Primera Parte

Meet the “heir to the great legacy of the Spanish piano school”, Alba Ventura. Born in Barcelona, Alba is a passionate, nuanced performer who made her solo debut at the age of thirteen performing Mozart’s “Jeunehomme” piano concerto with the Cadaqués Orchestra and Sir N Marriner. She began her studies at the Académia Marshall, founded by Enrique Granados, and her mentors include Carlotta Garriga, Alicia De Larrocha, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Dimitri Bashkirov and Irina Zaritskaya. Her discography includes a wide range of repertoire - everything from Mozart to Rachmaninoff to Rautavaara, and of course includes the Spanish giants: Granados, Albeniz and Mompou.

We caught up with Alba in her practice studio in Barcelona where she shared her depth of experience and wisdom with us - sharing her journey as a concert pianist, and how she finds balance as a professor, mother, chamber musician, recording artist and performer. In this convo, we dive into her methods of preparing music, how she practices, the power of mental rehearsal and visualization, and the importance of following your own voice and strengths as you make your way on your own artistic path. Ultimately, her message is to enjoy the process in all of its forms - from your practice alone at the instrument, to the ebbs and flow of career milestones, and not to be afraid to continually refine as you go.

This conversation is full of light and joy and love for music. I can’t wait for you to hear it and to learn from this incredible artist!

Connect with Alba here: www.albaventura.com

Follow Alba on instagram @albaclassics

Listen to her new album IBERIA here!

✨ Stay connected with Pianists Not Practicing:

Instagram — @ChloeWestonPianist

YouTube — @ChloeWestonPianist

🎶 Intro/Outro Music: Ankur Mukhopadhyay — @ankurrmm

🎙️ Produced by: phMediaStudio, LLC

Described as “one of those artists who can make classical music such great fun” (Sedona Red Rock News), Dr. James Palmer is an American pianist who is equally at home as a soloist, collaborator, presenter, and teacher. He is a dynamic musician, and just a lovely human being, currently on faculty at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University in Houston, Texas. This conversation is full of inspiration and ideas - James is such a creative person, who is always dreaming up new concepts and ideas of how to share the music he loves with audiences. We discuss how he has grown his performing career (from word of mouth to cold emailing!), the power of going to concerts and being inspired by others to create your next new idea, his obsession with Scriabin and how it has manifested into an incredible youtube series, and his brand new shiny concert series that he will be launching this fall in Houston! He shares his perspective on how he has searched for his own artistic voice through integrating all of the different parts of himself, and how we can all follow our curiosity and joy to find the career of our dreams.

Connect with James here: www.jamespalmerpiano.com

Follow James on instagram @jamespalmerpiano

✨ Stay connected with Pianists Not Practicing:

Instagram — @ChloeWestonPianist

YouTube — @ChloeWestonPianist

🎶 Intro/Outro Music: Ankur Mukhopadhyay — @ankurrmm

🎙️ Produced by: phMediaStudio, LLC

A self-proclaimed “singer in a pianist’s body”, Robert is an incredibly hilarious and talented vocal coach and pianist on faculty at the University of Kentucky, where he performs and coaches singers with his signature wit, and down-to-business coaching style. This episode is full of amazing ideas and insights into performance and preparation. Robert shares with us how he strives for excellence rather than perfectionism, and prioritizes how he wants the audience to experience the music rather than worrying about the right or wrong of it all. He encourages us to show up and give that day’s 100%, focus on joyful expression, keep the music feeling fresh and electric, and to dive in the deep end!

We are so lucky to absorb his wisdom and joy in this episode - please enjoy this amazing chat with Robert Bosworth, trained musician ™!

Learn more about Robert here: www.robertbosworthmusic.com

Follow Robert on instagram @robertbosworthmusic

✨ Stay connected with Pianists Not Practicing:

Instagram — @ChloeWestonPianist

YouTube — @ChloeWestonPianist

🎶 Intro/Outro Music: Ankur Mukhopadhyay — @ankurrmm

🎙️ Produced by: phMediaStudio, LLC