Piano joins flute for Sunday gig

The Langley Community Music School is warning up the depths of winter with a Latin-inspired concert on Sunday.

Paolo Bortolussi joins the Bergmann Piano Duo for L’histore du Tango on Jan. 12.

“What a wonderful way to keep warm this January by listening to some fiery tango and tango-inspired music,” said Elizabeth Bergmann. “This concert is dedicated to the Tango inspired music of of Astor Piazzolla and the main piece on the programme features his flute and piano work, L’histoire du Tango. It’s exemplary of the composer’s knack for combining passion and energy with the sensual and more evocative elements of the tango.”

Paolo Bortolussi will demonstrate his flare for Tango on the flute with a couple of solo Tango etudes by the Argentinian composer.

He will also partner with Marcel Bergmann on piano to perform the famous L’histoire du Tango.

Elizabeth and Marcel Bergmann will perform Michaelangelo 70 arranged for two pianos by Piazzolla’s long time colleague and pianist of his ensemble, Pablo Ziegler, as well as the well-known Libertango and Oblivion arranged by Marcel. The duo will also include an original work by Marcel inspired by Piazzolla, Ben Venuto.

Tickets are available at the box office and by calling 604-534-2848 ($15 adults, $13 seniors, and $10 students). The Rose Gellert Hall is at 4899 207th St.

Marcel and Elizabeth Bergmann have been performing together since 1989 and have garnered many awards including first prize at the International Chamber Music Competition in Caltanissetta, Italy and at the fouth Murray Dranoff International Two Piano Competition. Their recitals and concerts with orchestra have taken Elizabeth and Marcel throughout the Americas and Europe, and they have recorded numerous CDs.  Elizabeth Bergmann is artistic director, concerts and director of Summer Programs at LCMS.

Marcel Bergmann is an associate composer of the Canadian Music Centre, and is director of Program Advancement at LCMS.

A graduate of the University of Ottawa and Indiana University School of Music, where he received his Masters and Doctoral degrees, Bortolussi is currently on faculty at Langley Community Music School, Kwantlen Polytechic University and the University of British Columbia.

He is principal flutist with the Vancouver Island Symphony. A specialist in contemporary music, Bortolussi is also the artistic director of the Nu:BC Collective, a cutting edge new music and multi-media arts ensemble in residence at the University of British Columbia.

Bortolussi has premiered over 75 solo and chamber works, more than a dozen of which were written for him.