S2 E17: Nicholas McCarthy -- One-handed Concert Pianist, Yamaha Artist, & Motivational Speaker

Hello everyone, welcome back to The Piano Pod with Yukimi Song and Clara Zhang. For anyone listening or watching our show for the first time, welcome! Clara and I are both classical pianists and piano teachers from New York City. This podcast is for anyone who plays the piano for fun, loves listening to piano music, or for anyone who is currently pursuing a career in piano or works in the industry professionally, or anyone who is simply curious about the world of piano music.

In each episode, we interview a guest speaker who has been breaking exciting new ground in the music industry. Before getting started, we want to thank our listeners for tuning in. Please rate our show and review on Apple Podcasts because every rating and review will help people find our show.

So for this episode, Clara, we have Mr. Nicholas McCarthy, one-handed pianist, Yamaha artist, and motivational Speaker from the UK.

Oh my goodness, yes, I know him! I remember sharing this podcast show with you. Didn't really, you know, connect the dots until just now.

Yeah, and then, so I happened to find him, found him on YouTube, you know, as I was watching different video clips, and then it popped out and he was on TED Talk. And Rien, he was, he is a pianist, but he is a one-handed pianist. He was born without right hand. And so I got to listen to his story and it was such a— he has this, I don't know, he was born with this musical ability, but also this, I don't know, likability, I guess, this, you know, vibe, a positive vibe. Beaming out of him. So I've always wanted to interview him.

Such a unique combination from an artist, you know? So that's so great.

Yeah. And this episode actually is the last episode of season 2, Clara. Wow. The year went by so fast, right?

Crazy.

I know. And we may plan to have mini episodes during the summer, but we will see. So, but for sure in the fall we will be back for Season 3 with exciting guests already lined up.

That's right.

Oh my goodness.

Well, I think Nicholas is here. So shall we get the show started?

Yes.

You're listening to The Piano Pod with Yukimi Song, where we talk to the brightest minds in the industry about how they are bringing the piano into the 21st century.

We are so delighted to introduce our guest of Season 2 finale, Mr. Nicholas McCarthy, one-handed international concert pianist, Yamaha artist, and motivational speaker. Born without a right hand, he was told he would never succeed as a concert pianist. Yet Mr. McCarthy refused to be discouraged and went on to study at one of the world's most prestigious music schools, the Royal College of Music in London. Where he became the first one-handed pianist to graduate in its 135-year history. Mr. McCarthy has performed extensively in the United Kingdom as well as internationally. His concert performances, recordings, and press coverage have drawn critical acclaim, and he continues to encourage young people through his work in music education. As a speaker, Mr. McCarthy has created and delivered high-impact keynote talks for the world's most dynamic brands. He has helped companies motivate their workforce, improving profitability and loyalty by sharing his truly unique and inspiring story and teaching them how to operate at a level of peak performance. So Nicholas, we're so honored to have you, and welcome to our show, and thank you for joining us.

Yay! Thank you, thank you so much. It's been such a pleasure. You know what, I've been following you guys on Instagram. I've been listening to the podcast, of course. And you know what, it's just such a privilege to be asked, so thank you so much for having me.

Oh, that's very kind. Thank you so much. Yeah, we're a really big fan. And so currently, where are you tuning in from today?

So I'm in my home, which is in Colchester, UK. So I'm about an hour, just under an hour outside of London. Um, and I'm in my studio, which I have at home, my new studio. I was— I think I mentioned to you earlier, right, it was only newly built in June, so I'm still a bit like, oh, it's my favorite place.

Wow. Amazing.

Beautiful piano in the background, and it's just— I love the lighting and everything. It just looks so, so like professional, and obviously you're a professional pianist, but yeah, it's very beautiful.

It needs some things on the walls, you know, it's still a bit blank, but you know, we'll get there. We'll get there.

Sounds great. Thank you. So as we mentioned, you know, I actually, I got to— I discovered you when I was flipping through or watching YouTube clips, and obviously the one video to another led me to your TED Talk, and I was really blown away by your story, and you had to really beat the odds to be who you are. And so, so I'm really curious to know, and I love the story of how you discover the music and love of music. And so can you start from— can we start from there? How did you discover the love?

Absolutely. So start from the beginning. I mean, I come from just a really normal background. My parents— I'm an only child, and my both sets of parents, you know, they were fantastic, supportive, fantastic parents. But there was no music in my household. You know, my mom and dad aren't musicians at all. None of my family were musicians. So I kind of grew up with a very music-free childhood, apart from maybe what my mum and dad would listen to on the radio, pop songs or, you know, whatever that was in the charts that they might listen to. But apart from that, you know, I certainly didn't have any musical influence growing up. And then it wasn't until I was 14 and I, you know, I went to normal state school and we had a very fantastic pianist in my school called Hanako Omori, who's now a hugely successful session musician and composer and producer in her own right, but more in the electronic music field now. As opposed to classical, but she's a beautifully trained and very highly trained classical pianist. And she— and we're still great friends today— and she performed, and I had one of those moments in my life where, a bit like you see on, you know, Oprah or something, where someone talks about this one moment in their life which changed things for them completely. And this was one of those moments. My friend played Beethoven's Waldstein Sonata, the first movement, and I'd never, of course, never heard this before, and I absolutely absolutely fell in love with the piano and fell in love with everything to do with the instrument, how beautiful the instrument looks, how it sounds, how people look at the piano as well. I think it's a very elegant way, you know, to sit, and I just loved everything about the instrument and the sound I was hearing. So very quickly, you know, bear in mind I was 14, I think a bit of teenage invincibility set in, you know, I can be an astronaut, I can do, you know, it feels very easy when you're a teenager, doesn't it, to be able to do anything like you know, fly to the moon, whatever, it seems so achievable. And that teenage invincibility definitely helped me because obviously I decided there and then that not only did I want to learn the piano, but I also wanted to become a concert pianist. I wanted to do it for my career, that's what I wanted to do for my full profession. And I thank that teenage invincibility because I think it was because of that that it enabled me to kind of ignore the fact that I only had one hand to ignore the fact that that could potentially be an obstacle for me. And it now enabled me just to kind of push through with that, with those rose-tinted glasses that teenagers tend to have. And I think that was a really positive thing for me. And so, yeah, so that's how really that was the start that ignited the very beginning of obviously my learning.

