{"id":43159,"date":"2024-05-27T18:07:19","date_gmt":"2024-05-27T16:07:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/176ea68b-45d3-4534-bf25-b8246812559c"},"modified":"2024-05-27T18:40:03","modified_gmt":"2024-05-27T16:40:03","slug":"isata-kanneh-mason-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-gifted-british-pianist-returning-to-the-proms-this-summer","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/rss_feed\/isata-kanneh-mason-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-gifted-british-pianist-returning-to-the-proms-this-summer\/","title":{"rendered":"Isata Kanneh-Mason: all you need to know about the gifted British pianist returning to the Proms this summer"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By <\/p>

Published: Monday, 27 May 2024 at 16:07 PM<\/p>

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She’ll be performing at the 2024 BBC Proms<\/a>, and is a member of an astonishingly talented musical family. But who is pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason?<\/strong> <\/p>

Who is Isata Kanneh-Mason?<\/strong><\/h2>Isata Kanneh-Mason is a British pianist with several acclaimed releases to her name. She is one of the Kanneh-Masons<\/strong><\/a>, a famously musical family: her siblings include cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason<\/strong><\/a> and violinist Braimah Kanneh-Mason.<\/p>
<\/div><\/figure><p>Like her brother Sheku, Isata has been a member of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/chineke-orchestra-what-the-bme-ensemble-is-doing-to-shine-a-light-on-the-lack-of-diversity-in-classical-music\/\"><strong>Chineke<\/strong><\/a>!, the orchestra founded in 2015 to provide career opportunities for black and ethnically diverse classical musicians in the UK and Europe. Chineke!\u2019s mission is: \u2018Championing change and celebrating diversity in classical music\u2019.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-old-is-isata-kanneh-mason\"><strong>How old is Isata Kanneh-Mason?<\/strong><\/h2><p>Isata Kanneh-Mason was born in May 1996, in Nottingham. She is the eldest of the seven Kanneh-Mason siblings. <\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-where-did-she-grow-up\"><strong>Where did she grow up?<\/strong><\/h3><p>Isata Kanneh-Mason grew up in the family home in Nottingham. Her father, Stuart Mason, is a business executive of Antiguan background; her mother, Kadiatu Kanneh, is a university educator born in Sierra Leone and has chronicled her experiences in the book <em>Raising the Kanneh-Masons<\/em>. <\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-who-are-the-kanneh-masons\"><strong>Who are the Kanneh-Masons?<\/strong><\/h2><p>Isata is the eldest of seven musical siblings \u2013 Braimah, Sheku, Konya, <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/jeneba-kanneh-mason-signs-for-sony-classical\">Jeneba<\/a><\/strong>, Aminata and Mariatu are the others.<\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Isata Kanneh-Mason - I Got Rhythm - Earl Wild (After George Gershwin)\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/PFpyiAQYypw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-when-did-isata-kanneh-mason-first-play-the-piano\"><strong>When did Isata Kanneh-Mason first play the piano?<\/strong><\/h3><p>In her 2023 interview for <em>BBC Music Magazine,<\/em> Isata told our interviewer <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/jessica-duchen\">Jessica Duchen<\/a><\/strong> that she had her first encounters with a piano at her paternal grandparents\u2019 home in Antigua, aged about five. <\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-and-when-did-she-start-piano-lessons\"><strong>And when did she start piano lessons?<\/strong><\/h3><p>Isata started learning piano young, at the age of six. She also had lessons on the recorder, violin and viola, but she soon knew that the piano was instrument for her. \u2018It wasn’t a conscious thing then, but I remember feeling natural and at home at the piano, whereas on the violin, I felt uncomfortable for much of the time,’ she told Jessica.<\/p><p>‘I think what I love about the piano now is its orchestral nature. There are so many different voices, colours and sounds that you can get from this one instrument. Whether it\u2019s a solo, a concerto or chamber music, the piano can do <em>so<\/em> much.\u2019<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-has-she-said-about-her-musical-childhood\"><strong>What has she said about her musical childhood?<\/strong><\/h3><p>\u2018My first two years of piano playing was basically me just composing and improvising,\u2019 Isata said in her <em>BBC Music Magazine<\/em> interview. \u2018I remember hearing pop songs on the radio, and then I\u2019d go home and try and play them.<\/p><p>‘Many of my early musical memories are about listening to music: I remember listening to the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/schuberts-trout-quintet-a-guide-to-schuberts-piano-quintet-in-a-and-its-best-recordings\">\u2018Trout\u2019 Quintet<\/a><\/strong> by <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/franz-schubert\">Schubert<\/a><\/strong> in the car \u2013 we were all obsessed with it! \u2013 and also to <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/sergey-rachmaninov\">Rachmaninov<\/a><\/strong>‘s <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/best-recordings-rachmaninovs-piano-concerto-no-2\">Piano Concerto No. 2<\/a><\/strong> in the living room with my sister, Jeneba.\u2019 <\/p><ul><li><strong><a class=\"standard-card-newarticle-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him\/\">Cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason on the music that shaped him<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-where-did-she-study\"><strong>Where did she study?