Latest crop of reviews

Here's the latest crop of reviews regarding our latest album "When Words Fade" and our release performance at Galapagos Arts Space in NYC.

Backtrack:

Believe all the hype: Greg Anderson and Elizabeth Joy Roe—more famously called Anderson and Roe—are electric. At Galapagos Art Space in Brooklyn, this piano duo did more than celebrate the launch of their new album; they fashioned an entirely new concert experience.

The Glass:

They are already powerful pianists that become super-charged in each other’s presence, and proceed to give very thoughtful and colorful performances with a passion that separates them from populists.

The Big City Blog:

The Rach­mani­noff was spe­cial, not swoon­ing but with a dry strength, and the exquis­ite cadenza brought them deserved “bravos.” Behind their flair, they are at their best in qui­eter music, pieces that reveal the fine qual­ity of their musi­cian­ship. ...an enthralling per­for­mance of Schumann’s “Mond­nacht,” which I wished would never end.

The Juilliard Journal:

Arresting... fierce... glittering.. affecting... electrifying. Listening to the sweet strains of “Mathilde, Marieke, et Madeleine,” based on songs by Jacques Brel and Gérard Jouannest, feels like slipping into a smoky Parisian cabaret. 

Time Out New York:

A decidedly broad-minded young piano duo.

Huge Announcement: "When Words Fade" Release Party on May 22nd in NYC

Where: Galapagos Arts Space -- 16 Main St, Dumbo, Brooklyn, NYC
When: Tuesday, May 22nd, 2012
Doors: 7:00 PM
Start: 8:00 PM
Tickets: $20 pre-sale / $35 VIP  
Additional info: 718 222 8500 

May 22nd; Brooklyn, NYC: Be there, be square!! Seriously, if you find yourself nearby (and even if you don't!), check out this momentous Anderson & Roe event; We couldn't be more excited! An inspiring and beautiful space, delicious cocktails, two Steinway grand pianos, intoxicating music, and your's truly = a recipe for an unforgettable evening!

 
Galapagos is proud to present the cutting-edge piano duo Anderson & Roe.

Celebrating the success of their billboard-topping classical album When Words Fade, this one-of-a-kind live concert will include music from across the ages ranging from Vivaldi and Schumann to Stravinsky and Michael Jackson.

Signed to the Steinway & Sons record label, Anderson & Roe have been featured multiple times on NPR including the coveted song of the day for their rendition of Michael Jackson’s "Billie Jean" as well as on Performance Today and All Things Considered.

Greg Anderson and Elizabeth Joy Roe met in 2000 as freshman at the Juilliard School and formed their amazing partnership soon after. They have toured to sold-out houses across the globe and amazed audiences with the musical diversity and intense live performances. Anderson & Roe strongly believe in the communicative potential of music and they aim to make classical piano music a relevant and powerful force in society.

NPR'S Song of the Day!

Exciting news to kick off the spring season: the Anderson & Roe Piano Duo's cover of "Billie Jean" is NPR Music's "Song of the Day"! Listen to it here: A Speechless 'Billie Jean'

"When Words Fade" hits #2 on the charts!

Happy New Year! 2012 is off to an exciting start: we just reached the #2 spot on the Billboard Traditional Classical charts! To celebrate, we've created a super dramatic trailer, set to our cover of Radiohead's "Paranoid Android."

Help us out by sharing this video with your friends. Thanks so much for your support, everyone!!

Also, check out our Listen Magazine feature here.

Help us spread the word!

We debuted at #6 on the Traditional Classical Billboard Charts last week! Yay!!

But we know we can do even better. :-) Loyal and wonderful fans, help us spread the word about our new album on the Steinway Label, When Words Fade. Write a review on Arkivmusic.com, Amazon.com, or iTunes -- heck, write a review on *all* of the sites. (Seriously, your favorable reviews on these sites do more good than you realize!) Share a link to the album on Facebook, tweet about your favorite song, gift the CD/DVD combo to friends this holiday season, etc.

Thank you in advance for all your help. And most importantly: enjoy the album!

