Repertoire    

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USA Tour 2008

 

                                              

 

Recital Repertoire

Two-piano Programme:  (eg Beaconsfield Concerts, March 2008)

BRUCH:

Fantasy in D minor, Op.11

SCHUMANN:

4 Canonic Studies, Op.56

LISZT:

Concerto pathétique, S.258

POULENC:

Capriccio (Le Bal Masqué), Elégie; L'Embarquement pour Cythère

BERNSTEIN arr. N&M: 

Scenes from West Side Story

 

Two-Piano Recital Programme with Percussion: includes

BARTOK    Sonata for Two Pianos & Percussion

 

Two-Pianos & Narrator Recital Programme:

POULENC:

L'Embarquement pour Cythere

POULENC:

Babar, the little elephant

WALTON:

Excerpts from 'Facade'

SAINT-SAENS:

Carnival of the Animals

 

(with specially commissioned verses by Jeremy Nicholas)

 

Piano Duet (1 piano/4 hands) Programme: The Virtuoso Piano Duet:

MOZART:

Sonata in D major K381

WEBER:

Rondo in B flat, Op.60 No.8

SCHUBERT:

Rondo in D, D608

RACHMANINOFF:

Russian Melody, Op.11 No.3

RAVEL

Laideronnette, Impératrice des Pagodes (Ma Mère l'Oye)

STRAVINSKY:

Polka (3 Easy Pieces); Danse Sacrale (The Rite of Spring)

LEIGHTON:

Sonata for Four Hands, Op.92

BRAHMS, GRIEG, FAURE, BIZET, GOTTSCHALK, BARBER, YOUMANS

A Worldwide Tour of Dances

 

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Concerto  Repertoire

Two-Piano Concertos:

As part of Nettle & Markham's 30th Anniversary celebrations a new work written especially for the Duo was commissioned by Prof. Lionel Bowman - their dear South African friend and  'musical godparent' - and the World Première of Hendrik Hofmeyr’s Concerto for Two Pianos was enthusiastically received by audience and critics alike in Pretoria in April 2005. The Chamber Orchestra of South Africa was conducted by Conrad van Alphen.

“The highlight of this concert … a deeply rewarding experience … prodigal in invention …eminently accessible … an infectious vitality … an infallible ear for novel sonority …The opening movement is a gorgeous tapestry of shot colours … The beauty of the nostalgic slow movement … dissolves into the purest poetry. The playful and delicately scored finale, a wonderful odyssey of rippling sound … abristle with life and a constant delight. The duo-pianists played with fluency and communicative warmth ... they displayed a wide range of  dynamics…” 

R. van Rensburg - Pretoria News

         

“A bold, festive piece … exuberant in the outer movements … unbounded adventurousness … the central movement lyrical … nostalgic.  The piano duo was prepared to their very fingertips to make the première memorable ... a palpable level of enthusiasm.  In the slow movement they evinced deep musical feeling ..." 

 P. Boekkooi - Die Beeld

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Nettle & Markham gave the first Cape Town performance in November 2006 during the Cape Town International Summer Music Festival.  Tragically, Prof. Bowman died just weeks before being able to hear a live performance of the work he'd played such an important part in.

"This concerto, like Hofmeyr's other works, shows technical assurance, the classical style teasing the listener's musical intelligence with ironic as well as serious references.  Various motifs and combinations are used, alternating between typical 18th century writing (employing fugato and strict canon) and 20th century note-series techniques.  Hofmey'rs strong melodic sense, striking contrasts in rhythm, tempo and texture along with rich, colourful orchestration kept me captivated.  Even on first hearing it was clear that the pianists were brilliant..." 

P. Kooij - Die Burger

 

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Complete Two-Piano Concerto Repertoire:

SAINT-SAENS Carnival of the Animals
POULENC Concerto in D Minor
MENDELSSOHN Concerto in E
ARNOLD Concerto Op.104
BARTOK Concerto for two pianos and percussion
MOZART Concerto in F K242
MOZART Concerto in E flat K365
BRUCH Concerto in A flat Op.88a
BRITTEN Scottish Ballad Op.26
DAVIS, Carl 'Champions' Concerto
HOFMEYR, Hendrik Concerto (2004)

 

Concertos for 1 piano/4 hands:

ARNOLD

Concerto for Piano Duet and Strings

                            

 

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Choral 

 

Although appearing as concerto soloists and recitalists forms the basis of David and Richard’s performing activities, they also relish opportunities to join forces with singers and choirs in  masterpieces of the choral repertoire.  Orff’s Carmina Burana and Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle have been firm favourites for many seasons and following their involvement, in 2004, in the recreation of the 1st London performance of Brahms’ Requiem they have been subsequently invited to perform this momentous work in its fascinating four-handed version on many occasions.

 

Soloists, Chorus, Two Pianos and Harmonium: 

ROSSINI     Petite Messe Solennelle

 

 

           

Soloists, Chorus, Two Pianos and Percussion:

ORFF Carmina Burana
LAMBERT The Rio Grande
DYSON The Blacksmiths

 

 

Soloists, Chorus and 1 piano/4 hands:

BRAHMS German Requiem

This more immediate and intimate version of a much loved choral work has received a very warm, enthusiastic appreciation from audiences, singers and conductors alike:

"I can't thank you enough for your marathon contribution to the evening on Sunday.  It is clearly a massive undertaking, and you handled it so magnificently... The whole idea of performing the Requiem in that way is clearly such a good one, and I was thrilled by the way it turned out. Your presence and the sheer quality of your playing provided the ultimate inspiration".   [Brian Kay, 2006]

Throughout his life Brahms was encouraged by his publishers to transcribe his major works for home consumption (ie for 1 piano/4 hands) and he usually complied, although he was often so reticent about owning up to the fact of having done so that he insisted they be published under various pseudonyms.  The recent publication of his duet arrangement of the Requiem has resulted in a number of performances with singers of this version which have not always been successful due to misconceptions regarding the transcription.  Brahms’ one piano/four-hand transcription of the Requiem is a self-contained reduction of the complete score (solo, choral and instrumental parts) and, as such, was obviously never intended to be used as a substitute for the orchestra in choral performances (despite its possible use as substitute for the orchestra in the first private chamber performance in London in 1871).  So as to be able to present the work in a satisfactory form in performances with choir and soloists, for their unique version Nettle & Markham have painstakingly recreated the orchestral parts (from both Brahms’ piano transcription and the original score) and perform a one piano/four-hands version of the orchestral score which faithfully represents the letter and spirit of this great work, presenting it in a new light but with all the immediacy and intensity the composer intended.           

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Soloists/Chorus and 1 piano/4 hands

BRAHMS    Liebeslieder Waltzes

 

Chorus, 1 piano/4 hands and organ

CROSSE    The Covenant of the Rainbow

 

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