<\/strong><\/h3><p>Isata studied at the Junior Royal Academy of Music and latterly at the Royal Academy of Music. <\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-albums-has-isata-kanneh-mason-recorded\"><strong>What albums has Isata Kanneh-Mason recorded?<\/strong><\/h2><p>In 2019, Isata released her debut recording on Decca: a collection of piano works by <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/clara-schumann-6\">Clara Schumann<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p><ul><li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/articles\/5-best-works-clara-schumann\">Clara Schumann: five best works<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><p>Then came <em>Summertime<\/em>, featuring piano works by four American composers: <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/samuel-coleridge-taylor\">Samuel Coleridge-Taylor<\/a><\/strong>, Amy Beach, <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/samuel-barber\">Samuel Barber<\/a><\/strong> and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/george-gershwin\">George Gershwin<\/a><\/strong>. You can read our <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/instrumental\/summertime-isata-kanneh-mason\">review of <em>Summertime<\/em><\/a><\/strong> elsewhere on the site.<\/p><p>Isata and Sheku collaborated on the album <i>Muse<\/i>, released in November 2021. It features Samuel Barber’s <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cello_Sonata_(Barber)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Sonata for Cello and Piano<\/a><\/strong>, transcriptions of songs by Barber and Rachmaninov, and Rachmaninov’s <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cello_Sonata_(Rachmaninoff)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Cello Sonata<\/a><\/strong>. Here’s our <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/chamber\/muse-sheku-isata-kanneh-mason\">review of <em>Muse<\/em><\/a><\/strong>.<\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Isata and Sheku Kanneh-Mason play Rachmaninov Sonata for Cello and Piano in G Minor at BBC Proms\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fGmYIPwjdrU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><p>Next was 2023’s Childhood Tales, devoted to music on the theme of childhood, and featuring works by Dohn\u00e1nyi, <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/mozart\">Mozart<\/a><\/strong>, <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/robert-schumann\">Robert Schumann<\/a><\/strong> and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/claude-debussy\">Debussy<\/a><\/strong>. Here’s our <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/instrumental\/childhood-tales-isata-kanneh-mason\">review of <em>Childhood Tales<\/em><\/a><\/strong>.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-has-she-performed-at-the-proms-before\"><strong>Has she performed at the Proms before?<\/strong><\/h3><p>Yes. Isata and Sheku performed together as a duo at the 2020 BBC Proms. She then performed as a soloist at the 2023 BBC Proms. She returns to the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/bbc-proms\/2024-bbc-proms-listings\">2024 BBC Proms<\/a><\/strong> to perform on the First Night, alongside soprano Sophie Bevan, the\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/who-are-the-bbc-singers\">BBC Singers<\/a><\/strong>, BBC Symphony Chorus, BBC Symphony Orchestra, and conductor Elim Chan.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-does-isata-like-to-do-when-not-playing-piano\">What does Isata like to do when not playing piano?<\/h3><p>\u2018I sleep,\u2019 Isata told Jessica. \u2018I like to be with people,\u2019 she added, \u2018because playing the piano, you’re by yourself, and you travel alone. It’s a lonely lifestyle. I like to see my friends, I love the cinema, long walks and reading and just socialising. And I also like being active because I’m sitting for such long hours, so I go to exercise classes, like biking and Pilates.\u2019 <\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-isata-kanneh-mason-s-musical-heroes\"><strong>Isata Kanneh-Mason’s musical heroes<\/strong><\/h3><p>‘Growing up in the classical world, I loved the pianists <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/who-is-martha-argerich-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-brilliant-pianist\/\"><strong>Martha Argerich<\/strong><\/a> and Vladimir Ashkenazy, and the cellist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/jacqueline-du-pre\/\"><strong>Jacqueline du Pr\u00e9<\/strong><\/a>,’ Isata told Jessica. ‘These are my big musical heroes of childhood. <\/p><ul><li><a class=\"standard-card-newarticle-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/20-greatest-pianists-all-time\/\"><strong>The 20 greatest pianists of all time<\/strong><\/a><\/li><\/ul><p>‘Also I loved Beyonc\u00e9, Bob Marley and Michelle Obama, who are my Black heroes. And Rachmaninov I find inspiring as a composer and pianist. They all inspire me in different ways, and either I see parts of myself in them, or I want to absorb into myself parts of what they represent.’<\/p><p><em>This is adapted from a piece that appeared in the May 2023 issue of <\/em>BBC Music Magazine<em>.<\/em><\/p><p>Main pic: Robin Clewley<\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator\"\/>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Published: Monday, 27 May 2024 at 16:07 PM She’ll be performing at the 2024 BBC Proms, and is a member of an astonishingly talented musical family. But who is pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason? Who is Isata Kanneh-Mason? Isata Kanneh-Mason is a British pianist with several acclaimed releases to her name. 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