Trio Hemanay

Biographical information Trio Hemanay was formed at the beginning of 1997. Since then it has had extraordinary success throughout South Africa. Well known Johannesburg music critic Thys Odendaal has singled it out as quot;one of the very few ensembles here who can compete in the international marketquot;, while Paul Boekkooi has praised it's quot;enterprise, style and flair.quot; It is the chamber group, he concludes, quot;that shows us the wayquot;. Trio Hemanay has also made a name for it's commitment to the performance and promotion of works by South African composers. The South African Music Rights Organization (SAMRO) has commissioned several works for the Trio, amongst them Stefans Grové's very evocative The Soul Bird and, more recently, the young Stellenbosch composer Hans Huyssen's The Cattle Have Gone Astray. Arrangements of well known pieces by Satie and Bartók have also been specially commissioned for them, and are included on this album. Hendrik Hofmeyr's Notturno Elegiaco is dedicated to the group. Trio Hemanay performs at major concert venues throughout South Africa, and is featured in the programmes of the Johannesburg and Cape Town Music Societies, Northwards, Mount Grace, and The Standard Bank National Festival of the Arts in Grahamstown. In 2000 the group enjoyed successful tours both to the United States and The Netherlands. Marian Lewin is South Africa's best known and best loved cellist. She began playing at the age of 5, studying with her aunt, the indomitable Betty Pack. A UNISA Scholarship took her overseas for a time, and in 1964 she began her almost 30-year long orchestral career. After a stint in the SABC Orchestra, she joined the newly formed PACT Orchestra as Principal Cello, a post that she held for 20 years. During the International Cello Week in Holland in 1967 she was adjudged best cellist and appeared on Eurovision. Remembered for her solo performances with the SABC, Natal Philharmonic and PACT Symphony Orchestras, Marian is also a veteran broadcaster and was a founding member of the Alma Musica Piano Trio. She currently plays with the Rosamunde String Quartet, Enigma Piano Quartet and Trio Hemanay. She has been nominated for 3 Artes Awards. Amongst her many CD performances are recordings of the complete Glière Cello Duets. Malcolm Nay is one of the most charismatic of South African chamber musicians. His mentors and teachers were pianists Pauline Nossel and Isabel Stengel and he obtained the B. Mus. Degree and Postgraduate Performer's Licentiate (cum laude) at the University of the Witwatersrand. In 1978 he won the P.J. Lemmer Scholarship for Overseas Study, gaining a place with the famous Hungarian pianist, Bela Siki. During his time in the USA he performed and recorded extensively, winning numerous prizes. On the competition circuit he was awarded Silver Medal in the International Piano Competition in Montevideo and fifth place in the UNISA/Transnet International Piano Competition of 1984. Since his return to South Africa, Malcolm has appeared as a soloist with most major local orchestras, and is a popular solo recitalist throughout the country. He now heads the practical teaching staff at Wits University, at the same time managing a very active concert career. Helen Vosloo is Principal Flute with the Johannesburg Philharmonic and Johannesburg Festival Orchestras, as well as the Chamber Orchestra of South Africa. She appears regularly as a soloist and is much sought after as a chamber musician. She has been the recipient of