Beyond the Notes

We knew from her recordings that Susan Tomes is a superb chamber player; now we know that she's a superb writer too. Michael Church, - "Independent". She is as sensitive an observer and as subtle a writer as she is one of our finest chamber musicians...This is a book that should be read by practising musicians and music-lovers alike: here's one performer who really can communicate in words as well as music - James Jolly, "Gramophone". Susan Tomes' book gives you an intensely illuminating picture of the life of a pianist...she is a brilliant writer...Just as she magnetises with her playing, so too with her words. - Edward Greenfield, "Guardian". In this widely acclaimed volume, Susan Tomes, a rare example of a leading musician who writes about the craft of performance, describes her experience of twenty years of rehearsal, concerts and recording. Her performing life has been centred on chamber music and the need to communicate it fully to an audience hungry for meaningful musical experience. She was a founder member and the pianist of both Domus and the Florestan Trio, award-winning groups at the top of their field. Part One is a series of diaries describing their travels and performances: Domus in the 1980s with its own portable concert hall, struggling to create the conditions for informal but intense concert performances, and the Florestan Trio, currently one of the world's finest piano trios. Part Two is a collection of thought-provoking essays about teachers, making records, practising and rehearsing, audiences, earning a living, and the particular challenges of being a concert pianist. "Beyond the Notes" gives an unusually candid view of the complexities of a life in music. Susan Tomes, alongside her packed concert schedule, is a frequent contributor, on music and other subjects, to a number of publications.