But, you know, that's, that's so amazing. And, you know, I, I am a pianist and clarinet too, and we had this one of those moments, oh, there is that moment where I want to pursue piano as my career, right? But I never had this boom, huge moment because, because I started learning piano such a young age. So it was a kind of a gradual, natural thing, as opposed to you didn't have, you know, much background, then all of a sudden you hear this Beethoven, Waldstein, and here you are. What What's the sensation you felt? I want to know, was it the, the music, or was it the artist who was playing the piano, or it was, was it the overall experience?

It was a complete sensory overload for me, you know. It was the overall experience hearing that, you know, fantastic music, hearing such repertoire such as Beethoven, Bernstein, which I'd never heard before. So my ears, it was like 'Wow, what is this?' All these wonderful harmonies and things which were completely foreign to me. Also the technicality, you know, the technical aspect, you know, it's incredibly difficult. And, you know, 'Wow, this is amazing.' And also hearing an instrument like that, like the piano, being able to create these sounds, which was just so unfamiliar. And I think it was that whole combination of everything that was like, made me sit up and think, 'You know what, actually, this has really piqued my interest and this is this is where I want to take my life, essentially.

Wow, wow, wow, that's so, that's so fun.

You know, I remember this story of yours actually very well from several years ago when I listened. I think this is— you did the podcast with Tim Ferriss. This is even before the pandemic started, right?

Yeah, that was— yeah, that was good, that was a good few years ago.

Yeah, that's right. And I used to, you know, be traveling around on the train, you know, before the pandemic started, and I was always listening to podcasts and I remember that episode of yours so vividly. I even shared with my students, and you know, of this movement, because we have a lot of these teenage students and they've been playing their whole life, and but at some point, you know, it's like, you know, we as pianists sometimes get a little lost. So I remember sharing this clip and they were fascinated, you know, just like me. So that's amazing. Wow, thank you for sharing.

Well, thank you. Well, yeah, likewise. I mean, I suppose it is quite an interesting start, especially as well because, as you know, and I assume that you learned piano very, very young, or started piano very young, like most pianists do, tend to— or musicians generally tend to start their instruments fairly at a fairly young age. It's just the natural progression of things. And then for me, obviously, to come to it at the age of 14 from nothing, I think that was also a positive and a negative for me, because it meant that one, it was all on me and it was my choice, and it was my— it was me controlling, it was me in the driving seat. The negative was, and as you're both pianists, you will appreciate this, is that the the technical aspects that I, you know, I had years upon years upon years of catch-up to do in order to get to the level that I wanted to get to. And so that was the negative, and that was— but, you know, it was— I knew I had to work incredibly hard if I wanted to close those gaps. And so, you know, that's what I did, but it was my choice to take up the challenge.

Right, right.

And then you really had no training at all before you were 14? I remember—

No, none, none, none at all. Literally, I barely— I didn't even know, you know, 'Every Good Boy Deserves Football' on the stage to try to do the notes. It was like, even that I used to— yeah, I used to kind of write how much, and I used to teach myself how to read music. And, you know, and it was a real— of course it was really tough, but because it was my decision, I was so excited by the prospect of, you know, learning and playing. And, and so it was self-fulfilling prophecy really, because I was finding it difficult, but then I was working so hard. So then I was getting better. And then it was this circle when, because I was getting better, I'd play more. And then it was, you know, and it was just, it was started to snowball all the time and travel along, which was, which was great for me because, you know, at least I was seeing some progress quite quick. And because I enjoyed it so much, because I loved it so much really.

So then, you know, uh, So first you kind of have to go through this regular piano lessons, right? So afterwards, and then so in terms of, you have to probably overcome a lot of obstacles. And although you have, I mean, I'm really, your, your positive energy is beaming through this screen. Like you, you just treat yourself like as if you are like a real regular pianist, but you had to overcome a lot probably. And so, of course, and then one of the things would be, let's say, as simple as— I don't— I didn't think this way before, but most of the literature, even the method books, are written for two hands, right? So what was it like the first lesson? And then, you know, uh, did you probably you had to use the two-handed piano literature for you to take lessons.

So yeah, so what I did, how I started was I, um, and I call my, my little, this is what I call my little arm, affectionately called my little arm. And so I could, I can actually play like one single note on the piano with, with my little arm, and then my left hand can play. So for instance, a very simple Mozart sonata with one melody line and an Alberti bass, for instance, in the left hand, I would be able to play fine. But obviously, as soon as chords come into the right hand, then obviously I can't. But often I would be able to take one of the notes of the chords with my left hand and spread the rest, you know, like there's ways of getting around it, as we can all see in piano. There's lots of different finger patterns that we can use to get around certain obstacles. And so I actually started doing my grades, my Associated Boards grades, with two hands, as in, in my case, one and a half hands. So I would play, you know, two-handed repertoire, but I'd play it with my little arm and my left hand. And that's how I started my grades. And it wasn't until I auditioned for the Junior Guildhall School of Music and Drama when I was 17, what they then introduced me to left-hand alone repertoire and kind of encouraged me and said, look, we can offer you a place, but you have to specialize in left-hand alone repertoire, and you've got to stop playing kind of two-handed repertoire with your little o in your left hand. So that's where I— so really it was 17 when I kind of first got introduced, because remember, you know, like I said, I come from a non-musical background, so I'd never heard of left-hand repertoire. My teacher, who was a young student herself and still learning, she also hadn't heard of left-hand repertoire either. So really it wasn't until I went to London and started studying as a junior, that's when I was like, ah, okay, there's this whole repertoire for left hand alone. And that's how it kind of started. So yeah, you're right, I had lots of adaptations with two-handed repertoire. And then when I went into the other big hurdle and the big problem that I found was when I was, even though I was, you know, obviously an accomplished player at that stage at 17, and I was able to, you know, get into the Judy Gill Tour, for instance, all of left-hand repertoire tends to be very difficult. It tends to be very virtuosic, very high level, as you probably have discovered in your own learning and your own teaching and practice and everything. So I'm like, I probably shouldn't, you know, I wouldn't have, if I had two hands, I certainly wouldn't be playing Liszt etudes and Chopin etudes, you know, all the big ones. I would have maybe started at like Mozart sonatas and maybe gone on to Clementi sonata or something like that. And then gone on to the big stuff later on. Whereas for me, I didn't have that option. So I had to go straight into all of the really big stuff, which was, again, there was positives and negatives to it. The positives I think were, it raised my bar. So even though it was too difficult for me and my technique wasn't up to it at the time, it raised my bar. So I knew that actually, if I want to play this repertoire, and I'm going to have to play this repertoire if I want to be a concert pianist, I'm going to have to get my technique infinitely better than it was in order so I can get there. So it was great in a way because it gave me a good learning curve of thinking, wow, well, I need to be over there and I'm over here currently. How do I get there? You know, so that's how I felt. So I started like that and I started intense, um, intense technical exercises, really, really honing my technique and really, really catching up, you know, like I mentioned, catching up on the years that I've missed of not learning from a young age. And, um, and yeah, and then obviously I, I achieved that, managed to, you know, managed to, to get that bit sorted.

