I first heard British-Korean pianist Harry Rylance perform at Hampton Court Palace in October 2023. The event was a concert to celebrate 140 years of Korea-UK relations. Rylance is a versatile musician, who, in the words of Zoltán Kocsis, possesses “innate musicality and natural artistry”.
Rylance is currently based in London and his musical career involves, ‘inter-alia’ being a professional soloist, chamber musician, accompanist and répétiteur. He has performed at many prestigious venues in the UK and worldwide, including the Royal Albert Hall, Wigmore Hall, the Grand Hall of Budapest, Glyndebourne Opera House & Seoul Arts Centre. Since graduating from the Royal Academy of Music (“RAM”) in 2020 (where he achieved the highest mark in his year), Rylance has been appointed as a Chamber Music and Répétiteur Fellow. 2023 saw him being awarded the Kathleen Ferrier Accompanist Prize at Wigmore Hall, the RAM Silver medal and election as Associate of RAM.
We met just a short walk from Wigmore Hall, Rylance’s favourite venue to perform at. “It is,” Rylance shared, “probably one of the most well-known venues in London and has a long and interesting history. It’s great acoustically, and with seating limited to 300, it is a comfortable size too. I have,” he continued, “my solo debut recital there in May [2024]. I’ve done a lot of accompanying there but never any solo performances. It’ll be fun. I’m excited.”
Rylance had the honour of performing as part of the recent state visit, alongside Soprano Lee Haegee and Tenor David Junghoon Kim, singers Rylance holds in high esteem and enjoys performing with. “The whole experience was really special,” Rylance told me, “It was a little nerve-wracking but was over before I realised. The President and First Lady took the time to speak with us, which was wonderful.”
Rylance cannot recall there being a single inspirational moment when he fell in love with music, describing the experience instead as being a slow burn. If, however, he had to pinpoint one moment that prompted his path, it would be back in New Zealand, where a young Harry, aged around 4 years old, felt competitive when his older brother started learning the piano first, sharing with me an anecdote about how he “wanted to learn piano as well and would always interrupt my brother’s lessons.”
Nowadays, however, it is other musicians who are sources of inspiration to him, and the people he performs with bolster him and give him confidence. Rylance shared with me the gratitude he feels towards his parents, who he describes as having “always been supportive and pushed me in the right direction when I needed it.”.
I was interested to learn more about some of the challenges Rylance has faced during his career to date. “I definitely have had some,” he replied, “but it’s nice that nothing really stands out too much. Nowadays, I suppose, in particular in the music industry, one can’t help feeling that you need something to make you stand out. That can be quite tricky to figure out whilst still being yourself and not forcing anything.”
“Recently,” Rylance shared, “I’ve been trying to do a bit of everything” His schedule is varied and sometimes involves playing solo piano, but other times sees him playing with instrumentalists and singers, even opera houses. Rylance hopes that by trying to do different things people will realise he does not just do “one thing”. Whilst this helps him find more work, there is also the consideration that it also makes it harder to stay in each area. It’s important to him to find a balance between staying relevant “whilst staying true to myself.”
Among Rylance’s many professional accomplishments, earlier this year he collaborated with tenor George Curnow, as part of the Kathleen Ferrier Awards [he won the Help Musicians Accompanist’s Prize]. This was special to him, not only because of the venue (Wigmore Hall) but because they “both did really well, regardless of winning. I remember my dad was there, and he really enjoyed it, which was really nice.” That kind of thing means the most to him – simply feeling happy about a performance.
Rylance shared with me some of the things he is looking forward to in 2024, such as visiting Poland to record music with a fellow musician and trumpeter. He expressed excitement about the prospect of creating more music for their CD and is delighted to be a part of a fellow musician and friend recording their own arrangements.
