Refer to "classical music" and many are turned off by the vision of stuffy recital halls and stifled coughs. It doesn't have to be that way. Why not pair music with wine; music with food; feisty battles with duelling pianists and music rallies for children?
Three years ago, a bunch of musicians and creative enthusiasts based in Darling decided to add vooma to the image of classical music by launching the Darling Music Experience. The fourth edition is on from Thursday until Sunday and takes place in old churches, barns and at the Ormonde Wine Estate in the town.
The man behind it is Andreas Kern, 34, artistic director for the second year. The freelance pianist lives in the trendy Mitte District in Berlin, with his wife and two young children. When I spoke to him on the phone, he had just returned from Hong Kong, where he took part in the Piano Battle in Hong Kong. Kern has participated in several such contests, in which two pianists pit their skills against each other and the audience votes on whose performance was better.
The format encourages the audience to really listen. Kern won, but winning is not the point. Piano battles are great fun and escape the inhibiting classical concert rules. With a battle, there is a lot of buzz and cheering, he says.
He will enter another piano duel in Darling on Saturday at 7pm in the Darling Vintage Transport Museum in Hill Street. His opponent will be South African pianist Tertia Visser. Kern reflects that he has never played with - or against - her before. When he takes part in piano battles in Europe, invariably he is playing with friends and there is a friendly rivalry. No doubt the charismatic and very talented Visser will give him a run on the keyboards.
In Europe, Kern has conceptualised several projects taking classical music to a broader audience. In the late '90s he set up an event in which pianists played pieces according to nationality. Kern was interested to see how nationality affected interpretation.
He does not believe musicians should just let the music talk. He has done recitals where he talks about the images of the piece he is playing; where he pairs music with wine - and he will be doing this in Darling in a number of slots.
Kern produces and is the co-host of a popular monthly musical TV programme aired in Germany and France. In October, he will direct Piano City in Berlin - a weekend when the whole city goes gaga over pianos, with 200 concerts.
Kern was born in South Africa to German parents, who took him back to Dėsseldorf when he was four. His numerous qualifications include a diploma in music pedagogy and he has a busy career as a solo and concert pianist. Kern played here in 2007 as a guest of the German consul at a German cultural week. During this time he was introduced to German-born Alfred Legner, founder of the Darling festival, who invited him on board.
This year there will be 10 events, says Legner, four of which are free, including a music rally for children. Last year about 500 people attended the festival. This year they expect between 700 and 800 visitors.
Before to settling in Darling, Legner and his wife lived in London for 20 years. He was a banker who loved classical music.
Not long after they bought their house in Darling the Legners decided the town would make the perfect venue for a music festival.
Legner put his head together with two locals - conductor David Tidboald and composer Hendrik Hofmeyr - and the festival was born. Tidboald no longer lives there but retains strong ties with the town.
Each festival features a commissioned piece of music. Last year it was Hofmeyr's Song of the Summer-wind for flute and violin. The audience loved it and it will be played again at the closing concert of the festival - The Darling Musical Experience World Premier Concert.
This year's commissioned work is by Matthijs van Dyk: Clarinet Quintet No 2: Dances of Moonlight. The concert takes place at 5.30pm on Sunday in Presbyterian Church in Pastorie Street and includes musicians Farida Bacharova, Maria du Toit and Owen Brits, as well as the award-winning dancer, Mamela Nyamza.
