When the musicians of the Chameleon Trio took to the stage on the evening of Thursday 24 April, it was more than just a well put-together performance, it was the coming together of three very close friends making music together once again.
When the musicians of the Chameleon Trio took to the stage on the evening of Thursday 24 April, it was more than just a well put-together performance, it was the coming together of three very close friends making music together once again.
The world renowned chamber group performed to a crowd of young and old music enthusiasts at what was the fourth show of their Garden Route Reunion Tour, marking 20 years since their first performances together in Germany.
They performed in the well-attended, low lit Beethoven Room of the Rhodes department of Music and Musicology.
The Chameleon Trio is comprised of bassoonist Sarah Burnett, oboist Aisling Casey and pianist Catherine Foxcroft who met whilst studying at Hochschule fur Musik und Theater in Hanover, Germany.
The three began making music together after accompanying one another in music practical classes and started touring shortly after, to countries such as Ireland, the UK, Netherlands and South Africa.
“I was being marked for a class and Catherine ended up being the one who assisted me, or maybe it was Sarah, it was so long ago I can’t even remember!” said the group’s oboist, Casey.
“Anyway, we all ended up assisting each other for classes at one point or another as well as going on tours as a class and the three of us became very close and have been ever since.”
The trio’s friendship is evident on stage as they perform intricate pieces by composers such as Beethoven, Quantz and Previn with ease, giving each other musical cues with nothing more than a quick nod, glance or a warm smile.
The show ended with a piece by Francis Poulenc which seemed to show off the musical character of each musician as they performed what Casey described as “a light and bubbly piece, like a nice glass of champagne at the end of the show.”
Foxcroft, a lecturer at Rhodes University’s department of Music and Musicology, explained how much she enjoyed having her two friends and musical companions in Grahamstown at once for the first time in 18 years.
“We spent our formative years together, so we have always been very close and we always keep in contact via email and Facebook, but it’s just so lovely to all be together again at the same time” said Foxcroft.
With the Grahamstown show done, the Chameleon Trio still have two more shows in Mossel Bay and Cape Town.
They say that after all the shows are done, they hope to record some of their music to be released.
