AN internationally renowned pianist who has never forgotten his roots has become Culture Warrington’s first patron.

Stephen Hough is to be an advocate for the charity which champions art and heritage and organises cultural events across the town.

The musician, who found his love for the piano in Warrington, grew up on All Saints Drive in Thelwall.

At just the age of five, he pleaded with his parents to buy him his first piano from an antique shop in Stockton Heath – a second-hand rosewood German upright which cost just £5 – after falling in love with the instrument at his aunt’s house, where he would use her piano to play nursery rhymes.

He then started piano lessons with a Miss Riley in Lymm, declaring from the start that he wanted to be a concert pianist.

He studied at Chetham’s School of Music and the Royal Northern College of Music, both in Manchester, before winning the finals of the piano section of the BBC Young Musician of the Year in 1978.

At the age of 21, Stephen won the Naumburg International Piano Competition in New York City, which provided the springboard his international career.

Since then, he has continued to play concerts and recitals throughout Warrington alongside performances on some of the world’s most prestigious stages like Carnegie Hall, Chicago’s Symphony Hall, London’s Royal Festival Hall, and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.

He is also an accomplished composer and works from him have been commissioned by Wigmore Hall, the Louvre, Westminster Abbey, and Westminster Cathedral.

Stephen said: “I’m delighted to be part of Culture Warrington, a charity that does so much great work to improve the cultural scene in Warrington, a place where I have many fond memories of growing up.

“In a certain sense, Warrington has always been a little bit off the map in its cultural and artistic life.

“I’ve always felt that it underachieved – not because of a lack of talent, but because of a lack of encouragement and a lack of opportunity. And, of course, it’s sandwiched between the giants of Liverpool and Manchester.

“But I think that can be its strength because it can draw from a huge audience from those urban areas as well as from the Cheshire and Lancashire countryside.

“Culture Warrington is working hard to bring life to this underachieving part of the north west with its fantastic potential and open it up to new ideas.

“I would love for people to feel that they didn’t always have to go to Manchester or Liverpool for cultural events but that they could stay closer to home.”

Maureen Banner, Culture Warrington chairman, added: “Stephen is an excellent advocate for culture and is really proud of his Warrington roots. That’s why he’s the perfect person to appoint as our first patron.

“We look forward to working with Stephen to further promote the fantastic cultural and arts scene in Warrington.”