Newcastle and Leeds contemporary piano scenes come together for intimate Ouseburn concert

Two pianists and composers who have helped build audiences for original contemporary piano music in the North will come together in Newcastle this autumn for a special one-off concert.

Newcastle-based pianist and composer Steve Luck will welcome Leeds musician Simeon Walker to his studio at 36 Lime Street in Ouseburn on Sunday 4 October 2026 at 6pm.

The concert brings together two artists who, alongside their own work as composers and performers, have each created opportunities for audiences to discover new piano music outside the traditional concert hall.

Steve Luck is the Patron of the Newcastle Piano Festival and curates Newcastle’s Atmospherica Concert Series, which has presented contemporary piano and atmospheric music in intimate and unusual spaces across the North East, including Newcastle’s historic Victoria Tunnel.

Simeon Walker founded Brudenell Piano Sessions in Leeds in 2018, a long-running series dedicated to original piano-centred music. His own work has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM, while his performances have taken him across the UK and Europe and to events including Latitude Festival, the Edinburgh Fringe, Manchester Jazz Festival and SXSW London.

Now the two musicians are bringing their respective musical worlds together for an evening in one of Ouseburn’s historic buildings.

The concert takes place at Luck’s studio in 36 Lime Street, a Grade II listed former flax mill and home to a community of artists and creative businesses. With limited seating and the audience close to the performers and piano, the setting offers a very different experience from a conventional concert hall.

Each musician will perform a 40-minute solo set of original music, with an interval.

While both artists work broadly within the growing contemporary and modern classical piano scene, their music draws on a range of influences. Walker’s work moves between classical, jazz, ambient and experimental forms, while Luck’s reflective and melodic compositions are often inspired by landscape, nature and quieter moments of everyday life.

The concert also reflects a wider resurgence of interest in contemporary piano music, with artists such as Ludovico Einaudi, Nils Frahm, Ólafur Arnalds and Max Richter helping to bring new audiences to instrumental music that crosses the boundaries between classical, ambient and electronic music. Walker’s composition Reverie was featured on the first official Piano Day compilation in 2022, alongside Nils Frahm, Ólafur Arnalds and Chilly Gonzales.

Photo Credits: Will Killen (Cover Photo) Kit Haigh, John Faulkner, Declan Creffield