That's really amazing, Nicholas. And I, I mean, I have so many questions, but this one I also just thought of as we're speaking, you know, how many hours How many hours did you have to put in every day to, you know, within 3 years? Yeah, like you got so much done.

Yeah, I kind of did achieve quite a lot in 3 years. I would, because I loved it so much. Yeah, it was kind of just a hobby. It wasn't so, you know, I never kind of thought, oh, I need to kind of practice, and it didn't ever feel like practice. It felt I just couldn't wait to get to the piano, you know, and it was just, I was there for hours and hours and hours. So I probably averaged around 4 or 5 hours a day maybe at that point. Now, you know, I've never practiced that amount of time. Now, you know, I always do kind of 3 hours and that's it. I won't do any more. But back then, you know, I was practicing an awful lot. And again, it's because I had to prove myself. I knew I wanted to go to certain places. I obviously had my sights set on the Royal College of Music, and so I knew that was going to be a huge challenge. Yeah, so I was trying to kind of always look ahead a little bit and think, well, if I can do as much now as I can, by the time I get to audition, right?

Use this sort of, you know, speaking to our students or all the students around that age, you know, it's never too late, right? You know, I myself, I have some students who, you know, they played in Carnegie Hall when they were younger, and now they're like 14, 15, they're busy as at school and they're just like, it's too late. I'm never going to become Lang Lang or whoever. So like, what's the point? I mean, most of their friends stopped. And so, but, and they don't want to stop, but I think, which I understand, I also, I can relate to you a little. I didn't grow up from a musical background. Nobody in my family was, but I kind of made a silly decision when I was 3 to become a pianist. Which I had no idea why, and I just decided. So, you know, I was always looking at it very differently from most of my friends. And somehow— but I want to hear— I remember from the podcast you had shared about this beginning teacher, uh, who was quite supportive. And then she, you know, at one point when she, um— I believe you mentioned that it was almost your level surpassed her very quickly, and she had to introduce you to other teachers.

Yeah, that's correct. So my first teacher who I did a few of the Associated Board exams with, and then she, you know, she was a young music student herself and I loved her. She was so cool and I kind of looked up to her because she was, you know, she was young and vibrant and she really thought outside of the box, you know, because obviously I was her first disabled, you know, student and one-handed. She'd never taught that and she was very encouraging and very kind of forward-thinking, and I think I needed that at that age for sure. And then, so yes, you're right, she came to me and my parents, and I remember this conversation like it was yesterday, where she came to us and said, look, Nicholas is playing pieces that I can't really play myself, and I just feel like he needs to go and spread his wings and go to music school. And that's where she encouraged me to obviously audition for for a music school, and subsequently I went to the Junior Guildhall. But, um, yeah, so she was, she was a great first teacher to have for sure. And again, we're still in touch, in touch today.

Oh, that's great. Yeah, well, shout out to her. You know, I hope she'll get to listen to this interview. What about your other friends? Or, you know, I don't know, your parents have always been very supportive, but you know, when you said you're going to perform this career, what, what's your peers, you know, what do they say?

I think with my, you know, I've always been very fortunate. I've always had a very large group of friends and, you know, from all different backgrounds and very supportive. And I think for them, it's funny, I don't think they were particularly shocked that I said that I was going to be a painter. I don't know, they kind of, and especially at that age, you know, because I was, you know, at that point, 14, 15, and, you know, it was like, okay, great, that would be great. I don't think people, you know, I think as a teenager, you don't really have those prejudices yet. And that kind of sadly comes later on with being an adult or different things that happen to you that kind of changes your attitude towards things. Whereas as a teenager, it's all, like I said earlier, everything's very possible, and I think that's, that was the, uh, unique thing. So yeah, my friends were very supportive, they loved it, but at the same time it was like I learned something and played, played in something, they're like, oh great, should we go out now? You know, it wasn't, and it wasn't a big thing to them that, you know, it was great, they enjoyed the fact that I enjoyed it, but you know Essentially, I was just Nick. Nick today, that was all it was.

Exactly. Wow, I wonder if you have always had this very positive outlook in life and maybe your friends were influenced by that too. Now let's talk about— fast forward, then you got into the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the later Royal College of Music, which you were the first person in 135 years to have graduated there. You know, I remember that from the TED Talk too. That was just— what was that like? I mean, I know when you got there, you mentioned that you didn't mention to them about this, you know, and lack of your hand, right? But I'm sure they were very impressed in the beginning.

