This March, the International Piano in the Elms Festival returns, celebrating resilience, creativity, and community through the universal language of the piano.
The Festival features six concerts by internationally acclaimed pianists, alongside a piano trail throughout Nine Elms, masterclasses, café concerts, and a concert showcasing young pianists.
The festival is inspired by the elm tree—the enduring emblem of Nine Elms—symbolising community and connection, and the place where World Heart Beat Embassy Gardens has been based since 2022.
At the heart of the festival lies the world premiere of Julian Joseph’s Nine Elms Suite, a landmark new work for piano and strings inspired by the history and transformation of this area, to be performed and recorded at World Heart Beat Embassy Gardens, on Saturday 14 March.
The festival features piano masterclasses led by Hilary Coates, Professor of Piano at Trinity College of Music and Cyrill Ibrahim, World Heart Beat Artist in Residence and an acclaimed concert pianist. Cyrill Ibrahim will lead a Chopin masterclass for young World Heart Beat pianists, with members of the public welcome to attend. Book your free tickets ASAP!
The festival opens with a performance by Liberian-Norwegian pianist Kamilla Arku alongside visual artist Jordan Söderberg Mills working in installation, sculpture, and design (International Piano in the Elms Festival: Kamilla Arku & Jordan Söderberg Mills (Thursday 12 March); the profound musicality of Romanian concert pianist Andrei Gologan – International Piano in the Elms Festival: Andrei Gologan (Friday 13 March); Jazz maestro and World Heat Beat Patron Julian Joseph presents his new suite – International Piano in the Elms Festival: Julian Joseph: Nine Elms Suite and String Orchestra (Saturday 14 March); Romanian-born pianist Cristiana Achim follows blending classical, jazz, and Romanian folk music – International Piano in the Elms Festival: Cristiana Achim (Thursday 19 March) and World Heart Beat Artist in Residence is British-Dutch concert pianist Cyrill Ibrahim presenting his unique insight on Frederick Chopin – International Piano in the Elms Festival: Cyrill Ibrahim – A Journey of Chopin’s Heart (Friday 20 March). The festival concludes with Greek piano virtuoso Nefeli Mousoura, with a focus on Mozart in the first half followed by the lyrical romantic masterworks of Liszt in the second – International Piano in the Elms Festival: Nefeli Mousoura (Saturday 21 March).
The piano festival supports arts and community engagement by hosting piano concerts and a piano trail across cafés, galleries, residential buildings, and public spaces. Audiences will experience a vibrant programme of world-class headline events including free café concerts and a young pianists’ concert. Local primary schools will receive free concerts and pre-performance discussion sessions delivered by the visiting artists.
With every concert ticket bought, audiences will enjoy outstanding performances by international pianists in a warm, intimate setting, but will also help support young musicians at World Heart Beat Music Academy. Every ticket contributes to the academy’s bursary scheme, enabling students who might otherwise face financial or social barriers to access the transformative power of music.
