Juan, Mariel, and Friends opens their annual concert series on Sunday, 25 July at St Andrew’s College
Drill Hall at 7.30pm.
Juan, Mariel, and Friends opens their annual concert series on Sunday, 25 July at St Andrew’s College
Drill Hall at 7.30pm.
Sponsored by the Rupert Musiekstigting and Sundial Bed and Breakfast, the series is now on its fourth year. The opening concert features as special guests pianists Liesl-Maret Jacobs (a Music lecturer at the University of KZN), and Erika Bothma (senior lecturer at NMMU).
All pianists in this concert are highly active performers, teachers, and music organisers. They team up to present the Grahamstown and Eastern Cape audience with three piano concertos from the baroque, classical, and romantic periods.
These three well-loved piano concertos will be heard in a more intimate way – a chamber music version, accompanied by string quintet.
Each member of the string quintet then plays a more important and vital role than being just one player in their section in the orchestra.
Moreover, the wind parts are distributed among the string players. Collaborating with the three pianists will be the Rhodes Quintet: Juan Muñoz and Duncan Samson both on violin, Nicholas Fidler on viola, cellist Cameron Cordell and Dorothy Holder playing the double bass.
Muñoz and Ilusorio have been busy keeping classical music alive in Grahamstown since moving to Grahamstown in 2004.
The Juan, Mariel, and Friends concert series aims to provide chamber music at the highest level, simulataneously encouraging collaborations between guest musicians from out of town, local, musicians as well as giving opportunities to students to work together and perform in an encouraging atmosphere.
The concert will be repeated on 27 July at the NMMU Auditorium in Port Elizabeth. Dr Liezl-Maret Jacobs will also be presenting a piano teaching workshop on 26 July from 2 to 4.30pm at the Rhodes University Music Department.
Tickets are available at the door: R70/40, R220 for series ticket (four concerts). Scholars and children are admitted for free.
