Schellhorn was in his element, letting the pedalled chords float and calibrating the interplay between darkness and light with fastidious care.
The Independent (Wigmore Hall debut, May 2008)
His keyboard performances fascinate and enliven the ear and mind.
Fanfare
... not a nuance was left unexpressed, not a silence given less than its due importance, not an emotional pivot-point neglected.
MusicWeb International
Selected as a “Talent to Watch” by BBC Music Magazine, and described as “a rising star” (BBC Radio 3) and “one of Britain’s most exciting young pianists” (Classic FM), Matthew Schellhorn has a growing international career, which in recent seasons has seen recitals in Europe, Ireland, the Far East, and North America.
He has given performances in many major venues throughout the UK, including Wigmore Hall and the Purcell Room at the Southbank Centre. He has performed live numerous times on BBC Radio 3, and in 2005 he was featured on Classic FM’s The Guest List. As a concerto soloist he has worked with numerous conductors.
Matthew Schellhorn’s performances of the music of Olivier Messiaen have been met with superlative critical approval. His acclaimed solo recital at London’s Purcell Room (Southbank Centre) in 2006 confirmed his status as the pre-eminent Messiaen interpreter of his generation in Britain. His new disc with the Soloists of the Philharmonia Orchestra, Messiaen: Chamber Works (Signum Classics SIGCD126) received positive reviews on both sides of the Atlantic, including an ‘AllMusic Classical Editors Favourite’ award.
He has given performances in many major venues throughout the UK, including Wigmore Hall and the Purcell Room at the Southbank Centre. He has performed live numerous times on BBC Radio 3, and in 2005 he was featured on Classic FM’s The Guest List. As a concerto soloist he has worked with numerous conductors.
Matthew Schellhorn’s performances of the music of Olivier Messiaen have been met with superlative critical approval. His acclaimed solo recital at London’s Purcell Room (Southbank Centre) in 2006 confirmed his status as the pre-eminent Messiaen interpreter of his generation in Britain. His new disc with the Soloists of the Philharmonia Orchestra, Messiaen: Chamber Works (Signum Classics SIGCD126) received positive reviews on both sides of the Atlantic, including an ‘AllMusic Classical Editors Favourite’ award.
He is also a prominent performer of new music, with several works written for, or dedicated to, him. Most recently, Matthew Schellhorn commissioned a set of six pieces by different composers to mark the Haydn bicentenary. Matthew Schellhorn also features on Outside, debut album of UK-based Kazakh violinist Aisha Orazbayeva (Nonclassical NONCLSS013).
Recent collaborations include with the Ossian Ensemble (in the newly established Kew Music Festival and the Sounds New Festival in Canterbury) and with the RTÉ Vanbrugh Quartet, bassist Malachy Robinson and saxophonist Cathal Roche.
Forthcoming plans include commissions from Gráinne Mulvey and Nicola LeFanu, and collaborations with lyric soprano Michelle Latour and violinist Aisha Orazbayeva. Future CD releases include discs of chamber works by Patrick Nunn and of Stations by Irish composer Ian Wilson.
