Paul Roberts
Artistic Director
'Paul Roberts’ excellence as a writer on music is matched by his superb talents as a pianist. I know of no other figure in the musical world who combines so impressively the roles of scholar and performer.' Richard Goode
Paul Roberts has just been appointed Series Editor for a new project: Short Guides to the Piano Repertoire, 'books for pianists by pianists,' for the publisher Bloomsbury. He is currently writing the first in the series, Impressionism: Debussy and Ravel, projected publication date Spring 2026. His Reading Franz Liszt: Revealing the Poetry Behind the Music, was published in 2023 to wide critical acclaim:
'Dazzling and richly informed, a book as deeply human as it is far reaching.' (Bryce Morrison, International Piano).
'Perceptive and nobly written.' Alfred Brendel
Charles Owen
Course 1
A beautifully executed programme … the disc as a whole is really beautifully put together and it’s really lovely, it makes you feel good when you’re listening to it - Record Review, BBC Radio 3, on Owen's new disc The Young Schumann
Charles Owen has an international career performing a wide-ranging repertoire to outstanding critical acclaim. He appears at many major UK venues such as Wigmore Hall, Bridgewater Hall, The Sage & Kings Place. Internationally, he has performed at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall in New York, the Brahms Saal in Vienna’s Musikverein, Paris Musée d’Orsay, Amsterdam Concertgebouw and the Moscow Conservatoire. He has an extensive recording list, ranging from Bach (complete Partitas) to Brahms, Janacek, Poulenc, and Liszt. He has just released a Schumann disc, The Young Schumann.
Charles has been a hugely valued presence at Paul Roberts' summer school – 2025 will be his 13th year on the courses.
Stefan Bojsten
Course 2
Stefan Bojsten is among the best known pianists in Sweden, and has long been an outstanding figure at the Kungliga Musikhögskolan (Royal College of Music) in Stockholm. He has appeared as a soloist with most Swedish orchestras and performed across Scandinavia, Europe, Asia and North America. He has recorded albums with many major classical labels, including Polar, Caprice, Bis, Naxos, Fermat, Artemis, MAP, recut, Musica Sveciae and Opus 3.
Stefan is currently producer and chairman of the recital series Piano Visions in Stockholm, characterised by its combination of innovative and traditional programming, and which highlights the finest pianists of Sweden and Europe and outreach projects for children. Stefan has been a welcome teacher and recitalist at Paul Roberts’ summer school for many years since its earlier period at Castelfranc in 2001.
https://www.pianovisions.se/in-english/
https://www.stefanbojsten.com/
Janneke Brits
Course 3
Graduate of the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York and the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London
As chamber pianist Janneke has taken part in concert series and festivals in the US and throughout Europe, highlights being the International Master Classes at Prussia Cove, the Lagrasse Piano Festival in France, the Blair Atholl Showcase in Scotland. She has premiered for BBC Radio 3 works by Hans Werner Henze, Tristan Murail and Peter Eotvos, broadcast from the Barbican Hall, London, and LSO St Luke's.
As winner of the Early Music Prize at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, she performed several Mozart Concertos on fortepiano with the Academy Beckett ensemble and gave recitals on rare instruments at the Cobbe Collection in Hatchlands, Surrey.
Janneke's contribution to Music at Chateau d'Aix over the years has been inestimable, above all in the field of baroque keyboard music, to which she brings her superb understanding of harpsichord style and technique into a creatively free alignment with the modern piano. Read more about Janneke Brits
Diane Baxter
Course 3
Diane Baxter, pianist, educator and consultant, is the editor of Oregon Musician. She recently retired as Professor of Music at Western Oregon University where she received the Faculty Honors Award for Outstanding Creativity and the Pastega Award for Excellence in Teaching. Diane taught piano and courses in Ethnomusicology, Performance Anxiety and Research Methods. Diane performs and adjudicates far and wide. “The Science of Artistry: The Fourth String” was published in Clavier Companion in Nov/Dec 2013. Diane’s article, “Ethnomusicology and Alchemy” was published in the April/May 2020 edition of American Music Teacher. Diane began Piano at Tigh na Breac in 2018, an annual workshop on the shores of Loch Etive in the Scottish Highlands. The focus is on performance success and doing our best when it matters most.
Diane has been a regular participant at the summer school in France since 2012, both as a performer in the master classes and recently as a compassionate and wise teacher and counsellor of the intermediate class.
James Kreiling
Course 2
James Kreiling is a pianist, writer, teacher and transcriber based in London. His solo career has focused on music of the early 20th century, in particular the piano works of Scriabin. His doctoral thesis, completed at the Guildhall School of Music, focused on the interaction of research, analysis, and performance practice in the interpretation of Scriabin’s late piano sonatas. He has published articles and book chapters relating to Scriabin performance and has recorded two discs encompassing the composer’s complete late piano music, which was released by Odradek in 2018 to great critical acclaim, including a five star review in BBC Music Magazine.
Determined to bring Scriabin’s often misunderstood work to a wider public, he has experimented with presenting music in unusual formats and locations including concerts which mix classical piano with other performance arts - poetry, drama and dance, folk and jazz. James is also Assistant Artistic Director of the En Blanc et Noir piano festival in the French village of Lagrasse which presents a week of concerts each summer under the medieval covered market place.
He performs regularly with cellist Luba Ulybysheva. The duo's debut double recording which explores lesser-known 20th century music for cello and piano was released in 2023 on the Odradek label.
Read more about James Kreiling
Lefki Karpodini constitutes one more link in the long chain of fine female pianists of our country. After her return from abroad, her recitals have been notable for their combination of assured technique and emotional depth. Athinorama Magazine, Greece
Lefki Karpodini
Course 1
Lefki Karpodini has performed in most European countries, Israel, Canada, America and the Barbados islands. Her festival appearances include Mecklenburg Vorpommern, Banff, Cully Classique, Heraklion Piano Festival, Pharos Trust, and Aegina. After graduating from the Athens Conservatory she continued her studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London (Bmus, Mmus, PGDip, PACC) and at the Ensemble Modern IEMA Academy in Frankfurt.
Currently Lefki teaches at the Athens Conservatory and the Athenaeum Conservatory. She is a devoted piano pedagogue with teaching experience of over 25 years; she also composes, and recently she has pursued an old dream, taking jazz piano lessons from Greek jazz pianist and composer Dimitris Kalantzis.
We are delighted to welcome Lefki Karpodini for the first time to Music at Chateau d'Aix.
See also www.lefkikarpodini.com and listen to one of her compositions