Behind South London Harpsichord Academy
MASUMI YAMAMOTO, HARPSICHORDIST | FOUNDER
Masumi is currently a Professor of Basso Continuo at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, and Teacher of Harpsichord at two schools in London - St. Paul's Girls' School in Hammersmith, and James Allen's Girls' School in Dulwich. She has been involved in many events promoting the harpsichord to curious pianists, and is a regular tutor at the English Camerata International Music Summer School. She was on the panel of judges for the Broadwood Horniman Harpsichord Competition held in 2017.
As a performer, Masumi has appeared on the concert platform as continuo player for many period-instrument ensembles, including the Gabrieli Consort & Players, the Academy of Ancient Music, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and The English Concert, as well as modern-instrument orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Halle Orchestra and the Royal Northern Sinfonia. She was a prize winner at the International Harpsichord Competition in Bruges and became the first Japanese prize-winner in 25 years.
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Masumi has given solo recitals at the London Handel Festival, Edinburgh Fringe Festival and most recently King’s Lynn Festival. Her discography includes a 2020 recording “Handel: Works for Viola da Gamba and Harpsichord” from First Hand Records with viola da gamba player Ibrahim Aziz.
In October 2023, Masumi established the London Obbligato Collective which aims to bring into focus chamber music with a written-out harpsichord part. During the 17th and 18th centuries, the harpsichord in ensembles was normally used as a continuo instrument, in which the harpsichordist shared the bassline with the cello (or bassoon) and the right hand part was made-up by the player according to the numbers underneath the bassline (i.e. figured bass). In the repertoire focused by the London Obbligato Collective, every note in the harpsichord part is written by the composer. There are many charming and attractive pieces that fall into this category but are rarely played, which the ensemble hopes to change.
www.londonobbligatocollective.com
Through her work with the South London Harpsichord Academy, Masumi hopes to help people discover the beautiful harpsichord and plans to launch some online courses in 2024.