Renovating leather to Ravel: Chatting with the Gaspard Music Academy

It is not every day that you smell the repairing of designer shoes, handbags and jackets when entering your practice space. Tucked into the foot of Twickenham’s striking Richmond Bridge is an unlikely pairing of services: a third generation family leather shop and an innovative musical hub, the Gaspard Music Academy.

The common factor? Elia Stavrou, a pianist and the creator of the Academy, which boasts a recording and performing studio, a piano practice room, and a summery outdoor space.

Elia did not go down a pianist’s typical conservatoire route, but his drive to perform and connect musicians from all backgrounds led him to converting the space at the back of his family’s leather shop, Richmond leatherworks, into a hive of musical activity, including monthly piano meet-ups and regular recitals. Elia has also recently become a mushRoom host, and we wanted to find out more about his journey with music and what his aims are for the future of Gaspard