For those of you who have never paid attention piano duets are amongst the liveliest and most entertaining performances to come off the keys. (I once saw two players change places three or four times in the space of a tune, alternating between primo and secundo)
The duet performance was supposedly started by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - aged 9 at the time - and his sister, Maria Anna On May 13, 1765 at a performance in London. They played on a Sonata in C on specially-built two-handed harpsichord. Mozart went on to compose and play duets for all of his life.
After flourishing for over one-and-a-half centuries the duet was killed off by the recording business. Piano recitals, the preferred venue of duets, were being phased out by mechanical recordings and radio. In fact the publishing business almost phased out duet music completely but for the music lesson business.
Duets bring out a social interaction that is much more personal than even a duo (two instruments) because the participants share the same keyboard. This spurs each player on to perform at the height, or beyond, of their playing capacity. It’s almost like two cowboys riding the same horse, having to accommodate each others strengths and weaknesses while concentrating on staying on the horse.
In fact, Mozart claimed this intimate contact with both the music and the other performer rounded out a player’s talent. So, if you’ve ever been to a piano recital you can see the audience appreciation heighten the moment two piano players sit down together.
[...] Wolfgang wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptmusic, piano music For those of you who have never paid attention piano duets are amongst the liveliest and most entertaining performances to come off the keys. (I once saw two players change places three or four times in the space of a … [...]