Peta Stewart
Musical families in South Africa are not unusual – think De Groote, Schwietering/Martens – but the Temmingh family is definitely one of the most interesting.
Composer Roelof Temmingh was born in Amsterdam but came to SA in 1958, his sister Jenny was married to organist Albert Troskie, older brother Henk was the Director of WITS’ Music Department, younger brother Lykele was conductor of the KZNPO for years, son Stefan, is the internationally renowned recorder player, wife Zorada, a third-generation organist, and now it is the turn of his son, Roelof Jnr. It is Roelof Junior who is making waves – as a pianist (soloist, orchestral soloist and a member of his Delphine Trio). Roelof Jnr is also a teacher, organist, and composer (he wants to do more) and, he says, perhaps one day a conductor too, perhaps conducting from the keyboard.
Roelof Jnr will be in South Africa for four concerts – with the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra when he will perform his father’s Concerto conducted by Nicholas Chalmers on Thursday, 9 April for the Cape Town Concert Series on Saturday 11 April when he will perform the Sonata D 960 in B-flat Major by one of his favourite composers, Schubert, along with Forgotten Melodies by Medtner, and Heerenboontjies in Buckinghampaleis, a programme which traces the Afrikaans art song from the Sandvlei to Buckingham Palace with The Netherlands included, with soprano Marina Erasmus on April 17. This concert will also include one of his own pieces. He is also doing a recital in Johannesburg on 12 April.
Pianist Dina Parakhina
There were never any thoughts in young Roelof’s mind about which career path he would take because he was always surrounded by music.
“With my entire family involved in music, music was all around me. It wasn’t something I suddenly discovered at the age of 10 and everything changed; although I did love maths and applied for degrees in maths at Stellenbosch University and Music at the Royal College of Music.” No prizes for guessing which won.
“I wanted to see the world. I was very fortunate to have Dina Parakhina for my Master’s degree and Artists’ Diploma and in fact I still take lessons with her, because she inspires me still and was a huge influence. She made me see music differently.”
Roelof studied in London for seven years, and built so many connections and friendships that he decided to stay on.
“I was teaching seven days a week and playing, and it just made sense to stay in London and not start all over again somewhere else, even if that would have been in South Africa. Britain, even after Brexit, is still connected to Europe and my trio performs a fair amount across the channel.”
Art song, chamber music
He confesses to an attachment to art song and to chamber music even though it doesn’t have the same freedom that solo piano has.
“You need to listen to those on stage with you; playing with an orchestra is also different – a sort of battle with the conductor some times!”
He doesn’t foresee a battle with Nicholas Chalmers because they are working on the concerto together in London, where both are based. They have worked together in various contexts and Roelof has great regard for what Chalmers does, and Nicholas says, “I have long been an admirer of the musicianship and intellect of Roelof Temmingh. During lockdown we challenged each other to learn different books of Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier. I already played book 1, so every week I learned a new Prelude and Fugue from book 2 and Roelof learned book 1.
Then, each Friday we would send each other a recording of our musical endeavours in our specially created WhatsApp group – ‘Bach to Basics’. This sharing of music really kept us focused during this difficult period and it resulted in us building a great friendship too. I am delighted to be conducting the Temmingh Piano Concerto with Roelof and the CPO and I hope the audience sense the friendship and musical bond between conductor and pianist.”
Spiky, with exciting harmonies and counterpoint
“Nic and I have been working on the softer elements of the piece, making them more atmospheric. It was premiered by Melanie Horne in 1996 and when she died two years later, my father walked into his lecture room at Stellenbosch University, put on a recording of the performance, then left. Horne was a very dear friend. Fast-forward a few decades — when I first performed this concerto I thought it would be an emotional experience. But there was no time for me to be emotional. The music, though rhythmically spiky with exciting harmonies and counterpoint, is in fact very hard! But it is lovely to get to know my father through his unique voice in this concerto. I have performed it twice as well as in the Royal College of Music Concerto Competition, where I reached the finals. I last played with the CPO in the Huberte Rupert Memorial Concert in Stellenbosch in 2017, and I have never performed in the City Hall so I am so looking forward to that.”
Roelof’s trip to Cape Town will also be a chance to reconnect with the new CEO and Artistic Director of the CPO, Adriaan Fuchs, whom he last saw at Carnegie Hall when he performed with the Africa United Youth Orchestra, and Zorada of course. While Zorada will obviously be at his concerts, he will also be in the audience for the third concert in the CPO’s season, when she plays the organ in Mendelssohn’s symphony-cantata “Lobgesang”.
Since he loves nature, he will be enjoying what the Cape has to offer before he goes back to London, where he cycles to keep fit, teaches two days a week, is the pianist at a school for five days a week, teaches little choristers, plays the organ in church on Sundays, does the cryptic crossword and gets ready for concerts in London and Paris in the Wigmore French Song Exchange and listens to Nina Simone, a musical genius in his eyes who has influenced how he plays – like two different rhythms of walking steadily on the ground while holding a soaring kite!
Of course Beethoven and Wagner are amongst his musical gods, along with his more personal favourites: Prokofiev, Schumann and Schubert.
The dress rehearsal for the CPO concert on the same day is open to the public at 11:00. There will be a pre-concert talk open to concertgoers at 18:45.
Who: Pianist Roelof Temmingh with the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra; in recital for Cape Town Concert Series; Endler Concert Series
Where: Cape Town City Hall; Baxter Concert Hall
When: 9 April at9:30; 11 April at 11:00, 17 April at19:00
Concert tickets:
CPO: Artscape Dial-A-Seat 021 421 7695, and here
CPO Dress rehearsal tickets: Here
Concert series: Here
Endler Hall Concert Series: Here
WS
