Category Archives: Commissions

Kate Whitley premiere

The premiere of Kate’s new piece written for me, The Bells, was this week at City University. It’s inspired by William Byrd’s work of the same name and was the result of our winning the Yvar Mikhashoff Commissioning Award. The concert also included two other works written for me: Michael Cutting’s I Am A Strange […]

Tombeau de Debussy

As part of the city’s Debussy Festival, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group presented a series of events focussed on Debussy and his legacy. For ‘Debussy’s Heirs’ (in December 2017) I joined Stephan Meier, Julian Anderson and Paul Griffiths at the CBSO Centre for an event looking at how Debussy’s music influenced composers up to the present […]

Yvar Mikhashoff Award with Kate Whitley

Kate Whitley and I are very pleased to have won the eleventh Yvar Mikhashoff Trust Pianist / Composer Commissioning Project Award. Kate will be writing me a major new work for the 2018/19 season, which I will premiere at the City University concert series. Kate and I sometimes play together in piano duo or duet, […]

Michael Cutting : I AM A STRANGE LOOP V (world premiere)

Building on the short piece for Fender Rhodes & delay pedal Michael wrote for me to play at Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival 2015, for my recital there this year he is writing me a much bigger piece, this time for the Rhodes & tape machines. We are extremely grateful to the Britten-Pears Foundation for supporting this commission. Here’s Michael’s […]

Music Overheard

Richard Greenan (of Kit Records) came round to my flat and we talked about music and I played a bit. He made this sound collage for NTS Radio using that recording, recordings of other works by the composers we discussed (Matthew Kaner, Mark Simpson, Naomi Pinnock and Francisco Coll) and field recordings from his archives.

Michael Cutting commission

Michael Cutting‘s This Is Not A Faux Wood Keyboard is probably the most unusual piece I’ve had written for me so far, and it had an interesting way of coming into being too. A year or so ago I spotted a photo Michael posted on Facebook (below) of an instrument he’d bought himself, a Fender Rhodes […]

hcmf// recital review (Sunday Times)

Paul Driver (The Sunday Times) “… Naomi Pinnock’s new Lines and Spaces, included in a brilliant recital at Phipps Hall by the pianist Richard Uttley, was explicitly inspired by Martin screenprints and a canvas. The alternation of “Space” sections — static, evacuated, quiet — with the plain mini toccatas of the “Line” ones was satisfying, […]

hcmf// recital reviews (Guardian, Telegraph, 5:4)

Reviews from my recital in the opening weekend of Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival 2015: Kate Molleson (The Guardian) “Some of the day’s most arresting moments came in a recital by Richard Uttley. I was enthralled by his composure, lyricism and ability to hold a moment without forcing it. Tristan Murail’s La Mandragore was tender and soft-hewn; […]

Naomi Pinnock commission

As part of the Philip Langridge Mentoring Scheme, through which I was mentored by Rolf Hind, the Royal Philharmonic Society were able to commission a new piece for me. I took the opportunity to ask Naomi Pinnock to write me something. I’d wanted to ask her for a solo piano piece since hearing her arresting, […]

In Tune

The Radio 3 In Tune interview and live performance is available to listen here on iPlayer for the next 30 days. I played the Mazurka from Matt Kaner’s Dance Suite, and three movements from Bach’s Partita No.4. Sean Rafferty interviewed both Matt and me.

Ghosts & Mirrors released

Delighted to announce that Ghosts & Mirrors has now been released, on the Artists Recording Company label. It’s available on Amazon. The launch event was reviewed in the Telegraph by Ivan Hewett, and by Frances Wilson on her blog The Cross-Eyed Pianist.

Ghosts & Mirrors launch review (Telegraph)

Wednesday’s launch was reviewed in the Telegraph by Ivan Hewett: Richard Uttley, The Forge, review: ‘amazing decisiveness’ Video was a mixed blessing at the launch recital of Richard Uttley’s new album, Ghosts and Mirrors, says Ivan Hewett Sound and vision: Richard Uttley performing with video at the launch of his album Ghosts and Mirrors Photo: NAT […]

Ghosts & Mirrors London launch 15 October

On Wednesday 15 October I’m launching my new CD, Ghosts & Mirrors, at The Forge in London. I will be joined onstage by Nat Urazmetova, who has created the artwork for the disc and will mix live visuals on the night, following our first performance together at St John’s Smith Square in the Occupy the […]

Matthew Kaner commission

I’m delighted to announce a new commission for solo piano from Matthew Kaner. We’ve been talking about this new piece for months and have now got all the funding together, so I’m very excited that Matt can start work on it. His music is colourful, intricate and rich; as such his first big piano piece […]

Mark Simpson Sky Arts feature

Sky Arts have broadcast this feature on Mark’s project The Immortalisation Commission, which he’s working on through his Sky Arts Academy Scholarship. I’m on piano for Mark’s Echoes & Embers (clarinet & piano) and Barkham Fantasy (solo piano). We filmed in the beautiful Caroline Gardens Chapel (home of Asylum) in Peckham – a really atmospheric […]

Recording project

One of the main things I’m working on at the moment is a disc for Artists Recording Company. They gave me carte blanche on what repertoire I would record, so I had a lot of fun putting the programme together. My starting point was two previously unrecorded works, the first of which was Mark Simpson’s […]