MANY HAPPY RETURNS!
With a smiling Leif Ove Andsnes on the cover, Pianist burst onto the scene in late 2001, hitting the newsstands on 19 October. In the editorial for the first issue, I outlined the magazine’s ambitions. ‘Every two months, Pianist will bring you closer to and more at ease with the piano world and help you enjoy your journey and learning experience. Whether you’re an amateur, a fanatical student or someone who gave up years ago, Pianist is for you.’ With a unique mix of artist profiles, piano-related news, educational articles, in-depth maker features and scores to play, we quickly found a receptive readership.
Twenty years on, as we hit 122, our reason for being remains the same. The anniversary allows us to pat ourselves on the back – we made it this far! – but it also prompts a moment of reflection, to look back and to consider how we arrived here. Much has changed since our first issue and, we hope, improved, because of regular feedback. Looking through the Letters pages over the course of 122 issues, it’s abundantly clear that readers have felt it was their magazine from the start. The column has been a space to share experiences, look for answers, offer advice and most of all share a love for the piano. One reader in issue 3 summed it up: ‘May I first of all say congratulations on bringing
