Pianist pair to perform at Aurora University
On Wednesday, Feb. 25, Aurora University will host the two-piano team of Redekopp and Edwards - Karin and Mark Edwards of Wheaton - at 10 a.m. and 10:40 a.m. in Crimi Auditorium in the Institute for Collaboration, 407 S. Calumet Ave. in Aurora. The public is invited. Admission is free.
The 10 a.m. program features short works designed for younger listeners with virtuosity from great piano repertoire for older listeners. The pianists will briefly comment on each piece.
The selections are: Felix Mendelssohn's Andante and Allegro brillante in celebration of his 200th birthday anniversary; prelude and finale from "Cahier sonore" (The Notebook of Sounds) by Miyoshi; "The Malaguena," a lively Spanish folk dance, from French composer Maurice Ravel's "Rapsodie espagnole"; and the Finale from "Carnival of the Animals" by Camille Saint-Saens in an original arrangement by the duo.
The 10:40 a.m. program features a world tour of virtuosic music for piano four-hands, showcasing composers from Germany, Japan and France, and music inspired by Spanish traditional dances and festivals.
The Edwards have performed throughout Canada and the United States on university recital series and community artist series and as guest artists with orchestra. They have also performed in England and completed a concert tour of Japan and Korea - 14 performances in three weeks.
Last fall, they released their CD, "Two-Piano Tapestry: Redekopp and Edwards." In 2007, they made their radio broadcast debut on "Live from WFMT: The Fazioli Salon Series" and released CD/DVD recordings of a live performance of "The Mennonite Piano Concerto with Audience Hymn Sing." Last season, they performed a concert for the Music Institute of Chicago in the Evanston Winter Duo-Piano Festival. The husband and wife duo have also been featured artists in international symposia and state music teachers' convention and have conducted master classes in Japan, South Korea, and the U.S. Recognized as accomplished soloists, each performs regularly with orchestra, in recital and in chamber music concerts.
Karin Redekopp Edwards is professor of piano at Wheaton College and holds degrees from the University of Manitoba and Indiana University. Mark Edwards is organist at Baker Memorial United Methodist Church in St. Charles and maintains a private piano, organ, and harpsichord studio in Wheaton. He holds degrees from Eastman School of Music and Indiana University. The two pianists met while pursuing graduate studies with Abbey Simon at Indiana University.