On Saturday 8 December 2012 the première of Dr Paul Rhys' Piano Concerto No.1 was performed at St. Paul's Church, Augustus Road, London. It was enjoyed by an audience of 450 people who came to see accomplished pianist Ian Pace perform the piano solo, Paul Rhys conduct and Pamela Deike lead the orchestra. The concerto formed part of a concert conducted by Stephen Rhys MBE, father of Paul Rhys, which marked his last concert leading the Putney Choral Society for 65 years.

Piano Concerto No.1 is scored for a modest orchestra comprising strings, timpani and pairs of flutes, oboes, bassoons and trumpets. The rhythmic surface of much of the music is simple, but its metrical organisation is more involved and the piece comprises a total of three movements.

Paul said of the performance: "In awareness that the first performance would be supported by just one rehearsal - albeit by professional players - the orchestral writing is purposefully straightforward. On the other hand, considerable demands of strength and stamina are required of the soloist, even though the piano writing has the outward appearance of simplicity."

Piano soloist Ian Pace has established an international reputation as a specialist of contemporary repertoire. He has performed Paul Rhys' large-scale piano solo Not I, commissioned by the Annenberg-Beckett Foundation, throughout the UK, USA and in Strasbourg, supported by funds from the British Council. Based in London since 1993, he has pursued an active international career performing throughout the world. His vast repertoire of all periods focuses particularly upon music of the 20th and 21st Century, including a wide range of works by contemporary British, French, German and Italian composers, as well as the 'classics' of modern music composers.

Paul Rhys composed Piano Concerto No.1 during an Anglia Ruskin University sabbatical in the Spring Semester of 2011. A second performance is planned for November 2013 at West Road Concert Hall in Cambridge, conducted by Paul Jackson, Head of the Department of Music and Performing Arts.

The première was recorded to a professional standard and will be used to promote the concerto and future performances.

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