And yeah, I mean, the Guildhall was a very difficult time for me, um, because obviously I went to, as I mentioned, went to normal state school. So as a pianist, I was kind of, you know, the great pianist in my school, and it was great. And, you know, it was, oh, Nick's amazing at piano. Then I went to the Junior Guild Hall where all of a sudden I'm with people who've been playing Beethoven concertos since they were like 5. And then I, you know, I'd never, I'd never, you know, even played a recital yet. I'd never done anything at that point. So all of a sudden I was a very small fish in a very big pond. Yes, whereas in my old school I was a big fish in a very small pond. So that was hard to— and it was good because it made, again, like I said, it made me raise my bar. It made me realize, wow, these are amazing and I'm nowhere near that. I'm going to work harder to try and get there. Also, you know, my teachers at the time were— I mean, it was, it was just a difficult time. It was a difficult time. I felt that I was very much expected to be one thing, and that isn't what I wanted to do. And I felt I was constrained very much and not necessarily supported in the right way, which was a shame. It was a shame, but it is what it is. And again, it was, it was great life lessons for me there. So to be honest, I didn't particularly enjoy my time at the Junior Guildhall, and I had, like I said, I always during that time had my sights set on the Royal College of Music, which I was countlessly by various different people, including my tutors and things, dissuaded from applying to even. But I absolutely knew that was my dream, was to go and study at the Royal College of Music, because I used to think, you know, what better place to study right opposite the Royal Albert Hall in London? You know, I was thinking when you're practicing, you're tired, and, you know, just looking out the window and seeing one of the best concert halls in the world, it's going to draw inspiration, it's going to make you give that extra little bit more practice, that extra, extra time. So I really, really wanted to go there. So, and, you know, I auditioned, I auditioned with all the conservatoires in the UK, to be honest, because obviously I didn't know that, you know, I wasn't going to just hope the Royal College took me. And, and yeah, and obviously to my surprise, I got offered, you know, numerous scholarships from, from various different conservatoires, and the Royal College was the one that I chose to go to, and it was an amazing moment. I kind of— it was a pinch myself moment because I've been told so many times I wouldn't get in to the Royal College. It was even more of a thing for me because I was like, wow, I trusted my instincts and worked incredibly hard. I didn't just sit back. I mean, when I was being told no from all these different angles, I then elevated my practice. I'm all about trying to, you know, any negativity that comes my way, I'm all about trying to use that in a positive way. And for me, the negativity that I was receiving at the time prior to going to the Royal College of Music, I was using to force it into my practice and using that kind of anger to really build me up. So that when I went in and auditioned, I was kind of, you know, at the height of my game at that point. So yeah, so obviously that hard work paid off. So yeah, and then I had a fantastic 4 years. I love the Royal College of Music. I had a fantastic 4 years there, you know, it's a wonderful institution. And again, they thought outside of the box with me. They treated me exactly the same. I wasn't given any easy treatment or anything, but they allowed me, you know, obviously part of the repertoire requirements, you have to play a very Beethoven sonata. Well, obviously, you know, I can't play a Beethoven sonata because Beethoven didn't write anything for left hand. So they were happy for me to offer a substitute, and, you know, I'll try and find something with similar difficulty, similar sounding, maybe, you know, that it will be obviously 20th century. So they were really flexible like that because, you know, they realized I couldn't just, you know, I wish Beethoven did write something for left hand alone, but he didn't. 'So I can't conjure it up out of nowhere.' So they were really flexible in that sense, but like I said, they marked me exactly the same way that they did everyone else, which again I was pleased with because that's what I wanted. I like being treated the same way. I wanted to be held accountable to the same level as all the other high, you know, super high standard pianists that we had there at the time, and still now, I mean, it's, you know, going from strength to strength as an institution. So yeah, very proud to be an alumni from the Royal College of Music.

It takes just one person who just sees your potentials. And of course, you have this amazing positive way of thinking, and even negativity, you use it against it. That's really inspiring. And we want to talk more about that side of you later, which, you know, right now currently you are a motivational speaker. So let's— right now I want to focus a little bit more on you as a pianist. So after you graduate, you have this amazing career. You're still performing and then recording as well, that one stood out to me was this, the Paralympics 2012 in London. And you performed at the— that was a closing ceremony.

That's it. Yeah, it was a closing ceremony. And I performed with the Paraorchestra and also with the band Coldplay. And that was really the turning point for me. Because, you know, I hadn't— I'd graduated only, you know, the month before that happened. And, you know, I had an empty diary of no concerts coming up, no, you know, no anything. And I got invited to perform with the Paraorchestra and with Coldplay, and it was obviously a huge opportunity. And I really— I mean, it was so special. It was such a special moment. But really, that launched my career because it was viewed by half a billion people worldwide. And because in the UK, in the UK especially, because I was then— because I'd done quite a lot of media stuff before, you know, I've been on TV quite a lot, I've done a lot of radio and things. So all of the producers and things, they kind of were calling me to go back on to talk about the Paralympics, to talk about Coldplay and all of the wonderful things that were happening. And of course I took those opportunities that were given to me, and that I think it was that, that really— because, you know, very shortly after that, that's when I was invited to start my international touring and, you know, toured South Korea and toured South Africa and America and all of these places, which, you know, all came off the back of that. So yeah, it was really a lucky timing for me because obviously I'd only graduated a couple of months before, 6 weeks before. But, you know, I definitely have that moment to thank.

Speaking of that, then you mentioned about this you know, afterwards you have this huge international career. So, and you seem to have a lot of fans all over the world, particularly in Asia, I noticed. And I, yeah, you have, I think last time I emailed you or messaged you via Instagram, you said you were in Hong Kong. Were you in Hong Kong?

Well, sadly, I was meant to be in Hong Kong. I've actually, I've actually meant to have been in Hong Kong for 2 years in a row because of the pandemic, and obviously they are still very much in quarantine. They have to quarantine for 21 days when you go in. And so sadly I had to say I can't go in, but it was with the Hong Kong No Limits Festival, so we did it here. So I played with the Manchester Camerata here, and it was streamed. I think it was into Hong Kong cinemas for a day, for one night only, and then there was— you could view it online and things like that. So I was still part of the festival, but it was remote. So I'm hoping to get to Hong Kong one day soon would be nice because obviously for 2 years now I've not quite managed to get there in person.

Yeah, so yeah, I realized about the project. I think they're still streaming as of now.

Yeah, I think it's, I think it's still streaming now. Yeah.

Wonderful. So then you're obviously performing all the left-hand piano literature, and so we want to— I want to focus on more on left-hand literature. And then I didn't realize until I I started learning about you, and repertoire for the left hand first came in early 19th century?

