Total Immersion

Some people touch your heartstrings and make you love them without even trying. It's a vulnerability sometimes, an inner beauty that is natural and childlike regardless of how old they are, or how famous. Daniil Trifanov is one such, and to hear and see him play the piano at the Wigmore Hall last night was like falling in love and winning the lottery. OK, not quite the lottery as I still had to get the train home, but it was close. He's not really vulnerable, but confident and professional about his playing. But with his wonky collar and tie dangling down way past his waistband he looked like an awkward teenager as he received applause. Indeed he seemed surprised to see us all there when he stood up from his stool, so engrossed was he in the music. His playing is incredible, not showy but following a true inner direction that he hears and feels and somehow manages to convey intact to ordinary mortals. Another absolute winner from the Wigmore.

Daniil Trifanov

I went to London and came back on the wrong trains but nobody noticed and I wasn't challenged. Everybody was coughing and sneezing without putting their hands or hankies to their mouths, and I feared the worst, but so far my First Defence nasal spray seems to be offering some protection. I had a long drive back from the Essex station I'd parked at, the only way to reach home without leaving London at 9pm, but at that time in the early hours of the morning the roads were quite empty. My mind wasn't though: it was filled with the music of the night, and the memory of that incredible young man who undoubtedly has a direct line to something real and truthful that fills him with inspiration. Lucky him.