I wondered then if he had thought about creating his own compositions. Whilst Rylance initially replied “not really” when I enquired, his sincere look of excitement indicated to me he has a lot more to offer the musical world. “Actually,” he continued, “I’ve always wanted to try but I feel hesitant about it. I am part of a horn trio nowadays, and there isn’t a lot of music for that kind of ensemble, maybe only a handful of pieces, so I have made one arrangement for us so far. In terms of original compositions. We’ll see!”, he teased. “Maybe one day!”
We spoke a little bit about the experience and pressures that arise when taking on famous compositions. When it comes to such works, taking Beethoven as an example, Rylance shared that “I think he [Beethoven] is so well known that everyone has an idea of how his compositions should be played, and I struggle with that notion and the strictness of it.” With other, lesser known music, Rylance feels there is the freedom to experiment and add your additions.
Our conversation then moved to the music Rylance enjoys playing, and the composers he admires the most. In response to the latter, he shared that his favourite composer is Liszt, whose music Rylance described as “flashy, romantic and virtuosic”, but that more recently he’s been exploring more contemporary music, such as pieces by Freya Waley-Cohen. He performed one of her pieces (Southern Leaves) at a recent solo performance as part of a house concert. “It is,” Rylance said, “based on the Nina Simone Civil Rights Songs. It’s really great music.”
How Rylance makes his repertoire choices depends on what he’s doing. When making his selection, “it helps to be able to pick things that you enjoy but you also have to think about the audience and what they might like to hear. When there is a singer involved in the performance, the audience doesn’t focus on what the pianist is playing as much so it’s always preferable to have something that shows off the piano too.”
Faye: If you were given the position of artistic director at a venue, what would be your chosen music?
Rylance: I acknowledge that not everyone is going to be interested in classical music so I would love to do a bit of everything and include a wide variety of music. I think I would put on an opera and include different ensembles, some Soloists, and a bit of Jazz. I would love to have opera one night and then jazz the next with all the artists wearing what they want [within reason]. Something relaxed. Or perhaps some “cross-over” music (Note to reader: this means the blending of different musical genres). For example, a friend of mine has recently written his own piano piece based on music by Radiohead. I know that has got a lot of attention. Of course, it is a small thing within a whole concert but it is interesting. I really like the idea of things being less formal. I would love to make my debut wearing something besides a full suit. I find it sometimes restricts my movement.
F: If it was entirely your own decision, what would you wear instead?
R: I wouldn’t go too crazy but I like the idea of not wearing all black. Maybe a colourful jacket.
Rylance added that he likes to see performers beginning to branch out and wear more comfortable clothes. Having said that, Rylance was conscious to counter that he would not wish for the performer’s choice of attire to be a detraction from the performance itself.
When Rylance made his musical debut in 2015 following his graduation, William Dollard of the Boston Civic Symphony Concert Review said of his performance that “from the opening notes of the first movement, it was obvious that a true artist and splendid pianist was at work. I cannot recall a finer, more revealing and rewarding performance of Rachmaninoff’s 2nd Concerto – and I have heard scores of them.”
Rylance modestly describes this praise as a nice end to his time in America.
I came across another commentary about his skills that I feel would be remiss of me not to mention. It describes the same experience I had when I had the privilege of hearing Harry play at Hampton Court Palace earlier this year. It comes from Fidelio Magazine and reads as follows:
“His confident, airy and relaxed performance convinced the audience he regarded the piano as an equal”
Rylance’s advice to aspiring musicians: Take every opportunity you can get and don’t be afraid to try new things. Say yes but don’t be afraid to say no. I said yes to basically everything which I don’t regret as such, but I was definitely more tired than I needed to be. There have also been times when people took my time for granted, and at a young age it’s important to learn how to manage your time. Be polite, and kind to people you meet. I’ve always been surprised about what can happen down the line as a result. Don’t forget to keep in touch with people! Visit other people’s shows. Not everyone will return the favour but it’s important to support the work of others. Stick to your strengths and don’t panic about the future! I’ve found that in the music world, lots of things come up last minute.
