VESNA DUO PRESENTS: THE RITE OF SPRING BY IGOR STRAVINSKY
(ARRANGED FOR MARIMBA AND PIANO)
PURCHASE: CD, BANDCAMP (DIGITAL DOWNLOAD)
STREAM: SPOTIFY, APPLE MUSIC, AMAZON MUSIC, DEEZER
"And yet my favorite new recording of this long hot summer may be the Vesna Duo's new transcription of "The Rite of Spring," played on nothing more than piano and marimba. If it may be described as a microcosm of Stravinsky's piece, it is such a thoughtful and unusual reading that it invites the listener to re-examine and hear the "Rite" anew.
- Tim Page
The Wall Street Journal
Professor Emeritus of Musicology at the University of Southern California
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism
"The sheer passion for this project, in all of its facets, shines through with great clarity."
- Steven Schick
Distinguished Professor of Music
Reed Family Presidential Chair in Music
University of California, San Diego
OUR STORY
During the early months of the pandemic, we decided to take on a HUGE meaningful project. The time felt right (although the times were quite wrong in many ways!) to go for something slightly mad that might consume our waking days.
We decided to perform Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring in our own arrangement. Ksenija finished the first draft of the arrangement in three weeks. Several months later, our version of the Rite of Spring for marimba and piano was born on stage - fully memorized and blister-causing for both of us.
"The performance is a masterclass in performative focus, as well as an exquisite demonstration of musician chemistry to the most natural and audibly entrancing of results."
Throw the Dice and Play Nice
Rite of Spring live [highlights, world premiere]
"From the opening bassoon solo of a Lithuanian folk song transcribed for the marimba to the driving, pulsating rhythms of "Spring Rounds", the energy and excitement that sizzles between the artists creates some jaw-dropping moments."
Reader's Digest UK