It started, actually, you're so correct. It started in the early 19th century, and it's because concert pianists or composers back then, take Liszt, for example, we know that he was a fantastic composer and a fantastic pianist, you know, performing concert pianist. And that was often the case, you know, Bartók, he was a composer and pianist, and, you know, it was always often the case. Often when they were performing their concerts, they would play on irony because most people in the world are right-handed, so your left hand tends to be your naturally weaker hand. And so the composer would play a left-hand alone piece as a bit of a play on irony, you know, you thought I was good with two hands, wait and see what I can do with my weak hand, my left hand. And so they play this big bravura piece and the crowd would go wild. That's an encore or something, and the crowd would go wild. And then obviously we fast forward in time and the First World War happened, and again, for the same reasons, if you were in a war situation, most people are right-handed, therefore statistically you're more likely to injure or lose your right hand in battle. So we had hundreds of thousands of servicemen coming back from war and they had their right arm injured or missing or, you know, amputated. And then one particular man, Paul Wittgenstein, you know, the most famous left-hand pianist. He came back and used his position in society, his wealth— he was a hugely wealthy man from the Wittgenstein family— and he commissioned all of the really big celebrity composers of the day to write for this already present left-hand tradition. So he expanded on the 19th century— I mean, obviously this is in 20th century now— so then all of a sudden we get this huge influx of huge commissions by Prokofiev and Benjamin Britten and Richard Strauss and obviously Ravel and all of these really huge names of the 20th century then were writing left-hand alone works. So the repertoire very quickly expanded during that time, so then thankfully that meant we had 19th century rep and we've got a really huge bulk of 20th century repertoire. So yeah, I mean really thanks to him and thanks to Paul Wittgenstein and his steely determination of how to carry on his career, he's the reason really why I'm then able to go out and play Ravel's left-hand concerto, Britten's Diversions, and all of these concertos. And you know, there's, I think the current count is something like 32 piano concertos for left hand. You know, obviously most of the time I get asked to play the Ravel left-hand concerto or Britten Diversions, but there's, you know, there's so many other wonderful works which I happen I haven't had the opportunity to perform myself yet because that's the thing, you know, it then comes down to programming. And, you know, if you think, if I owned a concert hall that sat 10,000 people, I know that Rachmaninoff's Second Piano Concerto is going to be far more popular than if I wrote, if I programmed one of these lesser-known concerts with left hand. So of course I understand that and how that works. But unfortunately, it leaves these concertos, even though they're in my repertoire, they haven't actually— I haven't actually performed them with orchestra yet.

Right. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Wow. I didn't realize, but it's amazing how these historical backgrounds affect, you know, even the piano literature, how it's evolved. And, you know, these days I hear— I'm sure you've— I heard I've heard you playing, um, what's his name, Godowsky, left hand etude. That's one of the most difficult things ever to do. Yes, I know, and I tried a few just because, you know, I'm right-handed, so just to make the left hand stronger, I've tried a few. Oh, they were just impossible, but wonderful. Yeah, and then, but you also arranged some pieces for yourself, and I've heard You play your rendition of Prelude in G minor by Rachmaninoff. And do you like doing arranging?

Well, I do actually. I don't do it as much as I probably should, or maybe used to. I found that when I was touring, it was really mainly in the UK, and when my first album came out, solo, I realized that audiences, because most people with my repertoire being left-hand pianists, they won't have heard, you know, not necessarily heard maybe Scriabin's Prelude and Nocturne, or they might not have heard Bach Brahms Chaconne or something like that. So I was very keen to provide some short kind of 3-minute pieces of music that perhaps they have heard of, because I found that audience members because I have a real mixed bag of audiences. So I have obviously a core classical audience members who come to me because, you know, classical, they love classical music. But I've also got a lot of fans who really don't go to anything to do with classical music, but they come to the concert because of me. And so, you know, they might have seen me on television, thought it might be interesting, and then they've gone to that. And so I found that those audience members were much more open to listening to something I don't know, like I mentioned, like the Bach Brahms Chaconne, which is 14 minutes long, you know, it's quite hard to listen to for an audience member who maybe isn't used to classical music. They were much more open to listening to that and would love it, and they would open their ears if I punctuated it with some familiar music that they would have heard from an advert or they would have heard somewhere. And I found that they were just more, much more receptive to listening to all this repertoire which they've never heard of, you know. And so that's why I started doing, you know, a few small arrangements really to kind of help that side of my audience, to try and kind of make them feel a little bit more comfortable with then the really quite hard-hitting stuff that I might be playing later on. But I enjoy doing it a lot actually. I wouldn't say I'm amazing, you know, that I think there's some pieces who Some pieces that I think are perfect, a perfect arrangement for left hand, and there's other pieces where I think I'd love to arrange that and it just doesn't work, you know, it's just not going to work. But yeah, it's a good process. I quite enjoy the process actually.

Wow, yeah, and then I've heard your, you know, both two albums. One is called Solo, the other one is called Echoes, and And some of them are your arrangements, right?

Yeah, some of them are my arrangements. A lot of them, I think, on Echo— actually, on Solo and Echoes, there's a wonderful arranger and, you know, composer, pianist, and arranger called Frederik Meinders, who's based— I think he's based in Spain now, but he's originally from the Netherlands. And he has arranged a lot of works for left hand alone very, very successfully. So I really enjoy playing his works. And with the Rachmaninoff G minor Prelude, and that's a bit of a collaboration between another fantastic pianist called Arthur Cimero, who's based in Brazil, and we kind of collabed a little bit on that work. So I kind of came up with the idea and I kind of had it all done, and then I said to him, but I'm really struggling with the middle section, and then he kind of went, oh my God, he said, don't worry, and he sent the middle section, and we kind of, you know, we almost kind of put both of our versions together a little bit. To create the one that I play now. And so yeah, so it's nice because I get to collaborate a little bit with some composers and some arrangers around the world. And then of course I've done my own ones from scratch, like Gershwin's Summertime and the Cavaliere Rusticana from there.

I love it, I love it. Yeah, I've listened to all of them now. So then speaking of that, do you really— do you wish to have more left-handed pieces, not limited to just usual classical pieces, but in different genres and styles and maybe original compositions? And have you—

Yeah, I mean, a big part of what I try to do, and actually I'm just in the process of— I mean, I can't talk about it kind of fully yet, but I'm really looking forward to having a vehicle to be able to keep expanding the repertoire, just like Paul Wittgenstein did. Now sadly, I'm not from a wealthy oil magnate or steel magnet father like Paul Wittgenstein, where he has, you know, infinite amount of money. Unfortunately, that wasn't afforded to me, but I am in the process now of creating a vehicle, if you like, that I can more easily commission new works, new concertos, new chamber music, and for the left hand alone, because I think it's so important to keep that legacy alive and to do what Wittgenstein did, so that maybe in 100 years' time there's another one-handed pianist who's thanking me for certain repertoire, just like I thank Wittgenstein for, you know, like Ravel's Septième Concerto, for instance. So it's very important to me, and I'm very passionate about it, and I'm excited about this next little chapter. So I'll obviously keep you posted about it anyway, as and when it develops.

