Prizewinning pianist Koido returns to Hastings for a solo performance

This is a very special recital in the prizewinners’s series to coincide with Fumiya’s live performance on national radio during the In Tune programme on BBC Radio 3. Tickets are limited, priced £15 and are available online or at Hastings Tourist Information Centre.

Pianist Fumiya Koido won the competition in March with a stunning performance of Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G major accompanied by The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, his prize included £15,000 plus future concerto performance engagements with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Hastings International Piano Concerto Competition, one of the UK’s most prestigious international music prizes has recently announced the appointment of Ian Roberts as its new managing director, who will also lead the launch of the competition’s 2020 International Piano Festival.

Roberts, well known for over 20 years’ experience in the music industry, has worked extensively in the UK and European live and recorded music sector including almost a decade at Warner Classics and Jazz and festivals including The Reeperbahn Festival, Hop Farm Festival, the Commonwealth Games Arts Festival and Hamburg on Tour. Roberts has supported the development of a range of music artists, venues and events including Nicola Benedetti, Michael Kamen, Jennifer Pike, Amy Dickson, Elbphilharmonie, Chichester Cathedral Choir and is currently a consultant to The Musicians’ Company in the City of London, and Hamburg Marketing in Germany.

Roberts has already appointed a new General Manager Hannah Deeble, who will support him working across the competition and the International Piano Festival. Deeble is well known as both a musician and arts administrator having managed the Hastings International Piano Concerto Competition and toured extensively with Tori Amos, Jools Holland and Beth Orton.

The 2020 International Piano Festival will celebrate the piano with a broad-range of music concerts programming multi-genres, with an emphasis on world-class artists and ensembles.

Ian Roberts said of his appointment “I am excited to be leading this innovative music organisation into the next stage of their development, having grown from a national piano competition to an internationally renowned event. I am looking forward to seeing my own plans for a truly eclectic international piano festival coming to fruition, and my priority for the coming year will be to create music education opportunities, via an extensive calendar of community engagement and free and affordable tickets to young audiences.”

The 2020 Hastings International Piano Festival takes place in the last week of February and first week of March in multiple venues in and around Hastings and the programme of events will be announced in the coming months. The Hastings International Piano Concerto Competition returns in 2021 with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.