Director Selects: Pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason makes her Soraya debut this January

In the coming months, The Soraya will feature three touring orchestras of the highest caliber. The first is Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, returning with one of classical music’s brightest young stars – British pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason.

“It’s not just that Isata Kanneh-Mason is a born musician with a virtuoso technique,” writes Gramophone Classical Music Magazine. “It is her ability to engage your emotions from first note to last – and to think outside the box.”

Kanneh-Mason will perform one of the rare 19th-century concertos in the repertoire that was composed by a woman, Clara Schumann. If you are unfamiliar with this showy piece, she recently released her recording of the concerto. Listening from home will certainly whet your appetite for her performance at The Soraya on January 21. I’m happy to introduce you to Kanneh-Mason in this conversation she and I shared earlier this week.

Gratefully,