A close friend of Piers Lane, the British pianist admits he will be a hard act to follow. We talk to the AFCM's new AD about old ideas and new brooms.

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100 years of Debussy, visits from notable conductors and excerpts of Brett Dean’s Hamlet are among the highlights.

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A Rolls Royce line up takes a musical Winter Palace by storm.

British pianist Kathryn Stott will take over in 2018 following Piers Lane’s final year at the helm.

Pianist Kathryn Stott is amongst the international talent to headline in New Zealand's creative capital.

As we are nearing the end of the Townsville part of this year’s Festival (there are still two days in ahead Cairns for some), I thought it was worth focusing on the piano, in some respects the mainstay of procedings over the last week.  The pianists somehow maintain a lower profile, perhaps it’s because they aren’t dashing around with their instruments under their arms or because they can’t be heard though the walls of the hotel.  Anyway, I tracked down two of them, Kathryn Stott and Jonathan Plowright for some insight into their Festival goings on.  I’ll focus on Kathryn today and take a look at Jonathan tomorrow. The first thing I discovered was that Kathryn Stott is in the room next to mine!  Unlike her duet partner, Norwegian violinist Atle Sponberg, whose delightful tones waft through my other adjoining wall, I’ve not heard a peep out of Ms Stott.  She is quick to reassure me that practice is very much a part of her daily routine.  All the pianists have keyboards in their rooms – they are, however, kitted out with headphones, hence the relative peace and quiet.  I, of course, will spend the next few days trying to……