What repertoire do we play?
Our repertoire includes works for from 2-8 hands and draws from a wide range of musical styles from… find out more here
Who is CPQ?
The Canadian Piano Quartet (CPQ) includes two of the music world’s best known married couple piano duos: Elizabeth and Marcel Bergmann (Duo Bergmann), Edward Turgeon and Anne Louise-Turgeon (the Duo Turgeon). Widely regarded as leaders of the multi-piano genre, the duos have established fine reputations through concerts, prizes captured at some in the world’s most prestigious duo piano competitions, recordings, broadcasts, creation and premiere of new works as well as judging activities. Over the years, the duos found themselves meeting up at different festivals in Canada and abroad, each time enjoying friendship and a chance to celebrate the rich world of chamber music for four to eight hands. In 2018, the duos decided to take things one step further, creating the Canadian Piano Quartet. After the success of CPQ’s first concert in White Rock, British Columbia, it was decided that CPQ should hit the road! CPQ’s 2019/20 season includes concerts from coast to coast.
Meet the Duos
Bergmann Duo
The Bergmann Piano Duo’s dynamic and energetic performances of uniquely eclectic programmes have inspired audiences for more than two decades. Their recitals and concerts with orchestra have taken them to many parts of the world, including the United States, Italy, Germany, The Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, France, Macedonia, Greece, China and Canada. The duo has appeared at international festivals including: Festival of the Sound, Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival, Abbey Bach Festival, Ohrid Summer Festival, Zodiac Festival, The San Francisco International Music Festival, MusicFest Vancouver, the Gilmore International Keyboard Festival, the Banff Arts Festival, the Royal Bank Calgary International Organ Festival and Competition, Festival Miami, the Tage für Neue Musik, Darmstadt, the Braunschweiger Kammermusik Podium, and EXPO 2000, Hannover.
They have made recordings for the CBC, for several stations of the ARD in Germany and for National Public Radio. The duo has recorded several CDs, which appear on the CordAria, Arktos, Koch International Classics, Naxos, Ars and Brilliant Classics labels. Their latest releases on the Brilliant Classics label feature Marcel’s arrangement for 4 pianos of Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells and a collection of minimal music for multiple pianos also featuring Marcel’s compositions. Their most recent recording, American Stories on the ARS label, features exclusively Marcel’s arrangements.
The duo studied with Arie Vardi at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater, Hannover and with Jean-Eudes Vaillancourt at the Université de Montréal. They received first prize at the International Chamber Music Competition in Caltanissetta, Italy, and were laureates of The 4th Murray Dranoff International Two Piano Competition. They performed extensively in Germany as members of the young artists’ roster of Yehudi Menuhin-Live Music Now.
In addition to their performing careers they also enjoy teaching and working in other capacities in the music industry. Marcel and Elizabeth are Artistic Directors of White Rock Concerts and Elizabeth is Artistic Director of Concerts at the Langley Community Music School. Marcel has held a position as Professor of Music at Mohawk College in Hamilton and both Elizabeth and Marcel have been on faculty at Mount Royal University and University of Calgary as well as being involved in various musical projects at The Banff Centre for the Arts. In 2004/2005, they served as Artistic Directors of The Murray Dranoff International Two Piano Competition and Foundation in Miami. For many years, they were members of the Calgary based group Land’s End Chamber Ensemble, recipients of the 2005 and 2006 Western Canadian Music Awards for Outstanding Classical Recording.
Committed to supporting the production of new repertoire, the duo has commissioned and premiered several works by Canadian composers. Their extensive repertoire ranges from the baroque to the contemporary and includes numerous own arrangements and compositions.
Duo Turgeon
The year 2018 marks the 25th anniversary for Duo Turgeon and 27th wedding anniversary for Canadian pianists Anne Louise-Turgeon and Edward Turgeon. After completing their doctoral degrees in solo piano performance at the Yale University School of Music, their duo piano collaboration began with encouragement from James Anagnoson (Dean; Glenn Gould School, Toronto) and the late Karl Ulrich Schnabel, who, upon hearing the Turgeons, invited them for masterclasses and subsequent private coachings in New York City. The Turgeons received additional mentoring from Peter Serkin, Richard and John Contiguglia.
