Pianists Not Practicing

Chloe Weston

Welcome to Pianists Not Practicing — A biweekly show that catches classical pianists out in the wild - outside of the practice room (!!) - and spills all the juicy details about their lives. We dive into candid, unfiltered conversations with pianists at all stages of their careers—from seasoned pros to fresh-faced grads. OK fine, we’ll talk about practicing — let’s be real — but we’ll also get into everything else: the creative process, career twists and turns, mindset, body care, and all the behind-the-scenes realities of being a musician. So, whether you’re looking for inspiration, solidarity, or you just wanna hang out in the practice room hallway, talk shit, and avoid practice with us — you’re in the right place. We’re all in this together. Hosted by Canadian classical pianist, Chloe Weston You can keep up with Pianists Not Practicing on Instagram @ChloeWestonPianist and YouTube @ChloeWestonPianist

  1. PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in Barcelona…with ALBA VENTURA

    FEB 19

    PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in Barcelona…with ALBA VENTURA

    Primera Parte Meet the “heir to the great legacy of the Spanish piano school”, Alba Ventura. Born in Barcelona, Alba is a passionate, nuanced performer who made her solo debut at the age of thirteen performing Mozart’s “Jeunehomme” piano concerto with the Cadaqués Orchestra and Sir N Marriner. She began her studies at the Académia Marshall, founded by Enrique Granados, and her mentors include Carlotta Garriga, Alicia De Larrocha, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Dimitri Bashkirov and Irina Zaritskaya. Her discography includes a wide range of repertoire - everything from Mozart to Rachmaninoff to Rautavaara, and of course includes the Spanish giants: Granados, Albeniz and Mompou. We caught up with Alba in her practice studio in Barcelona where she shared her depth of experience and wisdom with us - sharing her journey as a concert pianist, and how she finds balance as a professor, mother, chamber musician, recording artist and performer. In this convo, we dive into her methods of preparing music, how she practices, the power of mental rehearsal and visualization, and the importance of following your own voice and strengths as you make your way on your own artistic path. Ultimately, her message is to enjoy the process in all of its forms - from your practice alone at the instrument, to the ebbs and flow of career milestones, and not to be afraid to continually refine as you go. This conversation is full of light and joy and love for music. I can’t wait for you to hear it and to learn from this incredible artist! Connect with Alba here: www.albaventura.com Follow Alba on instagram @albaclassics Listen to her new album IBERIA here! ✨ Stay connected with Pianists Not Practicing: Instagram — @ChloeWestonPianist YouTube — @ChloeWestonPianist 🎶 Intro/Outro Music: Ankur Mukhopadhyay — @ankurrmm 🎙️ Produced by: phMediaStudio, LLC

    38 min
  2. PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in Houston…with JAMES PALMER

    FEB 5

    PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in Houston…with JAMES PALMER

    Described as “one of those artists who can make classical music such great fun” (Sedona Red Rock News), Dr. James Palmer is an American pianist who is equally at home as a soloist, collaborator, presenter, and teacher. He is a dynamic musician, and just a lovely human being, currently on faculty at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University in Houston, Texas. This conversation is full of inspiration and ideas - James is such a creative person, who is always dreaming up new concepts and ideas of how to share the music he loves with audiences. We discuss how he has grown his performing career (from word of mouth to cold emailing!), the power of going to concerts and being inspired by others to create your next new idea, his obsession with Scriabin and how it has manifested into an incredible youtube series, and his brand new shiny concert series that he will be launching this fall in Houston! He shares his perspective on how he has searched for his own artistic voice through integrating all of the different parts of himself, and how we can all follow our curiosity and joy to find the career of our dreams. Connect with James here: www.jamespalmerpiano.com Follow James on instagram @jamespalmerpiano ✨ Stay connected with Pianists Not Practicing: Instagram — @ChloeWestonPianist YouTube — @ChloeWestonPianist 🎶 Intro/Outro Music: Ankur Mukhopadhyay — @ankurrmm 🎙️ Produced by: phMediaStudio, LLC

    1h 10m
  3. PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in New Brunswick…with KATHERINE DOWLING

    JAN 8

    PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in New Brunswick…with KATHERINE DOWLING

    Described by her listeners as mesmerizing and otherworldly, Canadian pianist Katherine Dowling thrives on the intimacy of live performance - always playing from memory so that the music is fully internalized. She loves to discover sounds that she has never heard nor imagined before, to explore beauty that isn’t nice or pretty. In this convo we discuss the flexibility and synchronicity involved in artistic careers and how Katherine has navigated delightfully unexpected opportunities on her artistic path. She is a champion of new music, which is clearly displayed through her latest album, titled Awake and Dreaming, which features music by Canadian composer Alice Ping Yee Ho. Katherine shares with us how she approaches welcoming audiences into the world of new music, and her mission to cultivate demand for live music experiences and continue to offer the precious opportunity for stillness and communion through live performance in an increasingly digitized world. Listen to Katherine’s album Awake and Dreaming Katherine’s recording of Alice Ping Yee Ho’s Aeon is featured in this episode Learn more about Katherine here: www.katherinedowling.com Follow Katherine on instagram @katherinedowlingpiano ✨ Stay connected with Pianists Not Practicing: Instagram — @ChloeWestonPianist YouTube — @ChloeWestonPianist 🎶 Intro/Outro Music: Ankur Mukhopadhyay — @ankurrmm 🎙️ Produced by: phMediaStudio, LLC

