(018) 299-1692 [email protected]

In the first of a series of profiles of our staff, we present Prof Piet Koornhof, Associate Professor in Violin.

Teaching responsibilities:
Violin, methodology of violin teaching, ensemble playing, viola

Performance interests:
Violin and chamber music

Research interests:
Violin and chamber music

Top 5 must-hear music:
1. Ravel — Daphnes & Chloe
2. Ravel — Gaspard de la Nuit
3. Prokofiev — Romeo & Juliet
4. Arvo Pärt — Fratres
5. Bach — Chaconne

Which personal music experiences are most memorable to you?
• Christian Zimmermann playing a Bach Partita live in New York
• Arleen Auger lieder recital in Alice Tully Hall, New York, singing Ravel Habanera as an encore
• Any recording by Mikhail Pletnev
• Duo recitals with Albie van Schalkwyk, Bernarda Swart, Vladimir Yurigin-Klevke and Thomas Hecht
• Playing in ensembles for the South Africa Chamber Music Society
• Being a member of the Potch Trio
• Playing Mozart, Bach and Hofmeyr concerti with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra
• 1994 duo recital tour of Russia with Volodya Yurigin-Klevke
• Making music with my mother since I was 6 years old, and still doing it with joy
• Playing duets with my gorgeous and gifted wife
• Having lessons with Dorothy DeLay
• Learning about beauty in music from my dad
• Playing on a fantastic Guarneri del Gesu violin for a weekend (thanks David Segal!)
• Playing in a master class by my violinistic role model Pinchas Zukerman (awesome!)

Top 5 must-read books:
1. Making Hope Happen by Shane Lopez
2. The Rational Optimist by Matt Ridley
3. Six Blind Elephants volumes I & II by Steve Andreas
4. Quantum Psychology by Robert Anton Wilson
5. Beyond Belief by James MacDonald

Favourite quote(s):
“Doubt is not a pleasant condition, but certainty is absurd” – Voltaire
“Children become what you tell them they are” – Dorothy DeLay

Top 5 must-see movies:
1. Jungle Book
2. Chocolat
3. Life is beautiful
4. Beautiful People (Jamie Uys)
5. Ratatouille

Which movie(s) did you walk out of before the end?
None

Which television shows can you watch over and over again?
M*A*S*H

Favourite food:
Real Italian Ice cream

Favourite drink(s):
Real coffee, not the plastic (instant) variety

How do you relax?
By reading or flying a sailplane

Which places would you still like to visit?
South America, Scandinavia, and Italy and Switzerland, over and over

What is the ringtone on your cell phone?
The sound of a sailplane variometer indicating strong lift

If you should win R1 million, what will you do with it?
Put it in a Trust Fund for my kids’ education, and then dream about the great sailplane I could have bought, or the wonderful overseas trips I could have taken my family on!

Read more about Prof Koornhof at his website.