Pianist Ben Cruchley’s studies took him from Toronto to Montréal to Italy and Berlin; now his career is bringing him back to the city for a concert on February 12. He’ll be performing a program of Bach and Rachmaninoff at Toronto’s Heliconian Hall.

Ben began his musical training at Toronto’s Glenn Gould School, followed by studies at the Université de Montréal, and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome. He’s since relocated to Berlin, where he’s now based.

A prize-winner at the Beethoven Competition in Bonn in 2015 and the Grieg Competition in Bergen in 2016, he subsequently launched a performing career that has included performances at Berlin’s Konzerthaus, Bonn Beethovenfest, Palermo Classica, Kunstverein München, Filarmonica Banatul in Timisoara — and Toronto’s Koerner Hall.

The Concert: Dies Irae / Day Of Wrath

Bach and Rachmaninoff — the two composers are separated by centuries and musical styles, but Ben finds a commonality in their inspiration.

As Cruchley says in his notes, the Dies Irae is a Gregorian chant that has become “one of the central codes the language of classical music”. The Latin poem, characterized by its strong rhythms, describes the Last Judgment, and its original form is used in the Catholic Funeral Mass. As he points out, it’s been the inspiration for so many composers over centuries of music.

He’s chosen two of them for the concert, including Bach’s Partita in D major BMW 828, and Rachmaninoff’s 1st Sonata in D minor. The latter piece’s third movement, the Allegro motto, quotes from the Dies irae. Rachmaninoff’s original inspiration for the work was Goethe’s Faust, and the reference is on point.

Beethoven: Fantasia Op.77 (Ben Cruchley, piano) Recorded live at the International Telekom Beethoven Competition; Dec. 5, 2015 Bonn, Germany, where Ben placed 2nd:

We asked Ben a few questions about his career and the concert.

Pianist Ben Cruchley: Q&A

How did you come to study in Italy?

I had been studying in Montréal for 3 years, was very happy there, and was considering to pursue a Music doctorate with my teacher (Dang Thai Son). He encouraged me, however, to investigate possibilities in Europe. I booked a 4-week trip that began with an audition at the Accademia Santa Cecilia in Rome, where Benedetto Lupo teaches.

My plan was to not be accepted into Rome, and then to make my way north to Berlin via Switzerland, meeting and playing for a number of piano teachers along the way. As it turns out, I was accepted, and had to cancel the rest of my plans — in Italy, school begins literally the day following the auditions, so I found myself suddenly very busy finding an apartment while closing my Montréal chapter from abroad.

What drew you later to Berlin? It sounds like you found it a creatively rich environment.

I already had some friends living here, who made me feel welcome even before I moved there following my studies in Rome. For artists and perhaps especially for musicians, Germany is a relatively comfortable place, but there is always a flip side to the coin. The rich creative environment rests on a strong foundation of amateur music making and appreciation. In Berlin alone, there are around 3,000 choirs, for example.

What this also means is a slightly more conservative cultural orientation generally, at least compared to what I remember from my upbringing in Toronto. The church, for example, plays a leading role in involving the general population in music making (and much more).

On top of this, there is the dimension of national cultural pride, another double-edged sword. I notice more and more to what extent Germany is oriented culturally towards its past; even in the more experimental or avant-garde scenes you sometimes catch a whiff of nostalgic decadence.

On gloomier days, I have the sense that Europe is heading towards a precarious situation, driven among other things by a xenophobic anxieties. It’s not such a stretch to think that this increased funding is part of what makes it a relatively comfortable place for artists, including for ex-pats like me.

Luckily, there is also a strong tradition of self-reflectivity and a vigilant, critical look at culture, that engages with these tendencies; I am constantly encountering stimulating thinkers and artists who embody this spirit.

So after 6 years, my feeling about Berlin is very mixed, but certainly never boring.

You’ve added conducting to your musical practice — what is your vision as a conductor? How would you describe the role — is it simply another way of performing/expressing music?

Like most pianists, I was constantly trained to “think orchestrally”, “think like a conductor”, and it’s been a great experience turning that from theory into practice. As a pianist, one is repeatedly made aware of the distinction between the material, sonic aspect of music, and the way music exists as an idea, as a representation of something, embodied through an instrument.

Every instrument, including an orchestra or a choir, has its own needs, its own way of sounding good, which has to be understood and respected, but beyond this, my ideal for a performance of classical music is to create experiences (be it at the emotional, imaginative, or intellectual level) that take us beyond what we are experiencing [purely] as sound, and outside of material reality in the larger sense. This is what I’m trying to accomplish, whether in front of a keyboard, a choir or an ensemble.

For the upcoming concert, you’ve chosen works revolving around a concept. Is that your usual practice, i.e. your programs delve into the works beyond the music itself?

I like to find some focus to the program, mostly for the sake of the audience, who is often unfamiliar with the repertoire and therefore appreciative of a clear point of entry into it. Despite what is said about the universality of the language of music, classical music is written with its own conventions, and, in my opinion, the more familiarity someone has with this language, the richer their listening experience will be.

I get to spend months with these pieces, thinking about them, noticing hidden details and interesting affinities, and I find that many of these discoveries are interesting for an audience as well. So I try to find some specific theme that focuses these topics and insights, and about which I can talk to an audience in the space of a few minutes.

Is there a particular era of music that you are drawn to? You seem to enjoy new music as well as the traditional repertoire.

I have very eclectic tastes, and at the same time and very ignorant of so much that is out there. In nearly every genre I have my favourite artists and styles. I think we are simply so spoiled, by all the creativity available to us; and learning to appreciate something better is one of the most important ways to expand one’s horizons (going as it does in the opposite, easier direction of criticising something). But I wish I spent more time getting to know the huge amount of new music that is out there.

What projects do you have in progress?

Recently I began meeting with a Cameroonian percussionist, Calvin Yug, to experiment with the possibility of classical music and Traditional Bantu music coming together in dialogue. This is a very exciting and stimulating project for me, and demanding, as there are very few models on which to base our work — not without good reasons.

More practically speaking, it has meant finding ways to detach the language of classical music from its manifestation in fixed, untouchable musical masterpieces, and treat it is a language that is capable of combining more spontaneously with other musical languages. Juxtaposing the two traditions, which represent such different social practices and attitudes toward music (before one even mentions the relation between these cultures historically), helped me to understand a bit better how classical music resonates with us, and how it is consumed. We had our first performance in September, and I’m excited to see this project grow.

Other plans for 2024: I lead Berlin’s only mixed-voice LGBTQ+ choir, with whom we are planning performances this summer in areas where the political far-right is strong, in anticipation of regional elections.

Also: hopefully, a solo recording.

Toronto Concert Details

The show takes place at Heliconian Hall of February 12, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Tickets are PWYC ($25 suggested)

More information, and to reserve tickets to the show, [HERE].

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Anya Wassenberg

Anya Wassenberg is a Toronto City Editor at Ludwig Van. She is an experienced freelance writer, blogger and writing instructor.