British Composer Jim Aitchison's New Work to be Played Across Four Venues...at the Same Time!

Composer Jim Aitchison clearly likes a challenge. Writing a one-piano work for a traditional concert hall is clearly for lightweights. Because he has written a piece for no fewer than four pianos, at the Royal Academy of Music. And, er, the Falmouth Academy of Music and Theatre Arts. And Yamaha Music London. And, finally, Goldsmiths University. It is quite a technological feat, and it's even more complex that that sounds, as International Piano magazine has reported.

There may be four instruments, Yamaha Disklaviers, but only one pianist--Roderick Chadwick, who will be controlling the instruments remotely from Falmouth. And, OK, there will actually be more than four instruments, as the piano workings will be rethought for string quartet, with the Kreutzer Quartet waiting at the RAM.

In case that sounds completely crazy, there is actually a guiding idea. Aitchison has been inspired by the visual arts work of Gerhard Richter. This work, entitled Portraits for a Study, is Aitchison's response to the ideas of distance and of filtering through different mediums in Richter's output. Images from Richter's 2012 Tate Modern show will be projected throughout, says International Piano.

The performance(s) will be on February 22 at 7:30 p.m. The challenge for enterprising audience members will be to be in all four places at once. But we suggest that anyone not able to teleport just picks his/her spot and experiences it from there!