So I know you are a motivational speaker, which is something I'm also very passionate about. I have done Tony Robbins and I have been a long-time student of Landmark. And so I do believe sometimes it doesn't matter what we want to do, but having a very positive heart sometimes could really make things happen. Right. And so one thing that I was really thinking, one-handed, I mean, in my experience, I think my teacher did mention to me a couple of times also because I was right-handed and my left hand tend to be weaker. But then I remember it was really just several pianists that accidentally injured one hand, and that's how, you know, this one-hand repertoire started coming out. And obviously, Xiao Wang started performing the Ravel, you know, a couple— a few years ago, and that was also very influential, right? And so, but where the— when did you start your, you know, motivational speaking journey?

That was really interesting because I, as you know, I wanted to be a concert pianist from 14 and that was what I wanted to do, and then all of a sudden, I didn't even know what a motivational speaker was, you know, I didn't realize it was such a big thing, but I was again, like lots that's happened in my career really, that I was kind of lucky that I was invited to give the biggest TED Talk, and I think it's the one that you might have seen, the TED Talk at the Royal Albert Hall, So that was my first ever public speech, and I was invited to give that, and that was in front of 6,500 people at the Royal Albert Hall, and it's the biggest TED Talk to date that they've ever held. And that— so I did that, and I loved it, and it was great, and, you know, I enjoyed it very much. And then very quickly afterwards, I was contacted by various different businesses and different big banks and different big real estate companies and things like that to say, oh, we're having a conference and we'd like you to do this. And then it very quickly just became a very large part of what I do in a year. And so, you know, it was completely organic and it just grew. But it was just one of those things that all of a sudden I was being asked to do it, and if I was available and I wasn't on tour, of course I'd say yes to do it. And it was something that I love almost as much as the piano, because I love people, as you can probably tell. I love talking.

I love— yes, I could tell.

And I think with a conference situation, you know, when I'm on stage as a pianist with my piano hat on, you know, I walk on stage and people are kind of sat in the audience, they're just looking at me, and it's quite hard to get the rapport and quite hard to get the connection, even though I mean I talk through my recitals and give people, you know, interesting anecdotes and historical facts and things, but even then I'm not doing a question and answer session from stage, you know, wherever, whereas in a conference situation I'm much more able to have a dialogue with the delegates, and that's something which I really love, and I love you know, the Q&A afterwards and all of these things. And so I feel I count myself very fortunate for some of the brands that I've worked with and continue to work with. You know, it's been amazing. And again, I would never have imagined that would be the case when I first got invited to do that TED Talk.

Right. And I must say that you must feel so comfortable in front of large crowd. I mean, you know, again, I'm just thinking that You know, again, I'm sure Yukimi and I both have this experience. We start performing very young, and our students too, but still there are some part of you, you know, nervousness always comes up. And you said you got to play in this concert for the Olympics. It was 86,000 people, right? And all of a sudden you are just in front of this many people. Did you ever feel anything that was, you know, like intense inside? They're like, oh my gosh, what's going on? You know, I mean, I remember.

Yeah, I mean, of course, I, and you know, I'd be lying if I didn't say I got a little bit nervous, and you know what it's like, the more you're used to something and the more you're in front of large audiences, the more normal it becomes, and the nerves maybe aren't quite as at the forefront of my mind or my body as they probably were. And I think the funny thing is, during the pandemic, obviously all concert work, as we all know, that stopped, and I did a few online concerts, and I didn't enjoy doing the online concerts from home. It's not my— it wasn't my thing. But, and my, uh, my motivation speaking went up exponentially because all the big, you know, all the big companies that I work with were having, you know, conferences online. So they were demanding, you know, they still needed a speaker to tune in and then to kind of give a motivational speech during the conference. So that's where I was doing it. I was doing it here from, you know, for instance, here from the studio once it was built. And I— and that, again, that was different. And I, I probably got a little bit more nervous doing that in front of my camera. Yeah, even though there might have been 4,000 people in this conference watching me on camera, I couldn't see any of them. And so that was almost more nerve-wracking in a way than actually being there, being able to see people, you know, being able to feel that atmosphere.

That's amazing. This is my, like, positive mindset. Were you just born with that? Do you— where do you think that?

I probably think I have. I think having it, having a disability, I think always gives you a little bit of a different perspective to things. And you've, you know, I've always had to think about doing things in a slightly different way to other people perhaps. And I think that constant attitude and constant challenge also gives me a little bit of a different perspective on life. And so yeah, I think I've kind of always been like that. But again, don't get me wrong, you know, there's some days where I'm a bit like, you know, because it's just being a human being. But generally You know, I think it's good to be positive if I can.

That is so beautiful. And I—

Yeah, can I sneak in? Sorry. So, I mean, speaking of this, so everybody has challenges and then sometimes it's visible, sometimes those challenges are not visible, right? And your case, it's obviously visible. And so Sometimes we tend to cling on to those challenges as almost like an excuse, like, you know, because I'd rather stick— oh, because I have this problem, so I can't do— or because, oh, this thing didn't happen because of this challenge. So how do you alter that? Obviously, I admire you as a pianist. Not because you're one-handed, but you're an incredible artist, your musicality. But so how do you brand yourself? Do you want— the balance is hard, right? Because you want to be considered as an incredible artist because of your musical, musicality, expressions, and then you, your dedication to instrument. But there is a fact of you are one-handed pianist. So that balance is sort of—

