Callum Smart & Richard Uttley

About Callum and Richard…

Callum Smart – Violin

Callum is quickly developing an international reputation as one of Britain’s finest young violinists. He is celebrated for the sincerity of his singing line, combining “brilliant technique with the confidence to take risks” (Bachtrack) and his “utterly convincing” interpretations (BBC Music Magazine).

Recognised as a rising star since winning the BBC Young Musician strings category and being the top European prize-winner at the Menuhin Competition in 2010, Smart now enjoys concert appearances with the UK’s leading orchestras, including re-invitations to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and the Philharmonia Orchestra.

This season Callum makes his full debut with the Hallé Orchestra, performing Saint Saëns Concerto no 3, as well as performances of Elgar, Glazunov, Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn, Korngold and Sibelius. It sees the return of a full recital schedule with pianist Richard Uttley and a series of trio concerts with horn player Ben Goldscheider.

Previous season highlights include his debut with the BBC Philharmonic performing the Berg Concerto, and his North American debut with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, European Union Chamber Orchestra and Polish Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra, covering a range of concerto repertoire from Bach and Beethoven to Sibelius, Brahms, Britten, Prokofiev, Elgar and Weill.

As a recitalist, Smart performs at some of the world’s most prestigious venues including London’s Wigmore Hall, the Konzerthaus Berlin and the Auditorium du Louvre in Paris, and at a number of European festivals including the Cheltenham Festival, Dvorak Festival in Prague, Menuhin Festival and the Malmo International String Festival.

Continuing his advocacy for new music, Smart worked with composer George Benjamin to perform his Three Pieces for solo violin at both the Wigmore Hall and the Royal Northern College of Music. He also performed Kaija Saariaho’s Nocturne for solo violin at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester.

Now with 3 recital discs to his name, in 2020 he released Transatlantic, which was a top 30 album on the UK classical charts and earned Smart features as Classic FM and Scala Artist of the Week.

Callum plays on a c.1730-35 violin by Carlo Bergonzi.

Callum has a Website

Richard Uttley – Piano

Richard has been recognised for his “musical intelligence and pristine facility” (International Record Review), “amazing decisiveness”, and “tumultuous performance” (Ivan Hewett, The Daily Telegraph).

He studied at Clare College, Cambridge, graduating with a double first in Music, and then at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama with Martin Roscoe. He won the British Contemporary Piano Competition in 2006 and the Young Classical Artists Trust auditions in 2011. He has released three solo recital discs to critical acclaim and made numerous chamber recordings. His playing has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3, BBC World Service, Classic FM, BBC Two, BBC Four and Sky Arts.

Significant recital appearances include Auditorium du Louvre, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Klangspuren Festival (Austria), Konzerthaus Berlin, Modulus Festival (Vancouver), Royal Festival Hall, Sage Gateshead, Wigmore Hall and tours of China and Colombia.

Highlights this season include the Gershwin and John Ireland piano concertos, Open Chamber Music at IMS Prussia Cove, recitals in the Musikverein (Vienna), Elbphilharmonie (Hamburg), BOZAR (Brussels) and Gulbenkian Foundation (Lisbon) with horn player Ben Goldscheider, Wigmore Hall with violist Jordan Bak, and chamber music with composer-clarinettist Mark Simpson and cellist Leonard Elschenbroich at Kings Place.

Richard is a piano professor at the Royal College of Music and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Richard has a Website