For Dranoff 2 Piano Fusion, two pairs of hands are better than one.
Dranoff 2 Piano Fusion, formerly known as Dranoff 2 Piano Foundation, is a time-honored jewel in Miami’s crown of beloved performing arts organizations. It launches its new season Nov. 24, with additional concerts in February, April, and May of next year. Translation: Mark your calendars now, as Dranoff’s lineup is not to be missed, starting with this month’s concert, Back to Beethoven, starring internationally acclaimed Ukrainian classical pianists, Olha Chipak and Oleksiy Kushnir.
Murray and Loretta Dranoff were a celebrated piano team who performed as Steinway and Columbia artists. Loretta founded the organization and competition decades ago in honor of her late husband Murray, and became recognized for both leading the renaissance of two-piano music and its world-renowned competition.
(Courtesy Chipak and Kushnir)
Olha Chipak and Oleksiy Kushnir seated in a rare moment of repose in front of the Steinways they play so magnificently.
While the competition is no longer part of the organization, it’s been an exciting few months in the leadup to Dranoff’s new season. The period has ushered in its name change, as well as a new executive director, Emily Cardenas, making her only the third person in that role since its inception.
Cardenas, known by many in South Florida for her decades-long career as an Emmy award-winning journalist and PR/marketing maven, said, “Our new name is more contemporary to emphasize our arena of fusing genres. We wanted the name to appropriately reflect our programming.”
And while its new name embraces the evolution of programming the organization brings its audiences, as it is more representative of the musical fusions of diverse styles and cultures it now showcases, Dranoff is kicking off its season with the classics that its reputation was built upon.
(Courtesy Chipak and Kushnir)
Oleksiy Kushnir and Olha Chipak have been performing the Liszt Beethoven transcription with percussion in Europe to great reviews for the last two years.
“Classical Classics is the umbrella of our annual classics program,” said Cardenas. “It’s very much rooted in our history.”
It's only fitting that Chupak and Kushnir are the Classical Classics program’s featured pianists, as the duo has a long-standing history with Dranoff, going back to when they placed second in the 2003 Dranoff International 2 Piano Competition. This was followed by three subsequent performances, the last one in 2018.
The duo vividly recalled their experience in the 2003 competition.
“So many memorable moments come to mind: Loretta Dranoff, the Steinway Gallery, Lincoln Theater, the final round with the orchestra, the fabulous Cuban food, the Everglades, the really, inspiring organization, and the wonderful hosting by Maxine Long.” Kushnir said. “The professional experiences from the competition were unique: three recitals, a contemporary piece to play, and two concertos with the orchestra – extremely challenging. It is more demanding than any other piano duo competition in the world. But I think we earned our right to celebrate in the end.”
Over time, the duo forged a close relationship with the Dranoff organization.
“Back then, no one could have ever predicted what the future would hold,” said Kushnir. “At that time, almost everything centered around the traditions of the Dranoff competition. Nowadays, it’s about concert projects and important educational missions in middle and high schools in Miami. Wonderful initiatives like Poetry Slam, Piano Slam, and projects involving dance and percussion have developed. Dranoff has become a synonym for new inspiration for the younger generation – something that would have made Loretta and Murray extremely proud.”
(Courtesy Maxine Long)
Maxine Long, Dranoff 2 Piano Fusion vice-president
Their return to Miami this month marks not only a homecoming to Dranoff, but also their first time back in the United States since their 2018 performance. The duo has quite an evening in store for everyone, culminating in their presentation of the U.S. premiere of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony in a two-piano arrangement by Franz Liszt with percussion accompaniment provided by a local guest musician, a program they’ve been performing for the past two years in Europe to rave reviews.
The first half of the night’s program will include classics by Liszt and Maurice Ravel.
“The idea of performing this legendary symphony with percussion came about during the COVID pandemic, and it was our percussion partner, Francisco Anguas Manuel Rodriguez, who suggested it,” said Kushnir. “It was very exciting to explore whether this concept could enrich Liszt's brilliant arrangement. And it worked even better than we had foreseen. It was a wonderful surprise for everyone who attended those concerts. I'm sure it will be exactly the same delight in Miami.”
Maxine Long, vice-president of Dranoff’s board of directors, who has been with the organization since nearly its beginning, hosted the duo in her home. Her introduction to the Dranoffs preceded the founding of the organization.
“I went to college at Bryn Mawr with their daughter, Carolyn, and met the Dranoffs on the day of moving in,” the Coral Gables native explained. This was in 1961, when the couple were still regaling audiences with their own two-piano concerts, and well before they settled in South Florida in 1973.
Given Long’s lengthy tenure with Dranoff, she has particular insight into Chipak’s and Kushnir’s talent and progression as artists, and in addition to appreciating them as masters of their craft, she has developed a lovely friendship with the duo over the years.
“They have a wonderful rapport personally and with the piano,” Long said. “Olha was born in Odessa and Oleksiy in Lviv, where they met in their conservatory studies. It was a requirement that piano students play as a duo, so they first came together because of that. Their personal relationship followed, and they were newlyweds in 2003 when they competed in the Dranoff competition. They’re still like newlyweds. They’re open and warm people, which is conveyed in their music.”
This connection is key to the way they successfully engage their audiences. As Long, an aficionado of chamber music, especially two-piano chamber music, added, “I have heard people perform together, but that doesn’t necessarily make them a duo. That requires them to be more in touch with each other and their music. And that is certainly the case with Olha and Oleksiy.”
While the duo is here, they will also perform in a select number of Miami-Dade County public schools as part of Dranoff’s annual Piano Slam program. This aligns with Chipak’s and Kushnir’s commitment to education and interest in working with students, as they do at the Rostock University of Music and Theatre in Germany, where they are both on faculty. It further reflects their interest in contributing to community, as they have done for their own country, with the duo presenting many benefit performances in support of Ukraine’s efforts against the Russian invasion.
And for a lucky few, during their time in Miami, Long’s home will be the stage for a private performance by Chipak and Kushnir. This intimate soiree for Dranoff’s longtime friends, sponsors, and supporters has all the makings of a “pinch me” moment, as the guests are treated to the duo’s accomplished artistry in a sublimely relaxed and comfortable setting. As one can only imagine, there will be a roar of “Bravos” and “Encores” in the house, just like there will be at their Nov. 24 performance.
“It’s a misconception that you only need to play Spanish-Cuban rhythms in Miami,” said Kushnir. “Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms are always welcomed in Miami. Performing in Miami has always been a great joy for us – such an enthusiastic audience.”
IF YOU GO
Back to Beethoven
Sun., Nov. 24, 4 p.m.
Aventura Arts & Cultural Center, 3385 NE 188th St., Aventura
Tickets: $45-$65