|
|
 |
 |
"They have style, passion, energy and commitment in their playing. They radiate such an infectious joy when they perform that one comes away refreshed and renewed."- Marty Merkley, Chautauaqua Institution
"They are a remarkable piano-duo team of sisters...Their performance was enchanting and technically assured."- Nicholas McGegan, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra
"Amy and Sara have a insatiable curiosity about music which leads them to explore every direction music can take them...they stand out."- Alexander Braginsky, International Piano-e-Competition
"This performance really convinced the listener that they have command of the keyboard. Very impressive technically and interpretively."- Allison Nelson, President of the Ellis Jury
"Immensely talented people...excellent performance."- Henry Janiec, Spartanburg Symphony
"Sensitive musically, lovely character and sound. They played as one."- Elizabeth Pridonoff, University of Cininnati College-Conservatory of Music
"Amy and Sara Hamann have the eloquence and ability to maintain their audience under their powers."- L'Impartial, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
"The Hamanns are smart, stylish players, and they have a bold streak...[they] attack their instruments with a fierce energy...The sisters also can play with real delicacy, along with perfect unanimity...The Hamanns will go far."- Michael Anthony, Star Tribune
"It was a stunning performance; they sounded like one."- Spartanburg Herald
"Many times a single very fast phrase would race from one keyboard to the other so seamlessly that it was hard to tell which instrument was playing."- Rochester Post-Bulletin
"The elegantly dressed, sibling soloists - Amy and Sara Hamann - performed the work like a hearty conversation, passing the audience's focus from one to the other and back to the orchestra, with commanding ease."- The Chautauquan Daily
|
|
|
|
|
AMY AND SARA HAMANN, PIANO DUO
Heralded as "having the eloquence and ability to maintain their audience under their powers"
by L'Impartial, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, Amy and Sara Hamann, in just a few years,
have won international recognition, captivating audiences and critics alike wherever they appear.
As winners of the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies' Concerto Competition, Amy and
Sara made their professional debut at the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, MN. Their
broad range of repertoire and versatility in playing period and modern instruments has
led them to be featured artists with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra at the
Chautauqua Institution,
the Columbus Symphony Orchestra,
the Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series,
the Oslo International Music Festival, the Quebec International Duo-Piano Festival, as
well as the Reding-Piette Two-Piano Festival in Switzerland.
The Hamanns joined
Osmo Vanska and the
Minnesota Orchestra
for the American premiere of Haydn's Concerto for Two Pianos and
were the guest artists for the season opening concerts of the
Cedar Rapids Symphony Orchestra,
the Rochester Symphony Orchestra, and
the Colonial Chamber Series in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Frequently, Amy and Sara's performances have been broadcast on national and international
television and radio, including APM's Performance Today and
NPR's Studio 360.
Amy and Sara are the first American Piano Duo to win the Absolute First Prize in the
Fryderyk Chopin Concorso Pianistico Internazionale,
held in Rome, Italy and the First Prize winners of the
International Grieg Competition, held in Oslo, Norway.
The Hamanns are the youngest First Prize winners in the history of the
National Federation of Music Ellis Competition for Duo-Pianists.
In addition to winning the First Prize, Amy and Sara were awarded the Lucile Parrish Ward Award
for the best performance of American music. The sisters are also winners of the prestigious
McKnight Artist Fellowship for Performing Musicians
administered by MacPhail Center for Music.
The Hamanns recorded Beethoven's Complete Piano Duets twice; once on a modern Yamaha grand piano and again on reproductions of period accurate fortepianos from Schubert Club's collection. Naxos released these first of their kind comparative recordings as a double disc set.
Amy and Sara are under the tutelage of
Alexander Braginsky.
|
|
|
