Lana Bode
Lana is a pianist. She lives in southeast London where she is surrounded by green spaces with hilltop views of the city centre. She is a woefully neglectful mother to a small collection of patient and resilient houseplants. She dreams of one day getting a puppy which she promises to look after properly (though the houseplants are sceptical about this plan). When she isn’t making music, Lana enjoys watching arthouse films, reading novels, and drinking cocktails with friends.
Lana is inspired by photography and architecture and is particularly interested in the way these art forms play with light and shade. Beside her piano, she has two beautiful black-and-white photos from the Maison de la Photographie in Marrakech. These images inspire her to play with texture, space and silence in her pianism. She wants her work to feel inclusive, inviting, engaging and hopeful.
Lana’s performances have been described as ‘expertly calibrated’ (BBC Music Magazine) and ‘deeply examined’ (Gramophone). Her debut album I and Silence: Women’s Voices in American Song with mezzo-soprano Marta Fontanals-Simmons won Presto Classical’s Editor’s Choice award. She regularly performs on BBC Radio 3, and has also played live for Woman’s Hour and The Verb. Lana’s recital career has featured appearances at Aldeburgh Festival, Barbican Hall, Kings Place, Purcell Room, Snape Proms and Wigmore Hall. She is a leading interpreter of contemporary music and an innovative cross-arts programmer. She performs as a solo pianist and in collaboration with artists including Alessandro Fisher, Robert Murray, Mark Padmore, Lucy Schaufer and James Turnbull. She is also pianist for the Tailleferre Ensemble. A champion of new music, Lana has commissioned works by Charlotte Bray, Richard Barnard and Jeremy Thurlow. She has also collaborated with Harrison Birtwistle, Jonathan Dove, Zoë Martlew, Mark-Anthony Turnage and Judith Weir. Lana is co-founder and Artistic Director of the Virginia Woolf & Music concert project, and a member of faculty at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.
