"Double Sharp" Piano Duo Combines Classical Russian Music, Striking Fashion

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Maria Demina and Natasha Marin

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences Piano Performance Program will host a concert by the Russian born pianists Natasha Marin and Maria Demina, who perform as “Double Sharp.” The concert will begin at 8 p.m. Monday, Oct. 27 in the Stella Boyle Smith Concert Hall at the University of Arkansas. The performance is free and open to the public. A reception will follow.

Double Sharp brings a unique visual dimension to its concert of rarely heard piano duets by Russian composers Anton Arensky, Alexander Scriabin, Igor Stravinsky, Aram Khachaturian and Dmitri Shostakovich. The duo will be wearing costumes created by fashion designer Vera Chernova DeFehr, each costume reflecting the fashion of the period when the music was composed, ranging from 1892 to 1953. This approach was inspired by the Russian and American cultural influences on both pianists and the designer.