Event Registration

Piano Duets

Julian Jacobson and Mariko Brown
Friday 3 - Sunday 5 July 2015
Course No. 3142
Level: Advanced
Fee: £200
Ensemble Course

A rare opportunity to come on a piano duet course given by both members of a dynamic piano duo. Practising the piano brings great rewards but can sometimes be lonely and frustrating. Piano duets (four hands on one piano) are fun, fulfilling, and a fabulous repertoire!

Many of the great piano composers have richly contributed to the genre, headed by Schubert who wrote several volumes, together with Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms, Dvorak, Debussy, Ravel, Rachmaninov, Poulenc, Richard Rodney Bennett and many others.

Ensemble and balance are of paramount importance, as is rhythmic accuracy, careful and well-organised pedalling (usually taken by the "Secondo" player), and prudent negotiation of one's territory in sometimes intricate textures! The skills needed for duet playing can in turn enhance your solo playing.

Come as a pre-formed duo, or enrol as a "solo" and we will try to team you with a player of an appropriate level. We can also suggest suitable repertoire if this would help. In the classes you will be coached as a duo, so it is important to arrive with your music prepared but the course will be structured so as to allow some time for rehearsal with your partner.

Jacobson-Brown Piano Duo

Since their formation in 2011, the piano duo of Julian Jacobson and Mariko Brown has quickly established itself as an ensemble of rare distinction, vitality and originality. Following their critically acclaimed debut in the Beethoven Piano Society of Europe’s Summer Festival in July 2011, they have given many concerts in venues such as Fairfield Halls, Blackheath Hall, Markson’s Bösendorfer series, Warwick University, Ripley Arts Centre and Brighton Fringe Festival. They perform annually in France in the festival ‘Rencontres Musicales en Eygalières’.

2014 is an exciting year for the duo: they made their highly acclaimed Southbank debut at the Purcell Room in April (where they will make a return visit in July 2015), as well as giving concerts at St John’s Smith Square, the Royal Academy of Music (‘Music Past and Present’ series), the Lower Machen Festival, and at venues in Birmingham, Bristol and Oxford. Their first CD has also been released, of music by Julian’s father Maurice Jacobson, on the British Music Society’s recording label.

In July 2015 they make a return visit to the Southbank Purcell Room.

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All courses are held at Jackdaws in the village of Great Elm, a small village to the west of Frome in Somerset, roughly 30 minutes drive from Bath. Frome Train station is roughly 2.5 miles from Jackdaws with direct trains from Bristol, Bath, Cardiff and London.

A £50 deposit is required to guarantee your place on a course. The total course fee is inclusive of all meals and tuition except breakfast, which is included in the separate B&B price. Please let us know of any dietary requirements at the time of booking and we will be happy to accommodate. Meals are lovingly prepared on site by our cooks using fresh, local ingredients where possible.

B&B rooms are located in friendly family homes and are either within walking distance or a short drive away (5 – 10 minutes). Breakfast is the only meal served at the accommodation; all other meals are provided on site at Jackdaws.

If you like this course, try Pianos for All with Caecilia Andriessen