Patron: Roderick Williams OBE
14th July, 3pm
Nina Kiva (cello) & Milo Harper (harp)
The Friends' Recital Hall, Queen Elizabeth's School, EN5 4DQ
Luigi Boccherini: Sonata in A Major, G. 4
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Clara Schumann: Liebst du um Schönheit; Warum willst du and're fragen
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Claude Debussy: Claire de Lune, L. 75
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Francis Poulenc: Souvenirs
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Camille Saint-Saëns: Le Cygne
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Heitor Villa-Lobos: Song of the Black Swan
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Witold Lutosławski: Sacher Variation
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Paul Hindemith: Sonata for Harp
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Lili Boulanger: Nocturne
Claude Debussy: Cello Sonata, L. 135
get to know Nina...
How do you find playing with a harpist? It’s a relatively unusual combination so are there particular advantages or difficulties that come with this duo?
I love playing with the harp. There’s such a unique sound world that is immediately created as soon as the two instruments are combined. In a sonata setting, the piano has a more direct “hit” of a sound, but the natural sound of the harp is a lot more gentle. This sound world allows room for experimenting with new colours and timbres, which may not be possible with the piano.
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Tell us a bit about the programme you’ll be performing at the Festival. Why are you playing these works?
We put this programme together because each piece is able to show a different characteristic of the instruments, either together or individually. For example, the Sacher Variation by Witold LutosÅ‚awski is a solo piece for cello which has to be played precisely as to is what’s instructed in the score, for example the use of quarter tones and the rhythms being extremely exact. Contrasting to this we have the Debussy Sonata, which leaves more space for individual artistic interpretation. By this I mean Impressionistic colours, such as flautando and cadenza-like passages. The Boccherini Sonata isn’t usually played with the harp, but we wanted to add it into the programme as a classical sonata fits perfectly amongst the other more romantic pieces.
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The Debussy Sonata is a giant of the cello repertoire. What’s it like taking on a piece with such a reputation, and especially in this new context?
As I mentioned previously, it’s a whole new experience playing it with the harp due to the new sound worlds that can be created. This is always interesting, particularly with a piece that I’ve been playing since I was at school. With any piece of music, the process of discovery always feels endless. When you rearrange it for a different instrument, it sort of feels like you have to learn it all over again. It feels very exciting and I really enjoy it, of course especially as I’m performing it with Milo!
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If our audience wanted to listen to some other music related to your programme, what would you recommend?
I’d recommend some works by LutosÅ‚awski, as I feel he is not as well known as the others! As the Sacher Variation is quite a unique piece, and can be difficult to understand, it always helps to listen to more of the composer's works to help almost get to know him. His Cello Concerto and Concerto for Orchestra are my favourite works by him.
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And finally, if you were a pasta sauce, what would you be and why?
You can never go wrong with a tomato sauce!
and meet Milo...
What attracted you to the harp?
It was somewhat by chance! My mum is a piano teacher and one of her students played the harp - after realising that the harp teacher lived around the corner from us, I just went to have a go. I was 8 years old and had never seen or heard anything like the harp and I became obsessed pretty quickly. (Also with a surname like Harper, someone in the family had to do it really).
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What's your favourite musical memory?
My time doing my Masters in New York was filled with amazing memories - including having lessons with Emmanuel Ceysson in the Met Opera building, performing at Carnegie Hall, and playing in a jazz ensemble coached by Brandee Younger. That whole experience was such a dream come true - it felt so rewarding after working so hard to get the sponsorships to make it possible. I will always be grateful to have had the mentoring and support from Emmanuel, who I have always looked up to.
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You're playing several arrangements of music originally written for other instruments: what's it like transcribing music for the harp?
The pedal harp is a relatively modern instrument compared to most, so our repertoire only really began from around the Romantic period (and even then it took a while to be fully embraced by composers). Lots of piano music transfers really easily to the harp, but because of the harp's pedalling system, highly chromatic music usually doesn't work so well (think Chopin embellishments). Keyboard music from composers like Debussy, Bach, Scarlatti and Liszt often transfers really naturally to the harp without having to make many adaptations. (My website has lots of examples of repertoire I've transcribed). Some music may technically be playable, but not necessarily effective - so it's about thoughtfully choosing which repertoire to show a new perspective on.
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The last movement of the Hindemith Sonata is famously prefaced by a Hölty poem about a dead harpist. Do you find that sort of 'extra-musical' context helpful? Does it influence how you play?
Yes! The harp is such a poetic instrument, so lends itself well to storytelling. Hindemith's Sonata explores themes around the Second World War, with really vivid imagery including a cathedral organ, children playing, and the dead harpist's harp singing like humming bees. I think that channeling these references really adds emotional depth to the music.
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If our audience wanted to listen to some other music related to your programme what would you recommend?
Debussy's Danse sacrée et danse profane, Anneleen Lenaerts's transcription of Schumann's Fantasiestücke, Lutoslawski's Double Concerto for Oboe and Harp and anything by Lili Boulanger!
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And finally, if you were a pasta sauce, what would you be and why?
Maybe a lemony wild garlic pesto! Why not!