In the first of his keyboard chats, pianist William Hancox revealed the radicalism hidden beneath the elegant surface of the work of two great artists.

Hosted in the intimate setting of Will’s garden studio with delicious home-made refreshments to complete the afternoon.

The parallels between Mozart and Austen illuminate both. Both have a popular reputation for chocolate-box conventionality. Both lived under censorious regimes. And both concealed subversive messages beneath the elegant surface of their work.

In this talk, Will took issue with a commonly held view – that Mozart wrote exquisite music and witty operatic comedies of manners and Austen documented the drawing room romances of the upper middle classes, whilst neither took much interest in broader issues. On the contrary, he argued that both were deeply involved in the major intellectual and political controversies of their times, but that political censorship made it impossible for them to declare their views openly. But they left plenty of clues for us to follow!

If that all sound a bit dry, don’t worry! Will has a reputation for tackling musical and academic subjects in a way that is both informative and entertaining – it was a fun afternoon. He was joined by the very talented young Sussex soprano Kitty Casey for some musical illustrations.