Angela Hewitt

Hewitt, Angela
Angela Hewitt. Pianist, b Ottawa 26 Jul 1958; ARCT 1972, B MUS (Ottawa) 1977, honorary LLD (Ottawa) 1995, honorary LLD (Queen's) 2002. Angela Hewitt's first piano teacher was her mother, Marion Hewitt - b 15 Oct 1922, d Ottawa 19 Jan 2008; BA (Toronto), 1944, BA (Carleton) 1982 - a high-school teacher of English and music. Her later teachers included Earle Moss and Myrtle Rose Guerrero (piano, 1964-73 at the Royal Conservatory of Music), Walter Prystawski (violin, privately 1970-4), and Jean-Paul Sévilla (piano, summers 1973-5 in Aix-en-Provence, main terms 1974-7 at the University of Ottawa, and privately). She also studied ballet. Hewitt performed with distinction in several piano competitions, winning the Chopin Young Pianists' Competition (Buffalo 1975), the piano category in the 1978 CBC Talent Festival, the Dino Ciani Competition at La Scala, Milan, in 1980, and the 1985 International Bach Piano Competition held in Toronto in memory of Glenn Gould. The prize for the Toronto competition included the release of a recital album on the Deutsche Grammophon label (see Discography). Other competitions in which she was a top prize-winner include Bach competitions in Washington, DC (1975), and Leipzig (1976), the Schumann Competition in Zwickau, East Germany (1977), the 1978 International Viotti Competition in Vercelli, Italy, and the Casadesus Competition in Cleveland (1979). She performed with the BBC Philharmonic, the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Sinfonietta, the Japan Philharmonic, the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra, the Philharmonia and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestras in London, the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, the McGill Chamber Orchestra, Montreal Symphony Orchestra, National Arts Centre Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and many others. As a recitalist Hewitt made her New York debut in Alice Tully Hall in 1984, and her London debut in Wigmore Hall in 1985. In 1988 she toured Japan and the USSR and in 1990 appeared frequently in the USA and Europe; the following year she toured Australia.

Angela Hewitt's busy international schedule after 1990 included solo recitals, concerto appearances (which she often conducted from the piano) with the Toronto Symphony, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland and Philadelphia orchestras and other major orchestras, and chamber music. Notable among her appearances (up to 100 concerts annually) were her performances in 2000 of the complete preludes and fugues of Bach. In demand in Australia, she returned to that country often, and toured the USA in 2002. Hewitt also toured Scandinavia, and performed as far afield as Mexico and China. She was heard often in festivals such as the Edinburgh, Cheltenham, and Oslo festivals, and gave master-classes in Europe and North America. As an original member of Piano Six, she also gave recitals in small Canadian centres.

Repertoire
Her recordings and performances linked her closely with the keyboard works of Bach; she credited her early dance training with her affinity for this composer's dance forms. Her additional repertoire was varied. The Canadian composers whose works she programmed included Barbara Pentland, Oskar Morawetz, Gary Kulesha, and Alexina Louie. Steven Gellman and Gary Hayes wrote pieces for her. She had a special affinity for the music of French composers, and in 1987 she performed the complete solo piano works of Ravel in both London and Canada.

Recordings
In the early 1990s, Hewitt embarked on a multi-year project to record the keyboard works of Bach, for Hyperion Records. As of 2003, she had recorded the Goldberg Variations, the inventions, the English and French suites, partitas, toccatas, and other works, often contributing the liner notes as well. Her notable recording of the Well-Tempered Clavier Book I was recognized with a Juno Award in 1999, as well as being named one of BBC Music Magazine's top 50 CDs. Later Hewitt recording of Bach won Juno awards in 2002 and 2005. Among her other recordings were The Complete Solo Piano Music of Ravel and Angela Hewitt Plays Olivier Messiaen (1998). As a chamber musician, she made recordings with cellist Shauna Rolston.

Honours
Angela Hewitt was named artist of the year by the Canadian Music Council in 1986. In 2000, she was made an Officer in the Order of Canada; in 2002, she received the Governor General's National Arts Centre Award. She was a patron of Music for Young Children. BBC listeners chose her as their favourite artist of 2003, and she was Gramophone's 2006 artist of the year. Widely admired for her intelligent interpretations of Bach, Hewitt was described by The Guardian as "the pre-eminent Bach pianist of our time."

She lived in Paris 1978-85, then moved to London, but maintained a Canadian residence.

See also Godfrey Hewitt (her father).

Discography
Bach Italian Concerto BWV971, Toccata in C Minor BWV911, Four Duets, English Suite No. 6 BWV811. 1985. DG 419-218-1/DG 429-975-2 (CD)

- Piano Concerti BWV1056, 1052, 1053. CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Bernardi conductor. 1986. CBC SMCD-5065

Franck - Morawetz - Pentland - Gellman. 1979. RCI 496/(Morawetz) 6-ACM 16/(Pentland) 6-ACM 25

Author Florence Hayes, Eric McLean, Betty Nygaard King

Bibliography

Ruebottom, Ann. 'Beyond Bach: Angela Hewitt Thrives in London,' Music, vol 11, Sep 1988

Dahlstrom, Helen. 'A visit with Angela Hewitt,' Canadian Federation of Music Teachers Association Newsletter, vol 43, Aug 1990

Roston, Margo. "First person," Ottawa Citizen, 19 Dec 1998

Jones, Allison and Matuz, Roger, eds. Contemporary Canadian Musicians vol 2 (Toronto 1998)

Finch, Hilary. "Redefining Bach," Gramophone, Sep 2001

Links to Other Sites
Angela Hewitt
The website for internationally acclaimed pianist Angela Hewitt. See her biography, extensive discography, tour schedule, and much more.

Angela Hewitt
This Hyperion Records website features a profile and discography of Angela Hewitt. Also features music clips and sleeve notes.

Piano Plus
The official website for the Piano Six Foundation, a non-profit organization that brought outstanding musicians to small communities across the country.

JWR International Directory of Fine Arts & Film
A global directory of prominent personalities and organizations involved with show business and the fine arts. Also offers film and stage reviews, interviews, and much more. Check the menu on the left side of the page to search for specific topics of interest. Part of the "James Wegg Review" website.