Brenda Barbera's Blog: Snapchats for Piano Duet

Melanie Spanswick has written a beautiful, sparkling new series of duets. They are highly evocative and will appeal to adults and children alike. I recommend them wholeheartedly!

Lucy Parham – Concert Pianist, UK

Snapchats duets by Melanie Spanswick are enjoyable to play, and are varied in

character and texture. The most appealing feature of this collection, is that due to their brevity, they can easily be performed as a cycle or as a small group.

Irina Gorin – Expert Piano Teacher and Author of Tales of a Musical Journey, USA

My new piano duets are now available to purchase as a digital download or as a hard copy (pre-order). Snapchats are a collection of eleven pieces for those of around early intermediate or late elementary level (approximately Grades 2-4 ABRSM).

Piano Duets are fun to play, often providing players with the only opportunity to work with a fellow pianist. They offer the chance to improve many aspects of piano playing, including ensemble, sense of rhythm and sight-reading facility, as well as sharpening up listening skills too.

Snapchats are varied in texture, character, and mood. They require several slightly more unusual piano techniques and sound effects (for this level of playing, at least); glissandi, silently depressed chords, and assorted articulations (staccato, legato, tenuto etc.). Tuneful and Minimalist, each duet is very short; my brief was to write pieces of around eight to ten bars in length (yes, really!), which was quite a challenge! Their brevity encourages students to play them as a whole set, or as a smaller group, and they are suitable for children or adult pupils.

You can listen to each duet in the set by clicking on the links below. I recorded them last week with British concert pianist Nick van Bloss. You can buy the score and find out more here.

EVC Music Publications