John Bryden in Havant

 John Bryden, St. Faith's, Havant, Nov 5

While some performers just want to play, others provide some background detail. Few more so than John Bryden who packed a lot into his hour in Havant with stories from his own musical life and those of the composers he played. Tremendous to think that his students can trace their tutelage back through six degrees of separation to Beethoven ! A horse with lineage like that would go off favourite for the Derby.

After the Londonderry Air and some jazzy Gershwin, John sang Silent Worship by Handel representing an earliest memory. He moved to what felt like more substantial pieces via Mozart's Eine Kleine Gigue, a virtuosic pastiche of Bach and then Elgar's Mina, a portrait of his beloved dog.

A flamboyant Capriccio by Haydn and Liszt's Un Sospiro illustrated contrasting sides of John's catholic repertoire but might have hinted where his main sympathies lie by having them lead up to Chopin and then two pieces by Schubert, an Impromptu in A flat and one of the Moments Musicaux.

A most enjoyable and friendly lunchtime tour full of memoir and tales from history, it brings to an end St. Faith's little International Piano Festival which has been a great success. Enough of one to make us hope the idea will come round again.