The Top 10 Reasons to Purchase "When Words Fade"

• TEN | It makes the perfect holiday gift for music listeners of all types—from the classical neophytes to the diehard aficionados.
• NINE | Engineered by Grammy Award-winning Steven Epstein and recorded on two beautiful Steinway concert grands, the sound quality on this Steinway Label release will blow you away.
• EIGHT | Where else can you hear two classical pianists jam to pop songs by Michael Jackson and Coldplay? The dance party is on!
• SEVEN | The packaging features superlative photos, 12 glossy pages of utterly fascinating commentary, and two of the roundest discs we've ever seen!!!! (They make terrific frisbees ... we know, we've tried.)
• SIX | To answer the following question: How on earth will Greg & Liz translate Jacques Brel's inimitable style and picturesque lyrics to the (wordless) piano duo medium?
• FIVE | Help us get on the charts!
• FOUR | Bizet's glorious (but lengthy) opera Carmen has been lovingly fashioned into a "Cliffs Notes" version ... we like to call it our Carmen Thriller.
• THREE | We rock out to Radiohead's "Paranoid Android." Our favorite track.
• TWO | The BONUS DVD! Share our cinematic, demonic, sublime, and smoldering music videos with your friends. Music by Vivaldi, Schubert and more come to life!
• ONE | Embark on an awe-inspiring psychological journey through the depths of the night. This genre-busting, boundary-crossing album features 12 wordless arrangements of songs that speak to the irresistible magic of the night. 

Buy the album on ArkivMusic, amazon.com, or iTunes. Go there. Now. :-) Help us make the charts!

More scores available for sale!

Head over to the "Scores" page to check out the new scores available for sale, most of which are featured on our upcoming album, "When Words Fade": 

• Vivaldi/Anderson & Roe: "Sento in Seno" ("I feel within a rain of tears") from Il Giustino
• Bach/Anderson & Roe: "Die Seele ruht" from Cantata BWV 127 (two pianos AND soprano)
• Arne/Anderson & Roe: "The Glitt'ring Sun" from The Morning (two pianos)
• Mozart/Anderson & Roe: Papageno! (A short fantasy for piano,four-hands based on arias from The Magic Flute)
• Schubert/Anderson & Roe: Der Erlkonig (piano, four-hands)
• Schumann/Anderson & Roe: "Mondnacht" from Liederkreis, Op. 39, No. 5 (two pianos)

Questions with answers

We've been letting questions in the "question bin" pile up for some time now. I'll take a stab at answering a few of them. (And if you have any burning questions for Anderson & Roe, add them to the bin here!)

Giselle asks:

How do you decide which one of you plays each part of a duo/duet?      

Who ends up where? Who's on top, who's on bottom? Left piano, right piano?!? We're versatile! We like to spice things up! When writing music we try to keep the parts balanced, and when deciding parts we aim for variety. If Liz was on piano 1 for a particularly lyrical piece last time, I'll take the piano 1 part this time. If I exhausted myself with endless repeated notes in one piece, we'll make sure Liz takes them the next go 'round. 

That said, sometimes we'll switch sides at a concert, depending on the pianos and the other pieces we're playing. We may sit at the piano that suits the needs of our part, regardless of whether that's the piano we're *supposed* to sit at. Or we may switch sides just for the sake of renewed inspiration -- a different instrument and acoustical angle throws new surprises our way and adds to the spontaneity of live performance!

Puddin' asks:

How about some Gershwin?      

Check out our new CD when it comes out in October! Although there is no Gershwin, there is Jacques Brel, and we think you'd approve. Although he wasn't the melody writer Gershwin was, Brel's songs contained equal amounts of sophistication and jazzy delight, in addition to an unhealthy dose of charisma. ;-)

And if that's not enough for you, come to one of our Midwest tour performances in late-October and November. It's safe to say we'll have a special treat for you.

And finally, Alan asks:

My question is how is the score/parts formatted? is it printed like a part where secondo on the left, and primo on the right? or is it like a conductor score, both parts on the same page and same staff?

This one's easy. We format our one-piano/four-hand scores like a conductor's score. As a duo, we like to see how our part fits into the whole, and when rehearsing we like to point at the page rather than count measure numbers. 

There's loads more questions I haven't answered. We'll save them for another rainy day (or in this case, a tropical storm!).

Writing program notes...

We're currently writing the "considerations for listening" for our upcoming album... Do you have any advice for us?

What do you like to read about in program notes? Personal anecdotes? Historical information? Musical analysis? Food for thought?

VOTE on our new album title!

Help us out. We're deliberating titles for our upcoming album and we want your input. Vote in the poll posted on our Facebook fanpage here!

The album features a collection of our song arrangements -- songs about the night, hallucinations, and delirium. Here are the potential titles:

• All-Nighter
• Asterisk*
• Delirium
• Everyone Else is Asleep
• Lunacy
• Night Vision
• Pupils Dilating in the Dark
• When Words Fade...

Feel free to comment below as well.