Concert Pianist

“A haunting claim for intimacy…to anyone who warms to introspection presented with an enviable taste and clarity, this recital is outstanding.”

Gramophone

Biography


After thirty years as a concert pianist and accompanist, Richard Saxel enjoys a reputation as one of the most engaging musicians of his generation. He was educated at Churcher’s College, the University of York, and the Royal Academy of Music, and has performed worldwide at major festivals including those in Abu Dhabi, Istanbul, Lucerne, Gozo, La Roque-D'Anthéron, Buenos Aires, Cheltenham and Dartington, as well as at many of the UK’s leading venues. He won the National Federation of Music Societies Making Music Award, and has recorded as a soloist for Quartz records, and as a chamber musician for Oboe Classics and the ABRSM. He is an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, who recognised his significant contribution to the music profession, and is also a Steinway Artist. Richard remains strongly committed to music education; he adjudicates regularly for festivals and competitions, and is Director of Music at Cranleigh School in Surrey, where he has taught for twenty five years.

Concerts - Spring / Summer 2025

  • St. Martin-in-the-Fields, London

    Friday 30th May, 1pm

    with Hilary Cronin (soprano)

    Songs by Barber, Copland, Debussy, Mahler & Strauss

  • Cranleigh School

    Weds 18th June, 7.30pm

    with Ruth Williams (flute)

    Tom Hollister (drums)

    & bass (tbc)

    Claude Bolling - Suite for Flute & Jazz Trio

  • image coming soon

    Cranleigh Arts Centre

    Tuesday July 8th, 1pm

    with Jenny Janse (cello)

    Rosie Taylor (clarinet)

    Trios by Archduke Rudolph of Austria, Beethoven, Bruch & Louise Farrenc

Press Quotes

‘Saxel’s playing is outstandingly, unfailingly musical, and wholly sympathetic to all three composers…I found it a genuine pleasure to listen to this disc, which I recommend most keenly’.

International Record Review

‘Oboe, horn and piano is a rare but oddly beguiling blend of timbres…but it can be richly rewarding, as demonstrated here by Polmear, Stirling and Saxel’.

The Independent

‘Extraordinary to behold. Six pairs of eyes, watching, listening, timing each move to etc split second…breathtaking’.

(Review of Piano Circus at the QEH)

The Times

Recordings