Get to know Javier Perianes
What are you most looking forward to about playing with the Philharmonia in London, and in Seville, Zaragoza and Madrid?
First of all, playing with the Philharmonia and Santtu is a great pleasure and honour. It is such a great orchestra with a rich tradition and background, with a fantastic conductor full of imagination and creativity – a perfect combination with the Saint-Säens ‘Egyptian’ Piano Concerto. To enjoy this great experience four times in a row touring my country, I cannot ask for more.
Have you worked with Santtu-Matias Rouvali before? What it’s like to play under his baton?
Yes, we worked together some years ago when Santtu was the Music Director in Tampere and we played Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4. We really enjoyed working together, it was a great experience that I will always remember. Santtu is not just talented, he is flexible, creative and original – I love finding colleagues to share our visions and find a common point of understanding. Working with him was fantastic and I am really looking forward to these concerts with him and the Philharmonia.
What is your favourite thing about Saint-Saëns’s Piano Concerto No. 5 – is there a particularly interesting or exciting part to look out for?
It is a very special and original piece full of colours, influences and sounds from different cultures. Saint-Säens was living in Luxor when he composed it and after the first movement where the French elegance and refinement is present, we have a very attractive second movement with that famous Nubian song with an Arabic twist and a frenetic and spectacular third movement. It is almost impossible to condense in a few words the experience of playing or listening to this beautiful piano concerto.
As a pianist, you don’t take your own instrument with you as you travel to different venues and countries. What do you look for in a piano when you prepare a performance?
A perfect combination of a beautiful sound (the soul of the instrument) and a perfectly prepared mechanism. It is really challenging to adjust to every single instrument you have to play in different countries and venues, but on the other side it is also exciting trying to get the best out of any instrument you might find.
What are you listening to right now?
At this moment I was listening to Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 played by Vladimir Horowitz, conducted by Carlo Maria Giulini. To be more precise, I was listening while I was watching the beautiful video documentary about the encounter and recording of these two giants. It is a curious recording with two totally different approaches about the same piece.
Which other concert coming up in the Philharmonia’s London season would you most like to come to, and why?
It’s impossible for me to pick just one. Each one has different repertoire, conductors and soloists that I find highly interesting and have “a must go” signal on them. Why pick one when you could attend all of them?
