On their own, Alessio Bax and Lucille Chung are acclaimed pianists, and have won several competitions. Together, they are a piano duo which has won awards for their two albums and have performed on the world's most prestigious platforms. Prairie Debut presents Bax and Chung on December 11 at the Anne Portnuff Theatre.
Bax and Chung are partners both in life and in music, as the pair has been married since 2003. In this tour, while Chung has been to the prairies before, it is a new experience for Bax.
"It's nice because Alessio has not been to the prairies before... It's nice to share things with your husband, musically and just to savour the local culture, which is nice to do together," Chung says.
The music played during the tour is one piano, four hands, a style which Chung says is perfect for a couple to play and share with the audience.
"All the composers composed them for themselves and their friends to share in a salon setting, so the music is quite intimate. So, it's nice to share the stage with someone else and travel together," Chung says.
Chung promises that the show will show the many things which piano music can do.
"It's quite varied, we start with the classical period of Mozart. It's very inviting, and colourful and playful. Then the Brahms waltzes are extremely intimate and very appealing I think. Then in the second half we just have fun. Centaurus A is composed by Heather Schmidt, it's from outer space, so it's quite cataclysmic and powerful. Last, the five Piazolla tangos which are transcriptions that we both made, so they change from performance to performance, because we improvise at the same time, so it makes it quite exciting," Chung describes.
Since making her professional debut at age 10, Chung has been playing for most of her life, and says that music is something which is present no matter what she does.
"It's really a passion. Even if, for example, you're not practicing, music goes through in your head. You can't just shut it off, it's not like a 9-5 job and you come home and that's it. It's constantly brewing within you, you constantly have new idea, and it's a changing art form as well," Chung explains.
She notes that as she matures and experiences new things, her take on a piece will change as she does, and the music grows as she does.
"There's never 'Oh, I'm there, and that's done," and that's challenging," Chung says.
One of the things she enjoys about touring is meeting the people and discovering the places of they visit in their travels. Chung says that discovering new things is one of the things that both her and Bax enjoy most about touring, from discovering new things about the music to the places they visit.
The show is presented by Prairie Debut as part of the Stars for Saskatchewan series. It will take place December 11 at the Anne Portnuff theatre beginning at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are $30 and available at the Arts Council office or at Welcome Home Floral and Gift Shop on Smith Street East.
