket is £5 (concessions £3), child £3, and family ticket (2 adults and 2 children) £12. There is a small charge for programmes. You can pay by cash or card.
8. Is there a practice room?
Unfortunately we do not have a room to warm up in. There is a quiet room which you are welcome to use. To make it fair, no one gets to play before their class, but you may play a few notes and try the pedals before you start.
9. Is a page turner available?
No, but if you can't bring a friend to do this, you can ask another player or one of the stewards to help you.
10. Will footstools be provided?
We don’t provide footstools or pedal extenders, but feel free to bring your own.
11. What happens if I am late?
If you are arrive late and the class is still in progress, you can play at the end of the class and will still receive an adjudication and certificate.
Click ‘enter online’ above. Create an account with your details. Then add each player’s details by pressing ‘Create a New Individual’ pink box. When you have added all your players you can then enter them into classes. Click on the green ‘Enter’ button. Find the relevant class and click ‘Add to Basket.’ You will then need to give permission, or not, for the official photographer, and enter the details of the piece to be played and composer. You can then press the green ‘Add to Basket’ button. You can continue to enter all players in this way. You will need to add the ages of the performers when prompted if you are entering a class with an age restriction. When you have everything you need in the basket, you can then click ‘Checkout’ and pay the fee.
2. How do I enter a duet or ensemble in the Festival?
You will need to click on the pink box ‘Create A New Group With People’. From there you can select a performer by clicking on their name and then the arrow facing right. You can also remove a performer by clicking the arrow facing left. When all the performers are in the right hand box called ‘Members of Ensemble’, you can click Save. Then you will be able to enter the group into a class in the normal way.
3. When will I be notified of the day and time of my class(es)?
The programme will be created after all the entries are in, and entrants will be informed of their class times shortly after.
4. Will there be parking?
There is plenty of parking on the Redmaids school site and surrounding roads.
5. Will there be any food at the Festival?
Yes, there will be snacks and drinks available to purchase. There will be a dining room where you can eat your own food and drink too.
6. Can I bring anyone with me?
We strongly encourage you to bring as many friends and relations as possible. A friendly audience is as important as the performers. You can listen to as many classes as you like.
7. What is the entry cost for the audience?
For a 1-DAY PASS: An adult ticket is £3 (concessions £2), child £2, and family ticket (2 adults and 2 children) £8. For a 2-DAY PASS: An adult ticket is £5 (concessions £3), child £3, and family ticket (2 adults and 2 children) £12. There is a small charge for programmes. You can pay by cash or card.
8. Is there a practice room?
Unfortunately we do not have a room to warm up in. There is a quiet room which you are welcome to use. To make it fair, no one gets to play before their class, but you may play a few notes and try the pedals before you start.
9. Is a page turner available?
No, but if you can't bring a friend to do this, you can ask another player or one of the stewards to help you.
10. Will footstools be provided?
We don’t provide footstools or pedal extenders, but feel free to bring your own.
11. What happens if I am late?
If you are arrive late and the class is still in progress, you can play at the end of the class and will still receive an adjudication and certificate.