When Christopher and Katherine Fisher rehearse on their grand pianos at home, it’s less than a relaxing and quiet time.
“The kids are throwing Play-Doh or climbing on top of us,” said Katherine, an Athens Community Music School master teacher.
The couple’s “energetic” children, ages 3 and 5, are what sparked the theme for their latest small concert tour, which began Feb. 8 in Akron. For the tour, they have created a program surrounding the idea of “song and dance,” with inspiration coming from elements such as waltz and ragtime music. The ragtime piece will even incorporate different instrumentation, like knocking on the piano and tongue clicking.
The duo will be performing on two separate pianos for only three of the pieces. That means for the rest of the compositions, they will play on the same piano, or what’s known as “piano four hands.”
“There’s a lot of choreography involved,” said Christopher, an associate professor of piano and chair of keyboard studies. “Like the tango, there’s that element of danger. It serves our theme very well.”
The two married in 2004 and having been playing as a duo ever since, something Christopher described as a “huge blessing.”
“It’s wonderful to play with someone versus performing individually,” Katherine said. “I definitely feel more comfortable in a performance venue when Chris is there.”
Sara Welch, a junior studying piano performance, said she enjoys seeing piano duos because they’re something different.
“Pianists sit by themselves in practice rooms and are often soloists, so it’s exciting to see someone play with someone else and see that interaction,” she said. “For a solitary creature like a pianist, it’s very exciting to see.”
Welch said she is particularly excited to see the duo perform again because she said she thinks she is the only person at Ohio University who has studied with both Christopher and Katherine.
Katherine said she is excited to play at OU because it means the two know their audience.
“It’s nice to share what we invest in every day with other we know better,” she said. “You share music at other venues, but it’s more special if you know who you’re playing to.”
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If You Go:
What: Fisher Piano Duo concert
When: 8 p.m., Saturday
Where: Glidden Recital Hall
Admission: Free
