ROBIN OSBORNE

I have been a pupil of Lukasz, as an adult re-learner, for more than a decade. While I had always enjoyed playing the piano and listening to music, in taking lessons again in later middle age, I had no expectation that I could ever be any good. Rather, I hoped that I could become better, or at least that my playing could, in time, become more musical.  

In this respect, Lukasz has been the ideal tutor. In our weekly lessons, whether in person or, during the lockdowns and more recently, online, he has maintained the same steady approach, combining encouragement, patience and good humour, including tolerance of unintentional dissonance! I have somehow got through a sizeable and varied repertoire of pieces by composers from Bach to Ravel and Debussy.  The tempo of my progress has been more adagio than presto - the marathon rather than, as for Lukasz's younger pupils, the 100-metre sprint - but this has allowed me to appreciate better the value that he provides.

From our very first lesson together, I have noted the innate musicality of Lukasz's playing, even when sight-reading a new piece, and the importance he attaches to the quality of the sound that the pupil makes.  I have learned from him the primacy of producing a tone appropriate to the piece, of always maintaining the melodic line and a sense of direction, of balance and phrasing, of shaping the piece, and using one's ear to guide one to the tone one wants to produce, that one's ear is more important than one's fingers. Through our lessons I have come to realise that I have been the beneficiary of a musical tradition, that Lukasz passes on the practical tips and accumulated wisdom of those who taught him in Poland and in Britain, and of those who taught them, and so on.  

It has been rewarding to have got to know Lukasz as a performer, both as a soloist and in ensembles, especially of Chopin's works. Gaining an insight into the challenges of preparing a piece for performance has also been very useful for me as a learner.  Overall, the acquisition of insight has been the main benefit that Lukasz has given me - insight into oneself and what one can achieve, and insight into the process of interpretation, finding the clues in the musical score that reveal the character of the piece and the intentions of the composer, and the ways to realise them.  A recurring piece of advice in our lessons has been, "This is what [the composer] wants here..." My understanding and appreciation of music generally have been greatly enhanced.

To conclude, Lukasz's teaching has been for me the equivalent of an experienced and sure-footed mountain guide, attentive to the correct path to follow, alert to the risks of departing from it, but ready and able to point out the splendid and varied views en route!