    54 min
  4. PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in Houston…with ELIZABETH NEWKIRK part one

    11/27/2025

    PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in Houston…with ELIZABETH NEWKIRK part one

    Elizabeth Newkirk is an American classical pianist, writer, and curator. She specializes in music of the early 20th century, and her scholarship explores the foundations of culture, convention, and archetypes. As a passionate humanist, her curations and performances seek to put the humanities into practice. This convo explores her work as an artist and writer, her album THE AMERICANIST, and her concert series THE ARCHETYPE OF MODERN MAN. Her insatiable curiosity has led her from classical piano, to poetry, literature, critical commentary, and back again. We dive into the deep philosophical questions that connect our art as classical musicians to poetry, literature, and the nature of the universal human experience and how these themes interact with her work as a performer and professor. Why come to a classical music concert? What can we offer? How do we introduce new audiences to the music we love?  Stay tuned to find out!  You can listen to Elizabeth’s album here: the Americanist by Elizabeth Newkirk on Apple Music Classical And read her essay THE AMERICANIST here: https://issuu.com/me7884/docs/art_style_magazine_volume_12_issue_12_setem You can learn more about Elizabeth here: www.elizabethnewkirk.com You can follow Elizabeth on instagram @eliznewkirk ✨ Stay connected with Pianists Not Practicing: Instagram — @ChloeWestonPianist YouTube — @ChloeWestonPianist 🎶 Intro/Outro Music: Ankur Mukhopadhyay — @ankurrmm 🎙️ Produced by: phMediaStudio, LLC

    48 min
  5. PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in Calgary still.. with MARK LIMACHER

    10/30/2025

    PIANISTS NOT PRACTICING…in Calgary still.. with MARK LIMACHER

    We’re back with Mark to recap the premiere of his piano concerto RUMINATIONS just hours after walking offstage! If you haven’t heard episode 5 yet go ahead and check that out to hear all about the creation of this project and how it came to be!  In this episode, we chat about the big premiere, the experience of performing music by living composers vs music of the established canon, performing a piano concerto with no conductor (👀) and the joy of playing music by your friends with your friends! 💕 You can watch the premiere of RUMINATIONS here!: https://youtu.be/Fpd4wQXRJjU?si=FZ3Fay0tPriEfyZY Thank you to Graham Lessard, audio engineer and Vicki Van Chau & Philip Bowen, videographers, for capturing the premiere so beautifully in our recording!  This is such a meaningful, dream-come-true project for us that would not be possible without support from the Ontario Arts Council, the Canada Council for the Arts, Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Calgary Arts Development and the City of Calgary and the collaboration with the incredible artists of Kensington Sinfonia and the Calgary Philharmonic listed here: Violin Genevieve Micheletti  Eric Auerbach Isaac Willocks Erin Burkholder Diane Lane Sora Kim Viola Liza Scriggins Lowry Patricia Higgins Ethan Mung Cello Andrea Case  Kathleen de Caen Takumi Rodgers Bass Matthew Heller Flute Emily Pernambucq Clarinet Cedric Blary Horn Peter Clark Trumpet Adam Zinatelli Percussion Chris Sies You can follow Mark @mark.limacher on instagram ✨ Stay connected with Pianists Not Practicing: Instagram — @ChloeWestonPianist YouTube — @ChloeWestonPianist 🎶 Intro/Outro Music: Ankur Mukhopadhyay — @ankurrmm 🎙️ Produced by: phMediaStudio, LLC

    31 min

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
5 Ratings

About

Welcome to Pianists Not Practicing — A biweekly show that catches classical pianists out in the wild - outside of the practice room (!!) - and spills all the juicy details about their lives. We dive into candid, unfiltered conversations with pianists at all stages of their careers—from seasoned pros to fresh-faced grads. OK fine, we’ll talk about practicing — let’s be real — but we’ll also get into everything else: the creative process, career twists and turns, mindset, body care, and all the behind-the-scenes realities of being a musician. So, whether you’re looking for inspiration, solidarity, or you just wanna hang out in the practice room hallway, talk shit, and avoid practice with us — you’re in the right place. We’re all in this together. Hosted by Canadian classical pianist, Chloe Weston You can keep up with Pianists Not Practicing on Instagram @ChloeWestonPianist and YouTube @ChloeWestonPianist