Boris Bizjak, a flautist from Slovenia, and Maltese pianist Marcelle Zahra, who both live in London, will perform a concert entitled Music from the Heart of Europe next Saturday at Malta Society of Arts in Valletta.
The two full-time, freelance musicians have known each other for a few years and have been good friends since they first met through a mutual musician friend. Although they have frequently talked about the idea of performing as a duo they did not start playing together until last year.
As musicians do, every time they would meet up they would often talk about music, musicians, concerts they were currently involved in and would frequently share ideas and inspire each other to create new projects. So it was only a matter of time until they decided to join forces and started working on a selection of pieces; but first they wanted to check out how they would feel playing as a duo; and they also wanted to try out playing the programme they had prepared in a concert setting.
Zahra said: “Having known each other before we combined efforts made it easier to obtain the musical communication required, and the dynamic between us felt right instantly.”
Their first joint concert was in June last year in a small local theatre in Blackheath, southeast London. “Since then we’ve played a few other concerts across London and now we’re very much looking forward to our next destination: Malta,” added Bizjak.
As the title suggests, the Music from the Heart of Europe concert will take the audience on a journey of Romantic music, written by composers from across Europe. Even though the chosen repertoire is from within one period, nonetheless the music captures a variety of nuances and contrast in character, spirit, colours and ambiences. The audience will be presented with a feast of European music from the Romantic era, exploring lighthearted and invigorating tunes, Romantic heartfelt harmonies, flourishing virtuosity and heroic sentiments.
“The pieces we’ll be playing are very accessible and easy to listen to,” said Zahra. “The music does not pose too big a challenge on the listener and offers an instant connection with the audience through its many diverse emotional intentions.”
Bizjak added: “Our challenge as musicians is to communicate all these subtle intentions effectively, telling a story through the medium of sound, which is incomparable to many other means of expression. Hopefully these musical intentions will have the desired effect on the audience, offering them an uplifting experience that feeds the soul.”
Asked about their future plans, Zahra and Bizjak said that after the Malta concert they will continue to perform the programme in different venues in the UK and beyond. They will also be recording an album with Hedone Records in a few months’ time, including pieces from the programme they will be playing in Malta.
Both musicians are keen on developing their versatility as a duo, and apart from learning new pieces in the near future, they will also possibly look into expanding into a bigger chamber group for various future projects that they have in the pipeline.
Music from the Heart of Europe is taking place on Saturday, April 13, at 6pm at the Malta Society of Arts, 219 Republic Street, Valletta. For tickets, visit the website below.
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/18473078662