Dame Fanny Waterman’s BBC interview strikes a sour note in Leeds

But her interview with the BBC, in which she spoke of her “hurt” at being asked to retire from the world-renowned piano competition she had founded nearly 60 years ago, sounded a discordant note across the organisation.

“It was supposed to be a celebration of her centenary. I don’t know why they pressed her to say what she did. They must have asked her about it 10 times. She was vulnerable,” a source who was at the filming told The Yorkshire Post.

Dame Fanny had announced in December 2014, at age 95, that she would retire as chairman and artistic director of the Leeds International Piano Competition after the 2015 event.

No-one doubted that although her head told her it was time for someone else to take it over and grow it, her heart said otherwise. The fact that the BBC interview reflected only the latter had been “upsetting”, the source said.

“It was her baby – of course she didn’t want to let go.”

A statement from the organisers of the competition often known simply as The Leeds, said it “celebrates and cherishes Dame Fanny’s exceptional contribution to the musical life of this country”, both as a teacher and as founder of the competition”.

It added: “She will always be identified with The Leeds, which she built into one of the most respected and influential international music competitions.

“Her indelible impact over more than half a century guarantees her position as one of the great figures of the music world.”

Dame Fanny, whose birthday is this weekend, has remained president emeritus of the three-yearly competition, which had planned a celebration for her, prior to the coronavirus outbreak. Its spokesman added: “Her continuing involvement is deeply valued and encouraged, and we hope she long remains a guiding spirit.”

In an interview for The Yorkshire Post magazine, to be published on Saturday, Dame Fanny, the daughter of a Russian-born jeweller in Leeds whose parents scraped together enough for piano lessons when she showed exceptional promise, said: “If everything you do is to the best of your ability, then one day you might get there, and that’s what did happen to me.

“People don’t strive enough. It’s a learning process that never ends, no matter how old you are.”

The BBC did not respond to questions about its interview, which it released on Tuesday.