Biography
Nicholas McCarthy, a pianist who performs exclusively with his left hand, grew up in a non-musical household in Tadworth, Surrey. A prenatal medical condition left him without a right arm at birth, yet he tackled typical childhood endeavors with focused resolve to surmount the limitation. The example of fellow left-hand pianist Paul Wittgenstein sparked his interest in the instrument when he reached age fourteen. At seventeen he secured admission to the junior program at the Guildhall School of Music, provided he restrict himself to repertoire composed solely for the left hand. Completing his studies in 2012, McCarthy became the first left-hand pianist to graduate from the Royal College of Music.
He belonged to the Bristol-based British Paraorchestra, the ensemble Charles Hazlewood created to feature musicians with physical disabilities, and performed during the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Paralympics. In 2014 McCarthy served as a commentator for the BBC Proms; the next year he discussed his debut Warner album, Solo, during an appearance on the BBC Radio 4 program Front Row. He issued Echoes: Bach, Rachmaninoff on Leftnote Records in 2017, presenting his own left-hand transcriptions of classical works. McCarthy also received Nigel Hess’ Nocturne for the left hand, which became a hit on ClassicFM.
He belonged to the Bristol-based British Paraorchestra, the ensemble Charles Hazlewood created to feature musicians with physical disabilities, and performed during the closing ceremony of the 2012 Summer Paralympics. In 2014 McCarthy served as a commentator for the BBC Proms; the next year he discussed his debut Warner album, Solo, during an appearance on the BBC Radio 4 program Front Row. He issued Echoes: Bach, Rachmaninoff on Leftnote Records in 2017, presenting his own left-hand transcriptions of classical works. McCarthy also received Nigel Hess’ Nocturne for the left hand, which became a hit on ClassicFM.
Albums
