About Matthew
Having studied at the Junior RNCM himself, Matthew returned in September 2023 as a Piano Tutor. He is an accomplished pianist, winning first prize in the Beethoven Junior Intercollegiate Piano Competition and becoming the competition’s first winner from the Junior RNCM. He has also reached the final of the prestigious RNCM Gold Medal Competition.
Matthew studied with John Gough at the RNCM, graduating with a First-Class Honours degree and a Master’s degree with Distinction. He is currently undertaking doctoral research at the RNCM on the twentieth century composer Charles Griffes. His PhD aims to produce the first recording of Griffes’s complete piano works, including world-premiere recordings.
Matthew regularly performs in concert series and recitals across the UK, including appearances for Chester Music Society, Wigan Music Society and Leigh Music Society, as well as at venues such as The Stoller Hall, Wesley Church in Chester, St Ann’s Church in Manchester, and St Barnabas Church in Ealing.
Research
Current and Future Research
Matthew Lau’s research presents the first complete recording of the solo piano works of Charles Tomlinson Griffes (1884-1920). Griffes’s legacy has largely been defined by his most popular compositions, but this limited focus has contributed to a misunderstanding of his broader output and a misplacement of his music within style periods of Western art music. This study aims to challenge the reception and interpretation of Griffes’s piano works by integrating musicological research with a focus on performance.
Through an investigation of Griffes’s performance activities in both New York and Berlin, an overview of his works is placed in context. An interrogation of the available sources leads to new lines of enquiry, particularly pertaining to the unpublished works. Editorial challenges are uncovered, culminating in scholarly editions made available for the first time. Presented alongside a stylistic analysis, a complete understanding of the many influences shaping Griffes’s music, and the interpretation of it, is made possible.
Matthew is an accomplished pianist having been awarded 1st place at the Beethoven Junior Intercollegiate Piano competition to become the first winner of the competition from the Junior Royal Northern College of Music and reaching the final of the prestigious RNCM Gold Medal Competition. He has enjoyed playing in various concerts series and recitals across the UK, such as Chester Wesley Church, Chester Music Society, Wigan Music Society, Manchester St Ann’s Church, Nantwich, Ealing St Barnabas Church and the Leigh Music Society.
With the supervision of Dr. Adam Swayne and Dr. Nico de Villiers, Matthew will be investigating and recording the complete piano works of Charles Griffes (1884-1920).
Having studied in Germany, Griffes’ compositional roots started in the Austro-German tradition, but his style began to diversify. In 1911, he entered his Impressionist period with works such as The Pleasure Dome of Kubla Khan and the Roman Sketches. These compositions displayed an evocative imagining of the orient and ultimately cemented Griffes’ legacy. He was often labelled as an ‘American Impressionist’ out of convenience. However, there is much more to be discovered in his later works. Griffes continued to push his own boundaries and adopted a forward-looking neo-classical and modernist approach.
Griffes only gained recognition in the final years of his life and unfortunately passed away before he could witness his success. Despite this, there has been a substantial amount of research on the composer, but only a handful of artists have recorded some of the piano works. Various scholars have investigated Griffes’ life and music, but their angle remained on the side of musicology. Conversely, none of the artists who recorded Griffes’ piano music recognised the lack of accessibility to the unpublished scores. Hence, Matthew will combine both angles by editing and recording the complete catalogue of Griffes’ piano music. This will be the first time anyone has recorded the complete piano works and include world premieres of unrecorded pieces.