Conservatorium Maastricht

Colin Crandal (marimba) and Claire Hebeisen (violin) are two curious, risk-taking musicians in hot pursuit after the music they love. Their adaptability and love of joyful exploration have led them to perform music ranging from transcriptions of traditional works such as Bach, Bartók, and Boulanger, to Argentinian Tango, to pieces for violin and marimba written in the current century. The Crandal Hebeisen Duo uses their inquisitive attention to detail to connect with their audiences and create performances that are vibrant, vivid, and inventive.

Crandal Hebeisen Duo has performed in many cities across the United States and Europe including Baltimore, Maryland; Portland, Oregon; and Maastricht, Netherlands. Venues have varied from concert halls, such as the Griswold Hall of Peabody Conservatory and Willem Hijstek Zaal of Conservatorium Maastricht, to more non-traditional venues such as senior living facilities, community centers, living rooms, and outdoor concerts. Colin and Claire find it both vital and inspiring to play music outside of concert halls. Playing in communal spaces fosters a

closer connection with audiences, where music is not merely presented and appreciated, but is shared, discussed, and allowed to be felt by all people present, on their own terms. For example, In June of 2020, the duo went ‘busking’ in various parks in the Portland area in search of musical connection during that particularly lonely, socially-distanced summer. Aside from satisfying a deep need for social communion for both their audiences and themselves, they also received an opportunity to meet and share music with new audience members who they might not otherwise have reached.
 

Colin and Claire love collaborating with their friends, and working with composers is no exception. There is a reciprocal artistic synergy in such collaborations, in which the composer observes details about, and energy between the two musicians, which are then expressed in the rhythm, color, and feeling of the music. Interpreting pieces wherein the performer hears their own musically refracted personality is one of the most invigorating experiences a classical musician can have, and Colin and Claire deeply value this exchange. Crandal Hebeisen Duo has worked with several composers in this way, including Baltimore-based composer Nathaniel Wolfgang Parks to create in these pockets of quiet (both premiered and recorded in Baltimore in May 2019) and Hon Ning Cheung, a Maastricht-based composer from Hong Kong, to write Cypress (premiered in May 2022). Upcoming collaborations include a new multimedia composition from Nader Adabnejad, to be premiered in the fall of 2023.

Alongside the premiering of new works, Colin and Claire are also eager to get their hands on the music of composers of the past. Through transcription and adaptation of the original scores, the duo has accumulated over an hour of music with an eclectic range of styles, from 16th century madrigals to 20th century ragtime music, with composers such as Bela Bartok, Igor Stravinsky, and Astor Piazzolla at the forefront.

In the 2023-24 season, the duo is presenting two contrasting programs. One focuses upon new arrangements of classic works from composers like William Bolcom and Manuel de Falla, and another brand-new program of contemporary American music, featuring a trio with clarinetist Carlos Gonzáles Lázaro, solo performances from both members, and the European premiere of ‘in these pockets of quiet.’

The mentors and inspirations of the duo include marimba virtuoso Robert van Sice, violin soloists Judith Ingolfsson and Violane Melançon, and Yellow Barn Music Festival artistic director Seth Knopp.