Music Review

Nerva and Robenson Altino, better known as the Altino brothers, are two virtuoso pianists who have taken the world by storm with their combination of style and technique on the piano. On February 16, 2008, the Altino Brothers graced Oakwood University by performing live in music concert series. The duo pianists played a wide variety of songs, ranging from J.S. Bach and Richard Wagner to I. Tchaikovsky and Sergei Rachmaninoff. While all of the piano selections were wonderful and spectacularly played, I will give my review on The Star-Spangled Banner/Lift Every Voice and Sing, and

The first piece performed by the Altino brothers was The Star-Spangled Banner/Lift Every Voice and Sing. The Altino brothers began this particular piece at Forte and at an Allegretto pace. As they began, it was clear to see that this piece was very technically demanding. As they continued, the piece continued to Allegro and to Fortissimo. Eventually as the tempo slowed to Andante, the melody of the piece became more pronounced. The chords of consonance that accompanied the melody were very piano in order to further emphasize the melody. I particularly enjoyed this piece because of the technical talent required, as well as being able to see two excellent pianists play at the same time.

The next piece, Overture to Tannhauser by Richard Wagner/Franz Liszt was very different from their first piece in terms of dynamics. This piece was at a more mezzo forte and adagio level. The melody was played at various pitches, as well as having a bit of dissonance throughout the piece. There were also moments where the temp of the piece moved to vivace. While the piece was beautiful, I did not enjoy it nearly as much as I did the first piece.