it's quite tricky to do, yeah. I think for me, I've always been, you know, and as you know, and I think being a speaker is a big part of my job anyway, I'm always very comfortable about speaking about myself, speaking about disability, speaking about my challenges. And so I suppose I'm very used to being quite vulnerable, though I'm quite happy putting myself in a vulnerable position, you know, emotionally. And I think for me, I was always very keen to just communicate, whether it's on stage speaking at TED Talk, whether it's me communicating via music on stage at a recital. I want to communicate to as many people on this earth as I possibly can in my lifetime. And I don't care if the only reason why they're there at the concert is because they've seen me or heard me on radio, they find it intriguing that I've got one arm, they've got no interest in classical music but they're there, then that makes me quite happy because I've managed to convert someone who would never have gone to see Yuja Wang for instance, never would have gone to see Lang Lang because they're not interested in classical music, but they've managed to come to my concert because of intrigue due to the fact that I have one hand. I don't care if that's the reason they're there, they're still there and I'm really pleased. And then often that's happened where people have come come to me and they've said after the concert, 'I've never been to a piano recital before in my life and you're the first one and I love it.' And then all of a sudden they're in touch with me online and they've gone to see different artists and then they've come back to one of my recitals. All of a sudden just that little bit of intrigue and that little bit of curiosity on their part about me and my arm has actually sparked something in them where actually they do like classical music, they do like piano music, they have gone to see Yu Jia Wang playing Rachmaninoff's Second Piano Concerto there, and all of these things they would never have done before, all because they were curious human beings. So I'm always very happy with that, and I don't mind the fact that the only reason they were there in the first place was just human curiosity. I think it's fine, it got them there.

And you were saying when you're in a Royal School, I mean, we have students who take these exams, ABRSM, it's been popular all through like actually all through the world. In China, I believe my cousins, my niece were trying to take it and they had to like fly to Hong Kong actually to take the exam, you know.

Oh wow, wow.

In mainland China for a while. So, but I feel like for them to take you in, really in a way it's a very unique experience for them as well. You know, not only just, you know, it's really both-sided because for someone like you to be so brave to just go for it, you know, without really knowing, like, you know, in the beginning, I'm sure within 3 years of training again, I keep on thinking about coming back to that, you know, and it's really not easy, you know, it's not something that everybody would just be bold enough to say, I'm gonna just try it and see what happens.

Yeah.

And when you met Tim Ferriss, I know, I'm sure after all these other interviews you have done, is probably not even one of the big ones, but Tim Ferriss is the someone who actually got me so interested in podcasting. And, you know, so Yukimi asked me and I was like, oh my gosh, because I used to listen to every single episode of his religiously. I read all his books. What was your experience like being interviewed by him?

It was wonderful. I mean, he's obviously an amazing, amazing guy, and what an honor for me to be asked to be on that podcast, which I think it's got 100 million downloads, or, you know, it's just crazy, crazy. And actually, the funny thing is, is after I did that podcast, you know, and I've done a lot of, you know, throughout all the world, different bit, different television, different things, it's still the main thing that I would get not recognized for, but if someone knows my story, they've often heard it on Tim Ferriss first. And so that's— so it's amazing, just his reach that he had it. But, you know, it was, it was great. And then I had the honor of being included in his Tools of Titans book, which obviously was a Sunday Times, a New York Times bestseller. And so, you know, it's, it's, it's great. I love, uh, it was a wonderful experience, a very nice guy and a great interviewer. You know, that's why he's known as the Oprah of podcasts, because, you know, he's, he's a great interviewer. And likewise, you girls, you're, uh, you're following in footsteps.

Oh, thank you so much.

That's great.

Any advice for upcoming or young musicians?

And I would say my main advice would be to try not to get so hung up on social media. I think, you know, it's important, and I'm not saying it's not, and it's probably quite a controversial thing to say maybe. Obviously, I'm very lucky, and I count myself very lucky, that social media wasn't what it is today when I was growing up. Kind of Twitter was around, and then kind of, you know, It wasn't a big thing. And then obviously now it's a completely different beast, you know, with TikTok and Instagram, and now everyone's going on to TikTok and no one's liking Instagram as much anymore, and you can't keep up with it. And I find a lot of hugely talented players and hugely talented musicians who are, one, spending an awful lot of money, you know, perfecting their videos and paying for paid promotion on Instagram or TikTok or whatever. And they're getting these huge followings on there. The thing is that unlike, say, for instance, that I can understand, like a beauty vlogger or a beauty person, if you're like, you know, talking about makeup things, it's much easier to earn money from that sale. As in, you know, you put a swipe-up link for the mascara that the girl has just demonstrated, and then, you know, it's quite a transactional thing. Whereas I think music, people are kind of spending a lot of their time in their studios, in their lounges, in their front rooms with their piano, doing these videos, putting them out, getting a following, but it's not translating to anything. It's not translating into concert work, it's not translating into— for some people it is, I'm not, you know, I'm sure it is, there's always anomalies, but generally, you know, it's— and then I feel like, well, you know, all of a sudden then when TikTok isn't as big as, you know, if you think Instagram's been huge for so many years, now everyone's like, I don't like Instagram anymore, I like TikTok, you know, I think it's, I think where does it end, you know, and then I'm very conscious with young artists when I think they just hope for these viral videos and they hope all of a sudden Carnegie Hall's ringing them up saying, can you come and play, and unfortunately it just doesn't work like that, it doesn't work like that, sometimes it does with the odd person but it's very rare, So I would say try not to— I think you've got to do it, you know, you've got to be out there as a young person, they're on social media anyway, so absolutely do it and try and get as big a following as you can, but don't just let it be your sole focus. I think it's— I think our industry, music industry, is different, it's different, you're not, you know, I think if you were a beauty blogger or makeup blogger, it's much easier, you know, for certain things, and I think sometimes people get hung up on it and I'm seeing it quite a lot, I'm seeing quite a lot, and it's a shame because there's often these wonderful artists who they've got no, you know, look in their diary, they've got no concerts, but they've got a million TikTok followers. You know, there's no correlation between the two, you know, and that's, that's my concern for them. I wouldn't want them to waste their time, basically. Do you know what I mean?

That's such an important, you know, message actually, really, to the world too, you know.

So yeah, I know you, you have two albums, Solo and Echoes, both available on music streaming services. And you have latest, the newest album coming up soon, correct?