Duo Turgeon won first prize in the International Schubert Competition for piano duos (Czech Republic, 1995) and Murray Dranoff international Two Piano Competition (Miami, 1997), as well as additional special prizes at both events. These successes led to debut performances at Carnegie Hall and the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, as well as hundreds of engagements including such series as San Francisco International Music Festival, Montreal International Duo Piano Festival, Duettissimo (Minsk), Brit Festival, Kitchener/Waterloo Chamber Music Festival, Sanibel Music Festival, Chopin Festival of Middle America, Festival of the Sound, Washington International Piano Festival, Chicago Duo Piano Festival, Music Toronto, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Ford Center for the Performing Arts, Isabel Bader Centre, Internationaishces Pianisten Forum Rostock (Germany), Georgian Concerts, Massey Hall, Yong Siew Toh Conservatory (Singapore), Fulbright sponsored visits to Europe, several tours of Russia, and several recordings including those for Marquis/EMI, Albany and Vanguard Classics, several of which have received 5 out of 5 star ratings from CBC’s “Sound Advice” and “La Scena Musicale”. The Turgeons have been heard on classical radio stations throughout the world including CBC, BBC, ABC (Australia), Public Radio International, NPR, and PBS. They are featured in the television documentary “Two Pianos – One Passion”, which airs on PBS affiliate television stations throughout North America. Strong advocates of new chamber music for four hands at one or two pianos, they have given world premiere performances of works by Aaron Copland, John Corigliano, Libby Larsen, Manuel Valera, Derek Charke and Alex Pauk, while appearing with the Esprit Orchestra (Toronto), and orchestras in Brno, Sault Ste. Marie, Austin, Rockford, Scarborough, Novosibirsk, Minsk, Kranoyarsk and Miami with the New World Symphony Orchestra.
As teachers, their unwavering commitment to the next generation of young musicians has included over twenty-five years of teaching at Yale University, Mount Holyoke College, the Harid Conservatory of Music and Florida Atlantic University. They currently serve as Artists in Residence and faculty members at Algoma University and the Algoma Conservatory of Music in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, where Edward serves as Chair of the Visual Art and Music Department and Anne serves as keyboard and composition faculty member at both institutions. The Turgeons have served as senior mentor examiners for the Royal Conservatory of Music. Their students have earned prizes in competitions, national high grades on Royal Conservatory of Music examinations and admittance to schools such as Indiana University, Eastman, Juilliard, University of Miami, University of Louisiana, University of Arizona, University of Washington, UC Berkley and Dreyfoos School of the Arts. The Turgeons are increasingly in demand as judges for international, national and regional competitions including those in Toronto, Windsor-Essex, London, Winnipeg, Sudbury and Markham, national finals of the Canadian Music Competition and international competitions in USA and Europe.
The Turgeons received Bachelor of Music degrees in piano performance from the University of Toronto along with the coveted Dean’s Prize and Forsyth Memorial Scholarship for top graduating pianist (Edward; 1988); Dean’s prize and Eaton Graduate award for the top overall graduate (Anne; 1989). In Toronto, their teachers included Marietta Orlov and James Anagnoson. They earned Master of Music, Master of Musical Arts and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from Yale University, as well as prizes for best recital (Anne), best chamber group (Edward) and the Dean’s Award for top graduate (Anne; 1994), the school’s highest honor. Their Yale professors included Donald Currier, Peter Frankl, Claude Frank, Boris Berman and Joan Panetti. Additional summer studies at the Banff Centre for Music and Sound included masterclasses with Claude Frank, Jean-Paul Sevilla and Marek Jablonski. The Turgeons have been members of Steinway and Sons International Artist Roster since 2005.