Page 143 - Alison Balsom Quiet City FULL BOOK

chose the instrument because I thought that this is something I can do for
myself.”

18. Isata Kanneh-Mason – pianist

The eldest of seven extraordinary, musically talented siblings, including
her brother Sheku with whom she recorded duet album Muse in 2022,
Isata Kanneh-Mason is a brilliant pianist whose recording career has seen
her champion the works of Clara Schumann, alongside more widely
known 19th and 20th-century repertoire. One of today’s most in-demand
young classical solo artists in the UK, she is also the recipient of the 2021
Leonard Bernstein Award.

Isata Kanneh-Mason performs Clara Schumann’s Scherzo No.2
in C Minor
Credit: Classic FM
Play Video

19. Sheku Kanneh-Mason – cellist

Sheku shot to fame after he performed solo to an audience of two billion
at the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, in St George’s Chapel
Windsor. Two years later, it was reported that more young people were
taking up the cello than ever, thanks to ‘the Sheku effect’. Inspired to take
up cello by Jacqueline du Pré’s monumental recording of Elgar’s Cello
Concerto, Sheku’s 2020 album Elgar made him the first cellist in history to
land a place in the official UK album chart Top 10, in a groundbreaking
moment for classical and pop music.

Sheku Kanneh-Mason takes his cello in for a service
What happens when your cello needs an MOT?
Play Video

20. Jonas Kaufmann – tenor

German tenor Jonas Kaufmann has recorded the big Italian opera roles,
playing Cavaradossi in Tosca to great acclaim, but his versatility makes
him just as comfortable performing in Wagner’s Die Walküre or singing
German lieder. Kaufmann is outspoken on the importance of the arts in
our society. In June 2020, he told the FT: “What is Germany, other than
language, culture, art, architecture, music and… well, also football? This is
the essence of our society. If you destroy that, what is left?”

21. Lang Lang – pianist