Recently described as ‘One of the foremost exponents of the period piano in the UK’, JOHN IRVING is an established performer on early keyboards (notably fortepiano, harpsichord and clavichord), specializing in music of the later 18^th century. International Piano has described his Beethoven playing as ‘Excellent…played with historical awareness and humour’. John’s performances on fortepiano challenge traditional expectations of the piano repertoire of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, going beyond the notated texts into an improvisatory mode of creative engagement with the score that recaptures performance expectations in the 18^th century. By turns virtuosic and extemporary, his performances are noted for their accessible engagement with audiences, offering fresh insights into this repertoire. He has performed and recorded on various historical keyboards, including Rossini’s piano in Pesaro. His most recent solo CDs are Josef Haydn Piano Sonatas (Devine Music, 2015) and John Irving Plays Mozart on the Hass Clavichord (sfzmusic, 2013). His chamber music disc, Beethoven and the art of Arrangement with Ensemble DeNOTE (Omnibus Classics, 2015) won a 5* review in Early Music Review. Recent and forthcoming appearances include King’s Place; Milton Court, Barbican Centre; Greenwich International Early Music Festival; LSO St. Lukes; Brighton Early Music Festival; North York Moors Chamber Music Festival; St Cecilia’s Hall, Edinburgh; the Holywell Music Room, Oxford; Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin; Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano; ORPHEUS Instituut, Gent; Fondazione Cini, Venice; and the Valletta International Baroque Festival.

John Irving is an internationally recognized Mozart scholar. He has published five books on Mozart, including an internationally best-selling biography, The Treasures of Mozart, and scholarly texts on Mozart’s Piano Sonatas and Concerti. Most recently, he has been involved as author and performer in The Mozart Project – a multi award-winning digital book for iPad. He is also a performer, specializing in 18th-century historical performance practice as a fortepianist, clavichordist and harpsichordist. His recent performances include appearances, among others at Brighton Early Music Festival, Cambridge; the North York Moors Music Festival  and at the Greenwich International Early Music Festival.

Geelvinck Fortepiano Festival 2016

Tijdens het Geelvinck Fortepiano Festival 2016 speelt John Irving in Dat Bolwerck in Zutphen op 23 oktober om 17.30 uur.
Op het programma staan o.s. werken van Haydn.

Op 25 oktober 2016 geeft John Irving masterclasses op de fortepiano in het Pianola Museum in Amsterdam.