House of Music

by Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason

Seven brothers and sisters. All of them classically trained musicians. One was Young Musician of the Year and performed for the royal family. The eldest has released her first album, showcasing the works of Clara Schumann. These siblings don’t come from the rarefied environment of elite music schools, but from a state comprehensive in Nottingham. How did they do it?

Their mother, Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason, opens up about what it takes to raise a musical family in a Britain divided by class and race. What comes out is a beautiful and heartrending memoir of the power of determination, camaraderie and a lot of hard work. The Kanneh-Masons are a remarkable family. But what truly sparkles in this eloquent memoir is the joyous affirmation that children are a gift and we must do all we can to nurture them.

Genres: Biography

Hardcover

Published September 3, 2020

Reviews

[Susan Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is remarkable book by an incredible family. The Kenneh-Masons comprise of two amazing parents and their seven talented children. Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason tells the story of her family and the successes her children have had in the world of classical music, with influences from Welsh, Sierra Leone and Antigua as well as hard work and financial struggles.
Kanneh-Mason shares her experiences as a biracial child growing up in Essex and Wales after returning from Sierra Leone where she was born. How music was so important in her childhood - but also in her husband's life.
They are both high achievers with a strong work ethic and a can do mentality. And the book highlights, with honesty, the additional challenges black families still face in the classical music business.
Having highly gifted children is a responsibility, and Kanneh-Mason explains the struggles of financing lessons, instruments, travel to the Junior Academy. This would be a challenge with one child, but SEVEN! Amazing! But she and her husband were totally committed to ensuring every child had the opportunities and support they needed. She quite rightly points out that 'means tested fees' for specialist music schools are based on household income without taking into account the number of children. And training as a classical musician takes a lot of dedication, time and expense.
The successes of the family are highlighted by Sheku; the third child, winning the BBC Young Musician of the Year, which is a launch pad for outstanding classical musicians. He now has a stellar career as well as having performed at the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's wedding. His eldest sister Isata is a highly successful pianist and recording artist for Decca, and brother Braimah is a notable violinist - and there are four more siblings to follow! And the irony is that playing as a family, they didn't get beyond the semi-finals of "Britain's Got Talent"; clearly their talent was too dazzling!
I loved this book and it shows the love of the family as well as for music. At no time does Kanneh-Mason compare the children but respects their talents and characters as individuals. That is a real gift.
I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to understand how to nurture talent. Anyone who loves classical music or wishes to understand how it works. Anyone who wants to appreciate and celebrate incredible talent from the black community. And anyone who wants to hear this story from a loving mother.
Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest unbiased review.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story about a mixture of cultures, from Wales to Sierra Leone to Antigua in the Caribbean, and now Nottingham in England, which has produced an amazing talent. They are a family of seven siblings, who play classical music to an incredibly high standard and embrace chamber music together like few others' It started with a young girl from a Welsh valleys town, born in the thirties, who went to college in England and met a student from Sierra Leone. They fell in love, and went together to Sierra Leone where they had four children. But tragically the husband died suddenly and the young mother had no choice but to go back to Britain with her four children, and brought them up with the help of the grandparents in Wales. This was quite an unusual story, but would have been forgotten if not one of the those children, Kaniatu Kanneh-Mason, had grown up to write this book. She married Stuart who was from a musical family in Antigua and, despite no connections nor enough money, they managed to nurture their talents sufficiently to take the classical music scene by storm. The children, one by one, were chosen to go down to London every Saturday to take part in Junior Academy, where they won competitions, performing awards, and where eventually the elder children entered the Young Musician of the Year competition. Isata, the eldest, who plays the piano, got to the final, and Sheku, the cellist, won it in 2016. Sheku was then chosen to play at the wedding of Harry and Meghan, and this catapulted the family into world-wide fame.
Chamber music used to be an everyday pastime as friends and families would gather together in each others homes to make music together, and there is a vast repertoire mostly from all over the world. It still thrives in music schools concerts and competitions. But perhaps European classical music has been, well, perhaps too European and seemingly elitist, and maybe hasn't welcomed and supported people from other cultures enough. So to have exotic, Black and hugely talented youngsters thrusting forward like this is incredibly welcome.
Sadly, the coronavirus has dealt a huge blow to classical music, as it has to the performing arts all over the world. The Kanneh-Masons won't be immune from this and we have to hope there will be support for the cultural side of society, not just for business, so that chamber music, classical music and everything else can claw its way back to the thriving world we have just lost.

[Gem ~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an incredible read.
I've noticed the Kanneh-Mason family on TV and on social media particularly as they are a Nottingham family local to me, but it was Sheku's performance at the Royal Wedding that really brought an admiration of what a phenomenal family they truly are.
This book is written by Kadiatu, the matriarch of the family and I felt so bonded with her as I read her honest words and gentle perspective on her childhood, her family history, her career but particularly her journey in to motherhood; how difficult her pregnancies were and how the juggle to keep everything all going at once is beyond exhausting. She is truly a strong, compassionate and intelligent woman who once you read her words you can understand entirely how the whole family are a phenomenon and absolutely gifted.

Whether you are a classical music fan or not you can enjoy the story of this family and their "House of music" with its curling wallpaper, crumbling windowsills and all the chaos that seven children bring, but above all each child's determination, commitment and passion to pursue their dreams in every single room. This isn't a mansion fitted with gilded pianos and chandeliers, this is a simple home of sacrifice and struggles but, paradoxically, a remarkable one.

I was humbled to read in the acknowledgement that the book is devoted to kindness and the generosity of others.
Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason sums up the entire book so simply in her final written words of it "This is a tale of music, and, above all, this is a book about love.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant insight into family and the dedication by the musical children and parents to nurture their talents. A compelling narrative of how parents emigrated from Sierra Leone and Antigua to the UK. How two very different upbringing of mother and father, how they met at university, the career progression before marriage and children came along. The juggle between time, money and attention in a large family. Working parent and full stay at home parents, the guilt the juggling and exhaustion but the love, cuddles and giggles.
The kindness and support of music teachers, school teachers, family and friends all respected and thanked in a truly humbling way.
Thank you for sharing your world and the joy and dedication it takes to have not just one but multiple world class musicians in the household.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written by the mother of this extraordinary family. What combination of nature and nurture - and incredibly hard work- makes them so special? Lots of insights into things I had never thought about: there are not just the obvious costs (instruments and tuition) but transport and accommodation for all the family travelling to competitions and performances, masses of sheet music, clothes to wear for performances…. At least they never had to pay accompanists; they can all accompany each other. The final chapter on how they all managed with ten people in the house during the Covid lockdowns was particularly interesting. Having three decent but basic pianos just won’t do when you have international soloists needing to practise. The solution? Bechstein lent them a top quality grand piano for the duration of lockdown.

[TBHONEST · Rating 5 out of 5]

House of Music :Raising the Kanneh-Masons is an inspiring and interesting read. It shows the love, strength and bonds a close knit family has. It's a book that will have wide appeal especially for those with an appreciation for classical music.

[Michelle Sullivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very Inspiring…

[Jane(Janelba) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written book about the Kanneh-Mason family and their seven talented, musical children.
I of course knew about Sheku who won the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition and went on to perform at the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. From her life in Sierra Leone to moving back to Wales in the UK to University, meeting her husband and their seven children. I thoroughly enjoyed this book which deals with so much including racial prejudice, financial hardship, determination, love, sacrifice and devotion.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason for the Advanced Readers Copy in return for an honest review.