Last year to mark the arrival of a new Steinway piano at the Pizza Express Jazz Club the Dean Street club put on a well-received piano festival which gave a range of top class pianists a chance to put the new piano through its paces.

The festival proved such a success that the club is again mounting a piano festival in April with a strong array of UK and international piano talent. Kicking off on Thursday 15 April in a double show the festival opens with leading UK pianist Julian Joseph and US piano star Joey Calderazzo. The following night early show’s first set features two of the UK’s brightest new talents Tom Cawley of Curios – currently on the cover of the March issue of Jazzwise and Kit Downes who dazzled last year with Troyka and his own piano trio. The second set features UK piano legend John Taylor plus Richard Fairhurst. The late show features two musicians equally adept on piano and vocals, Ian Shaw and Liane Carroll.

On Saturday 17 April there’s a lunchtime show with Korean piano star Younee joined by Alex Hutton for the first set with the second set featuring Kate Williams and Robin Aspland and in the evening it’s the turn of Gwilym Simcock and US pianist Aaron Goldberg in the early show with a second set provided by Robert Mitchell and Kaidi Tatham. The late show features the talented Joe Stilgoe and Anthony Strong.

The festival comes to a close on Sunday 18 April with a stunning lunchtime show featuring Serbian pianist Bojan Z and French star Baptiste Trotignan and in the evening climaxes with French piano innovator Yaron Herman and the UK’s Gary Husband.

– Stephen Graham

For booking information go to www.pizzaexpresslive.co.uk