New local classical composition premières with five concerts

Supported by the National Youth Music Foundation (NYMF), the CCMC, a registered non-profit organisation, consists of musicians - ranging from young students to professionals - doing performances in a way that is approachable and informative to all audiences.

Rendition of Gustav Mahler’s work

The CCMC commissioned local composer and arranger Matthijs van Dijk to complete the sole surviving work of chamber music by Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, Gustav Mahler. Van Dijk is the son of acclaimed South African composer Peter Louis van Dijk.

In the new composition, van Dijk has taken the themes and motifs in his artistic way to sketch out two additional movements to follow Mahler’s movement. Mahler's works are generally designed for large orchestral forces, symphonic choruses and operatic soloists. The Piano Quartet in A minor is the first movement to an abandoned piano quartet. The new work is aptly dubbed ‘part II: A Mahler Fanfiction’.

Two of the four musicians for these concerts - violinist Jeffrey Armstrong the overall winner and gold medallist of the 2014 NYMC and pianist Tertia Visser, a regular accompanist at the competitions - are well-known faces of the annual National Youth Music Competition. The other two are viola player Stéphanie Lawrenson and cellist Graham du Plessis.

The concert programme includes the first movement of Mahler’s Piano Quartet, Van Dijk’s part II: a Mahler Fanfiction and the Piano Quartet No 3 in C minor Op 60 by Johannes Brahms.

The concerts will take place as follows:

• Wednesday, 19 January at 19:30 at 6 Spin Street in the Cape Town CBD
• Friday, 21 January at 19:00 at the Dutch Reformed Church in Franschhoek
• Saturday 22 January at 16:00 and 19:00 at the Old Tannery in Wellington
• Sunday, 23 January at 14:30 at Erin Hall in Rondebosch

Tickets range from R120 to R200, depending on the venue, and can be booked on Quicket via the CCMC website at here.