Yeah, so it's not actually an artist album, so it's, it's, um, it's a very much collaboration. So, and it's my first foray into the world of contemporary music, which is quite scary for me because I'm, you know, I'm, I'm a romantic at heart and I like all the, you know, romantic music. And but, you know, I was asked by this wonderful composer called Zaidi Harrison, who's who's also based here in the UK. She wanted to write— I think she'd seen me in concert or something, I can't remember how she knew of me, but she wanted to write for Left Hand Alone and wanted to create an album of new works for Left Hand Alone. And so she asked me to be part of the project and, you know, I said, okay, well, you know, I like to challenge myself. I've never played contemporary music really, apart from the odd one or two pieces, but and I said yes. And actually it's been wonderful because it's really pushed me out of my comfort zones. It really has, which is— and I, again, it's been hard at some parts and some points, and— but I've enjoyed being pushed out of that comfort zone. And so yeah, so we're recording the album on the 23rd and 24th of May, so it's quickly coming around. And then I am performing at St. George's Bristol, the launch concert, in September, and then obviously the album's out up, I think, you know, in, in the autumn, in the fall. So, um, so yeah, so that's exciting. I'm looking forward, I'm looking forward to that. And like I say, it's been a challenge, but I've enjoyed the challenge. I've enjoyed the challenge.

Yeah, yeah, wonderful. You're such an inspiring person. I mean, it sounds so cliché, but looking at you in that studio, piano in the background, and beautiful lighting, and how you started, you know, you were not from the particular musical family and how you came to be. And seeing that beautiful piano in the background, it just means so much to me how one— I don't know, it takes only this passion and mission, right, to become a musician or pianist. It's not about how— it's not about followers, it's not about, uh, you know, went to this school. Obviously you went to a very prestigious school, But I think it really means so much, so thank you.

Oh, bless you. Thank you so much. Thank you.

Are you planning to come to New York anytime soon to perform?

I would love to. You know, it's— well, I recorded my first album solo in Boston, in WGBH Studios in Boston. And then, yeah, so then, so I spent some time in America then, and then we came over to New York, and I obviously to meet with the record label and everything. But yeah, I mean, the only place I've played in America, I played in Washington, D.C. at the Kennedy Center, but that's the only place I've played. So I'm really hoping one day soon that I can come and perform and obviously dream to play at Carnegie Hall, you know, one day.

Oh, you will.

It's gonna happen.

Yes, yes.

I can't wait to be there.

Okay, so let's get into our fun segment called The Piano Pod rapid-fire questions. So Nicholas, we would love for you to answer these questions with shortest answers possible.

Okay.

What is your comfort food?

Chinese takeaway food.

Oh, good! Goodie!

My favorite!

Well, we can have a party soon. Cats or dogs?

Dog.

What is your word or words to live by?

Anything is possible. Hmm.

What is the most important quality you look for in other people?

Honesty.

What is the worst quality in people you want to stay away from? Vanity. Good one.

Name 3 people who inspire you, living or dead.

Martha Argerich. My teacher Nigel Clayton, who taught me at the Royal College of Music, and my parents because they've always been so supportive at every point. So there's 2 people there, that was 4 people.

It's okay.

Great, great.

Name one piece in your current playlist.

I have been listening to Bartók's Goldberg Variations with Wikinger Olofsson, who's just amazing. So yeah, that's what keeps coming up a lot, and then obviously it's long, so I keep listening to the whole thing like lots of times.

Yeah, it's my favourite too. Name one book title in your library.

My library Well, this is an interesting one. This isn't a short one. Well, 'Duet for Three Hands' by Cyril Smith. And so Cyril Smith and Phyllis Selig were a UK piano duo, very famous piano duo, and Cyril Smith had a stroke and lost the use of his left hand, so leaving him only— and they were a husband and wife duo. They both taught at the Royal College of Music and they were, you know, very famous. And so they continued their duo career on two pianos but with 3 hands. And there's the book about their story and about their marriage, and it's called Duet for 3 Hands by Sylvestre.

Wow, wonderful. I need to check it out. Okay, so this—

I'll show you. There we go.

Oh wow, Duet for 3 Hands. I have to check it out. Thank you. Thank you so much, Joey.

Quickly, I just— I meant to say earlier, you know, I was at my teacher's concert a couple of days ago, and he is pianist, but he also plays with accordionist. And where— so he's Argentinian, you know. So what he does is that they will make, uh, so this time they did a Chopin piece where he will play the Chopin piece on the piano and the accordionist would actually tango it out, you know. So he's like the best accordionist in America, you know. But it's just so fascinating that you can actually— so, you know, when you were saying that you had— you borrowed a friend to play one part So these are the amazing things, you know, the young pianists today could get to do, you know.

Absolutely, absolutely.

Yeah, yeah. All right, so another one. You get only one song piece to listen to for the rest of your life. What is it?

The slow movement from Ravel's Piano Concerto in G Major, the two-handed one, the beautiful slow movement. I love it.

Oh, that is beautiful. And last question, last not least. Music is fill in the blank. What is music?

Life.

Life.

Music is life. I bet that's a common answer. I bet most, if you ask that, most people say music is life.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Beautiful.

Wonderful.

You're welcome.

Ding ding. Yay. Great. So this concludes this episode of The Piano Pod with Yukimi Song with Yukimi Song. Thank you, Nicholas. Us for joining us.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, thank you, and sharing your stories and insights and expertise. And you can find more information about Nicholas on his website at nicholasmcCarthy.co.uk. And we want to encourage our audience to listen to his albums Solo and Echoes, both available on music streaming services, and the latest album to be released in the fall, Pasture and Storm, compositions of British composer Sadie Harrison. All links are listed in the description.

And this also concludes Season 2 of The Piano Pod with Yukimi Song. Thank you to our wonderful audience and the fans for tuning in throughout the season. We will be back with exciting guests for Season 3 in the fall. If you're interested in being the guest or recommending someone to be on our show as a guest, Or if you'd like to collaborate or sponsor with us, shoot us an email at thepianopodnyc@gmail.com or send us a DM via social media.

If you enjoyed today's episode, please rate and review on whatever podcasting platform you use. If you're watching us on YouTube, remember to hit the thumbs up button and be sure to subscribe to our channel. You can also find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn. The links are in the description below.

See you in the fall. Until then, keep practicing the piano and have a great summer.

Bye everyone, and bye Nicholas. Thank you, Nicholas.

Bye, thank you so much.

Thank you.