HITTING THE RIGHT NOTES - Interview with Mervyn Naidoo - SUNDAY TRIBUNE 11 September 2022.

WHEN Christopher Duigan taps on a piano’s keyboard it releases velvety reverberations that draw appreciation from captivated audiences, as is expected to be the case when he performs at the St Agnes Church in Kloof next Sunday.

PIANIST Christopher Duigan has been hitting the right notes at music concerts for more than three decades and his audiences keep coming back for more. Picture: Val Adamson

Duigan, 54, is a celebrated concert pianist who has been hitting the right notes for more than three decades, and refers to himself as an independent classical music entrepreneur.

His methods of playing and promoting music have also become a model of study at a leading US music school.

Even the Covid-19 enforced lockdowns that came into effect in March 2020 were not enough to drown the sounds of his music.

With Duigan’s ingenuity and help from some friends, he got to livestream his grand piano performances from his Pietermaritzburg home to thousands of worldwide followers, and chase some lockdown blues away.

He shared the home with his former partner Barry Lovegrove, a professor of ecophysiology, who died in March.

“During lockdown, I was stuck at home. All my concerts were cancelled and my career seemed to be disappearing as gatherings were prohibited.”

Duigan responded with one-hour long livestreamed music sessions, using his iPhone.

“With time it developed and I linked with a local audio visual expert who was also stuck at home.

“He helped me with mics and other equipment.”

Duigan said Lovegrove's role was pivotal.

“Barry, because of his technical ability as a photographer and his creativity, started to produce the livestreams for me. I used to play and talk to the audiences. He did the technical stuff.”

REFLECTIONS on pianist Christopher Duigan’s performances that span more than three decades. Picture: Val Admason

Attracting a following was easy for Duigan.

“I have my own mailing list, Facebook pages, and WhatsApp groups, which enables me to connect with thousands of people and share my plans.”

He said he received good support and his shows were for free.

“Locals and people from around the world made donations. With the money they sent, I built my own studio fitted with cameras, mics and mixers.”

Duigan regarded the home-based concerts as a community project that offered “beautiful and soothing piano music” .

During performances Duigan enjoyed interacting with audiences, talking about the music and the composers. He quizzed audiences about the music they’d like to hear.

“It has been very uplifting because lots of people connected with what we were doing. Isolating at home made them feel very threatened by the world.

“But the piano music was affirming.”

Duigan said his livestreamed concerts began on March 28, 2020 and were still running.

“Since then, I only stopped for three weeks when Barry died.”

He said he promoted his own concerts and didn’t wait for invites.

“I hire the venue, do the publicity most often, meet and greet the audience, tear the tickets, play the music, and I help serve tea and coffee during the interval.”

Duigan said he served communities across KwaZulu-Natal with concerts on a monthly basis and invited local or international artists on some occasions.

Some performances were staged in the music studio at his home, for about 40 people, and dinner was also served.

“I don’t teach or lecture. I am a completely freelance, self-promoting, entrepreneur and classic music promoter.

“It is a unique career and a new path that classic musicians are taking, which I am pioneering.”

Duigan said The Juilliard School in New York has studied his operations and has used his model and story as an inspiration for students

He described his events as “intimate and authentic”, and aimed at demystifying the experience of classical music.

“Lots of people see it as very austere and formal. I try to bring it to a more realistic and human level.

“Piano music in particular was not jarring but comforting.”

The music he played at concerts was a standard repertoire which included Beethoven, Chopin and Debussy’s pieces.

He also includes ragtime, tango, contemporary piano, jazz music, and in recent years, he played some of his own compositions.

Duigan said he was 7 when he started playing.

“My older sister was having piano lessons and I copied her every time she played. The teacher noticed I learnt what she taught my sister and approached my parents about teaching me.”

He studied music in Durban and Cape Town, completed his Master’s degree, before getting an opportunity to study at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.

Before going to England, he met Lovegrove.

“He said if I wanted to stay in England and continue my career there, it would be fine. If I pursued it in South Africa, he would support me to fulfil my dreams and ambitions and that is what happened.”

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decembEr 2020

Christopher Duigan: Calm in the Chaos

Piano concerts adapting to change

One of the country’s most prolific and accomplished concert pianists, Christopher Duigan, has performed two live streamed free concerts every week throughout lockdown.

Duigan, and his Music Revival initiative, are synonymous with accessible live classical music concerts performed throughout South Africa, with home-town Pietermaritzburg as its fulcrum. For the past 30 something years, Duigan performed on average 100 performances a year – solo, with associates and with musical ensembles.

Together with virtually the whole global arts community, his ability to perform ground to a halt when live performance opportunities ceased the moment hard lockdown was declared.

In order not to lose momentum, Duigan opted to explore live music concerts streamed from his beautiful Maritzburg home. The concerts have become more technologically sophisticated and more creatively interesting with the passing of the months, and Duigan, and his plethora of appreciative loyal fans around the country, have become comfortable with the twice-weekly musical offerings.

Duigan is quite possibly the only concert pianist in the world, and certainly the only pianist in South Africa, to be doing this.

“This started off as a temporary project, an interim measure to allow me to perform over hard lockdown, but it is becoming a permanent and important part of my output, and I intend to continue with this, in addition to live concerts which are beginning to open up,” he says.

“My live concerts have appealed particularly to dedicated music lovers, but interestingly the online concerts are also providing a service akin to informal music therapy – an hour of company and calm midst all the uncertainty. It is surprising how many of the comments are appreciative of this. Its not about the music necessarily, but what the music represents. The predictability and structure of music is soothing and reassuring.

“I read with interest about the musicians who have performed during times of war and crisis and am beginning to understand better about the restorative and healing role of music. I am inspired by Myra Hess who arranged 20000 regular lunch time concerts over six and a half years during the Second World War – performing midst the bombing. She personified the war motto of Keep Calm and Carry On. Her commitment and bravery were astonishing.

“And of course, the concerts can be watched from anywhere in the world, so I am not bound by geography, which means friends of friends are beginning to join us from all over the place. And that they are regular and free – so the predictability allows people to schedule and plan. Viewers can comment and give feedback on FB, so I can respond during the concert which personalises the concert experience. It is such a fascinating process!”

Duigan plays carefully structured repertoires of familiar music, interspersed with some original and improv pieces. The tone is informal and cosy – music interspersed by conversation, with Chris talking about the pieces being performed… and occasionally apologising for the intrusion of his dachshunds who wonder “on stage”!

Pre-lockdown Christopher Duigan was one of South Africa's busiest concert artists. His performances ranged from those of the core classical repertoire, both as soloist with orchestra and in recital to music well beyond the classical repertoire. His strong sense of community was shown in his active promotion of regular Music Revival concerts across KZN and other parts of the country. These concerts have not only developed new audiences in various communities but also provided performance platform for many young and aspiring soloists. Duigan's work as an entrepreneurial musician has attracted international attention for his innovative and ground-breaking approach and his activities have been said to be truly representative of a 21st century classical musician.

The challenge is of course earning an income through the online medium. Duigan is clear that he wants to continue to offer the concerts for free – and invites audiences to make a donation if they are able, but the financial implications of his concert series is difficult, especially as there are costs involved in creating the concerts.

“I hope to find a way to make the numbers work as I intend to continue. In fact, if feels as though I am just getting started!”

Catch Christopher Duigan live in Concert on Saturdays and in Piano Hours on Wednesdays at 6pm. South African audiences receive better feed on YouTube, but concerts can be accessed through the Music Revival website and FB.

Christopher Duigan is a Steinway Artist