Recordings
Chopin: Etudes
“Clean-lined, thrilling Chopin from the Australian virtuoso.”
Internationally acclaimed Australian-British pianist Jayson Gillham turns his artistry to the Etudes of Chopin: music written to take pianists to the extremes of virtuosity while enchanting listeners with their beauty, elegance and lyricism.
On this landmark album, Gillham performs all 27 of these brilliant and captivating pieces, plus the stirring and passionate Polonaise in A-flat major, Op. 53 ‘Heroic’.
Chopin’s genius as both composer and pianist earned him the title poet of the piano: his touch brought the instrument to new dimensions of expressiveness. Before Chopin, etudes – the French term means study – were little more than exercises; in his hands, they took flight into new realms of creativity and delight.
For Jayson Gillham, hailed by Gramophone as a “story-teller” and described by Limelight as “the ideal romantic”, Chopin’s music is a natural fit, demanding both breathtaking technical skill and emotional sensitivity.
“The Chopin Etudes are a pinnacle of the piano repertoire—not just technically, but emotionally. Each one is a miniature world, and recording them has been a deeply personal journey. I wanted to bring out the poetry and drama in these works, not just the virtuosity,” says Gillham.
“This music reminds us that artistry is about communication — connecting listeners to the full spectrum of human feeling. That’s why I keep returning to Chopin: every time, he teaches me something new about empathy and beauty.”
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Romantic Bach
A love letter to Bach from a who’s who of the great pianists and pianist-composers – Rachmaninoff, Percy Grainger, Hess, Busoni, Siloti and Petri.
“There is not a single bar in the 19 tracks that doesn’t sound lovely. He is a storyteller… Many of these performances must bear comparison with famous recordings of the past by the likes of Rachmaninoff, Myra Hess and Dinu Lipatti. Gillham comes up trumps every time.”
— Jeremy Nicholas, Gramophone Magazine
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Medtner/Rachmaninoff Concertos
The great pianist-composer Sergei Rachmaninoff was an admirer of Nikolai Medtner, a rather overlooked composer these days.
“The young Australian pianist is the most persuasive of advocates for Medtner's neglected First Concerto, his bright timbre and judicious use of rubato keeping the lush Romanticism of the first movement just on the right side of sentimentality and pointing up the almost jazzy syncopations of the finale.”
— Katherine Cooper, Presto Music (Editor’s Choice)
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Beethoven Concerto No. 4 – SSO/Ashkenazy
“Gillham’s playing is smooth, clear and polished and in the first movement he focused on the melodic line and legato playing to produce a dreamy effect”
— Peter McCallum, Sydney Morning Herald
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Debut Album: Bach | Schubert | Chopin
“I am a musician because I believe in the power of music – to heal, to connect us to our emotions, indeed to foster kindness and compassion. Music is my greatest teacher and its greatest lesson is empathy. It reaches us on a level deeper than language and conscious thought and perhaps that is why it touches us so profoundly.”
– Jayson Gillham
Bach | Schubert | Chopin presents music of unparalleled beauty, vitality and joy by three masters of keyboard writing. The works highlight different aspects of Jayson’s superb musicianship.
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Beethoven: The Piano Concertos
Recorded Live in concert in June 2019 and released in March 2020, Jayson’s recording of the complete Beethoven piano concertos was nominated for Best Classical Album in both the 2020 ARIA awards and the 2020 AIR (Independent) awards.
Released on ABC Classic and featuring the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra with conductor Nicholas Carter, it marks the first time in twenty years that the cycle has been recorded with an Australian pianist, conductor and orchestra.
“Pin sharp playing and magical intimacy make for an incredible live set”
—iTunes Editor
“…a young artist meeting a major task with a full flush of fresh inspiration…There is not a single moment when these live recordings lose their spell on this terrific three-disc set”
—Graham Strahle, The Weekend Australian
