6 leading pianists help celebrate Harrison Parrott's 50th anniversary in London

International Classical Music Agency HarrisonParrott celebrated their 50th anniversary at London's Southbank Centre yesterday.

Established in 1969 by Jasper Parrott and Terry Harrison, HarrisonParrott presented a day of sold-out concerts, pop-up performances and talks reflected HarrisonParrott’s role in nurturing and building careers for its artists, as well as leading the industry in issues concerning championing female conductors, access to music education and careers in the industry for people currently underrepresented.

Jasper Parrott, Chairman of HarrisonParrott, said: “Our day of performances and talks is not just a way of looking back over the past 50 years, but more importantly it’s a day of celebrating what HarrisonParrott is today and our future. The day encapsulates much of what HarrisonParrott represents, with artists who have been with us from the beginning to our very latest signings; from established great repertoire to new commissions and a wide variety of musical styles. The arts are crucial to a civilised society and while we continue to live in uncertain times, HarrisonParrott’s commitment to nurturing and presenting excellence is stronger than ever.”

Three concerts anchored the day of activities across Southbank Centre. The first concert, ‘Brahms, Chopin, Debussy’ in the Queen Elizabeth Hall featured a programme from six HarrisonParrott artists including Jess Gillam (saxophone), István Várdai (cello), Alice Sara Ott (piano) and Andreas Scholl (counter-tenor).

The day culminated in a gala concert in Royal Festival Hall, ‘One Orchestra, Four Great Conductors’ featuring Vladimir Ashkenazy, who has been with the company since its founding, and one of its most recent signings Elim Chan as well as Paavo Järvi and Santtu-Matias Rouvali. They conducted Philharmonia Orchestra in a programme ranging over four centuries with works by Schubert, Richard Strauss, Tchaikovsky and Elgar.

Picture credit: Paul Cochrane