Robert Plane, clarinet
Philip Dukes, viola
Sophia Rahman, piano

 

"...for these musicians superb playing is the most natural thing in the world." The Telegraph

NEWS The Plane Dukes Rahman Trio have been selected for Making Music's Concert Promoter's Network Scheme for the 2008/9 season. Please visit www.makingmusic.org.uk/cpn for further information

 

The Plane Dukes Rahman Trio was formed in 1992, a logical convergence of two highly successful and critically acclaimed duos, of which pianist Sophia Rahman was the unifying factor. They have since become an enormously popular ensemble, appearing in recital at the Wigmore Hall, on London's South Bank and for music clubs and festivals across the United Kingdom.

Their recital at the Cheltenham International Festival prompted the Daily Telegraph to write:

"The Plane Dukes Rahman Trio were on top form and there was a friendly rapport between performers and audience…The whole programme suggested that for these musicians superb playing is the most natural thing in the world."

The Trio was a prizewinner in the 1993 John Tunnell Trust and its members are all major prizewinners of the Royal Overseas League Music Competition.

The Trio has given many broadcasts for BBC Radio 3, including the first UK broadcast performance of the Francaix Trio live from Belfast, and of John Woolrich's 'A Farewell' from St.George's, Bristol. They gave the world première of two works by Paul Newland commissioned especially for them by the Spitalfields Festival and were invited to perform at the 1998 International Viola Congress in Glasgow and at the 2000 Lionel Tertis Viola Competition on the Isle of Man. They have given recitals in France, Argentina, Uruguay, the United Arab Emirates, Republic of ireland and the Channel islands.

The Trio has recorded a critically acclaimed disc of chamber music by Schumann and Kurtág for ASV in association with the Royal Overseas League. To commemorate their tenth anniversary they released a second disc on ASV of music by Max Bruch. A disc of Rebecca Clarke's complete viola works which features all the members of the Trio was released by Naxos in 2007.

Robert Plane

Since Robert Plane won the Royal Overseas League competition in 1992 he has enjoyed a successful career as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral principal. As soloist he has appeared with the City of London Sinfonia, Zurich Chamber Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales (with whom he is principal clarinet), Northern Sinfonia, Ulster Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Sinfonietta, and the Scottish Ensemble in major halls across Europe from the Zurich Tonhalle and Madrid’s Auditorio Nacional de Musica to London’s Barbican.

A busy chamber musician, he performs and broadcasts with his duo partner Sophia Rahman, as a member of the Plane Dukes Rahman Trio (clarinet, viola and piano) and the septet, mobius. He has collaborated with the Brodsky, Vellinger, Emperor and Auer Quartets, the Leopold String Trio and particularly enjoys performing with the Gould Piano Trio. He has played at major halls such as the Wigmore, Bridgewater, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh and at festivals in the UK and overseas from Cheltenham, Spitalfields, Belfast, BBC Proms in the Park to the Hambachermusikfest in Germany and Tanglewood, USA. He has played chamber music in South America, Korea and Taiwan and much of Europe including France, Republic of Ireland, Switzerland, Malta and the Channel Islands. He will make his USA debut in 2008 performing quintets with the Mandelring Quartet. Together with the Gould Trio he directs his own annual chamber music festival in Corbridge, Northumberland.

Robert’s discography is large-concertos by Finzi (winner of the Classic CD ‘Best Concerto Recording’ award and BBC Radio 3's recommended recording, Building a Library), Nielsen, Copland, Strauss and Debussy, clarinet quintets by Weber , Francaix and James MacMillan, Brahms' Clarinet Trio, recordings of the complete clarinet works of Herbert Howells and Sir Arnold Bax (shortlisted for a Chamber Music Gramophone Award in 2006)) and two discs of music by Schumann and Bruch with the Plane Dukes Rahman trio. He is currently recording the complete clarinet works of Stanford for Naxos and will record those of John Ireland in 2008.

As a guest principal clarinet Robert has played with the LSO, Philharmonia, RPO and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. He teaches at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and the Plane Dukes Rahman Trio are Artists in Residence at Queen’s University, Belfast.

Philip Dukes

As a concerto soloist, Philip has appeared with the BBC Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, City of Birmingham Symphony, Royal Philharmonic, Hallé, The Philharmonia, The Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony and Sinfonietta, London Mozart Players, Northern Sinfonia, Orchestra of St John's Smith Square, BBC Scottish Symphony, Ulster Orchestra, Warsaw Sinfonia and the Swedish Chamber Orchestra.

In 1995 he made his BBC Promenade Concert debut giving the world première of the Viola Concerto by Sally Beamish and at the 1997 Aldeburgh Festival he gave the world première of the previously unpublished Concerto for Violin, Viola and Orchestra by Benjamin Britten. At the 1999 BBC Promenade Concerts, Philip, together with Clio Gould, gave the world première of 'Inside Story’ for Violin, Viola and Orchestra by Piers Hellawell.

In addition to his solo engagements Philip is Professor of Viola at the Royal Academy of Music, Artist in Residence at Queens University Belfast, and Head of Strings at Wells Cathedral School. Recent highlights have included a concerto appearance at the 2005 BBC Proms with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and guest appearances with the Beaux-Arts Piano Trio. he will also appear in concerts at the Cheltenham and Savannah Music Festivals (USA) and further concerts in Korea and China. His next solo CD for Naxos featuring the complete works for viola by Rebecca Clarke was released in 2007. Philip is also a jury member for both the Munich and Vienna International Viola Competitions.

Sophia Rahman

Sophia Rahman enjoys a varied career encompassing duo, chamber and solo work. She is a founder member of the acclaimed Plane-Dukes-Rahman Trio, currently Artists-in-Residence at Queen's University, Belfast; she works as an official accompanist for organisations such as the Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition, the Barbirolli International Oboe Competition, and the Samling Foundation, and has toured Scotland several times as concerto soloist with the Scottish Ensemble. She has performed many times on BBC Radio 3, and has broadcast on the national networks of many countries, including Japan, India, Sweden, Estonia, Turkey and the Netherlands. She has recorded many chamber music discs for Naxos, ASV and Dutton/Epoch, and Shostakovich's concerto for piano, trumpet and strings with the Scottish Ensemble and John Wallace for Linn records.

She studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School with Peter Norris and Louis Kentner, the Royal Academy of Music with Alexander Kelly and Malcolm Martineau, and also took a first class honours degree in English at King's College, London. She was elected an associate of the RAM in 1997.