Interview, Stephen Hough on Dvorak and Schumann

Stephen Hough is one of today's best-known pianists (and an accomplished composer in his own right). His latest recording, with Andris Nelsons and the CBSO, features the ever-popular Schumann Concerto, but Hough has chosen to pair it not with the Grieg (which almost always accompanies it on double-billings) but with Dvorak's Piano Concerto - a much less often-heard work and one of those pieces that seems to have fallen into relative obscurity for no very good reason.

Katherine talks to Stephen about both works, and about the particular challenges posed by the Dvorak.

The solo writing in the Dvorak concerto has come in for quite a lot of stick over the years, even from the composer himself: what do you make of Dvorak’s own lament that he was ‘unable to write a Concerto for a virtuoso’ and, more recently, Leslie Howard’s observation that it’s more technically awkward than anything Liszt ever wrote?

I once said that this is a concerto for ten thumbs. It’s the worst of all worlds in a way - it doesn’t sound virtuosic yet it’s extremely difficult to play. But that’s not its point, despite that quote from the composer. It’s a concerto with a lyrical soul. It has a touching tenderness and somehow a deeply human spirit. And much of it involves collaboration between soloist and orchestra rather than confrontation of a stepping into the limelight.

What’s your own history with this piece, and when did you first perform it?

I learned it a few years ago because I fell in love with it and wanted to make others love it too. A couple of friends in Singapore (one of them Czech) had mentioned it to me over a number of years and in the end I decided just to take it off the shelf, programme it, and record it. There were many times during this process when I wondered if I made a mistake and was investing too much time, but then one of Dvorak’s melodies smiled at me once again and I put my head down once more.

The concerto’s frequently performed in Vilém Kurz’s revision – do you perform it in both versions, and what made you opt for the original here?

I wouldn’t play the Kurz version. There are a few clever textural changes which make the piano more audible above the thick texture of the orchestra but the character is wrong. He tries to dress up the innocent rural nature of the work with the sophistication of a man-about-town. I find the frilliness and fanciness of his decorations embarrassing and inappropriate - and it doesn’t really make it any easier to play or more effective.

What connections (or contrasts) do you see between the Dvorak and the much better-known Schumann concerto with which it’s paired here?

They are both works where lyricism trumps virtuosity. For all their melancholic moments they are both infused with infectious joy and wonder - and the instrumentation is exactly the same.

Many of the reviews of this recording (and the live concert where it was captured) have highlighted the incredible rapport between you and the CBSO under Andris Nelsons – was this a relatively new relationship, and how did it come about?

I’ve worked with Andris a few times, including playing Tchaikovsky 2nd with him and the CBSO at the Proms a number of years ago. He somehow directs the music by living inside the music. It feels as if the score is actually growing out of the ground as the performance takes place - totally organic and richly fecund.

Do you have any plans to explore Dvorak’s solo piano works (or indeed more of the chamber music), either on recital or on disc, in the near future?

Sadly the solo piano music is not very interesting, although on my next CD I have recorded a couple of little salon pieces: the famous Humoresque and my own transcription of Songs my Mother Taught Me. Maybe at some point I’ll record the Quintet. It’s one of my favourite pieces of music.

Other recent recordings from Stephen Hough