This ratio manages to strike gold

THE GOLDEN RATIO Conservatorium Recital Hall

RECEIVING a world premiere in the presence of its composer, Peter Myers’ SURGE for two pianos, eight hands (2015) is the first instalment of a projected five-movement opus. Michael Kieran Harvey gave an opening talk on the links between the two works on the program. Reference was made to the Golden Ratio and to Fibonacci numbers that appear in nature being used as a template in matters of structure and proportion for both this and Bartok’s Sonata for 2 pianos and percussion, Sz.110.

The performance of Myers’ intricate piece demanded precise timing and co-ordination.

Pianists Kieran Harvey, Arabella Teniswood-Harvey, Jack Barnes and Jennifer Yu provided results that reflected careful preparation and generally accurate execution.

Bartok’s masterpiece was premiered on January 16, 1938, in Basel, Switzerland.

It also required exacting synchronisation between the two pianos and percussion.

Kieran Harvey and Teniswood-Harvey (pianos), along with brilliant Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra percussionists Matthew Goddard and Tracey Patten, achieved a thrilling performance, the capacity audience experiencing a significant musical event that Kieran Harvey had been planning for a decade.

— PETER DONNELLY