Rolf Hind - Pianist
Rolf Hind has worked closely with living composers across a broad range of styles: from John Adams and Tan Dun, to Ligeti and Kurtag; Xenakis and Messiaen, to Simon Holt and Judith Weir.
Born in London and now living there after studies at the Royal College of Music and Los Angeles, his career has many facets. He appears regularly at new music festivals throughout Europe: in Brussels, Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Darmstadt, Vienna, Strasbourg and Paris. He is in demand as a soloist with all the major BBC orchestras and plays regularly with the London Sinfonietta. Further afield he has made numerous appearances with the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Munich Radio Orchestra, Junge Deutsche Philharmonie, the South West German Radio Orchestra, the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Vienna Chamber Orchestra and the Slovenian Radio Philharmonic. As a performer he has had a number of concertos written for him, by Unsuk Chin (BBC NOW) Poul Ruders (LPO) Bent Sorensen (BBCSO/Danish Radio) and Simon Holt (London Sinfonietta). In his fifth appearance at the BBC Proms in 2002, he premiered a new concerto by David Sawer with the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Leonard Slatkin. Recently he has also performed concertos by Thomas Agerfeldt Olesen, Roger Smalley and Lou Harrison, and worked with high calibre conductors including Ashkenazy, Rattle, Slatkin, Andrew Davis, Markus Stenz, Oliver Knussen and Franz Welser-Möst. He has been chosen to give a recital as part of the South Bank Centre’s Xenakis Weekend and was specially requested by Elliot Carter to play at the BBC Barbican Weekend with a programme of the composer’s choice.
Rolf played a leading role in the BBC’s Adams Festival at the Barbican in 2002, as soloist in Phrygian Gates and Grand Pianola Music conducted by the composer; the latter reprised in 2003 at Alice Tully Hall, New York.As a result, John Adams asked him to play on his disc, Road Movies, recently released by Nonesuch. Rolf has also recorded for Factory Classics, Virgin, Teldec, Bridge, DaCapo and NMC records, including repertoire from Messiaen as well as works written especially for him. He recently recorded the complete solo piano works of Peter Maxwell Davies for the composer's own internet record label, MaxOpus.
Further afield, he has toured Korea, Taiwan and Cuba and made recital and concerto appearances at the Festivals of Perth (Australia) and Wellington (New Zealand). Rolf has also worked with some of the world’s greatest dancers and choreographers, including Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker at Rosas, Richard Alston and the London Contemporary Dance Theatre.
In the last few years he has developed a growing reputation as a composer. Keith Potter of The Independent called him “One of the rare examples of a performer who can make a successful career as a composer”. His piano pieces and a chamber work, The Horse Sacrifice, have been broadcast by the BBC. He wrote a score for Michael Frayn’s Copenhagen, broadcast on German radio, and was commissioned by the 2003 Huddersfield Festival for Das Unenthullte, as premiered with his regular duo partner, David Alberman. Recent commissions include Eye of Fire, which he played with The Duke Quartet, and Sunnata for five pianos and one honky-tonk. He is currently writing a piano concerto, Maya-Sesha, for the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.
Rolf is a professor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, teaching chamber music and composition for the piano.
In recognition of his high standing within British music, Rolf was recently made Artistic Director of the Society for the Promotion of New Music. He is planning a nationwide concert series for 2005-6 on their behalf; he is also the Chairman of ISCM Britain.
THIS BIOGRAPHY IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE REPRODUCED. PLEASE CONTACT dean@c7m.co.uk FOR THE MOST UP TO DATE VERSION.
For more about Rolf's playing career, an overview of his repertoire or sample programmes, please contact his agent, Caroline Oakes, by clicking here (Clarion Seven Muses).
