Born in Montreal and Toronto respectively, Canadian pianists Anne Louise-Turgeon and Edward Turgeon have been playing together since 1988, and performing professionally since 1996. Critically acclaimed as one of the top piano duos of our time, the Turgeons have given hundreds of performances, including a European debut at the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, and a New York debut at Weill Recital Hall, to name a few.
The Turgeons appear on seven compact discs, including New Music for Two Pianos (Vanguard Classics) Romantic Dances and Latin American Journey (Marquis). They were featured in the PBS documentary Two Pianos One Passion, and they have been heard in numerous radio broadcasts, on classical music stations throughout the world including several appearances on National Public Radios Performance Today, and numerous appearances on various CBC radio programs.
The Turgeons prizes and awards include first prize in the Sixth International Schubert Competition for Piano Duos (Czech Republic, 1995) and first prize in the prestigious Murray Dranoff International Two Piano Competition (Miami, 1997). They received additional special prizes at the Dranoff, including the award for best performance of works for one piano, fourhands, and a special award for best performance of the commissioned work Chiaroscuro, by John Corigliano. The latter prize included an opportunity to complete a world premiere recording of Chiaroscuro, which American Record Guide described as having hypnotic intensity. Upcoming recording projects include the two piano works by Johannes Brahms, scheduled for release in early 2006.
As soloists, the Turgeons took prizes in competitions such as the Canadian Music Competition, the CIBC National Competitive Festival (Canada), the Cleveland International and Sydney International Piano Competitions.
Anne Louise-Turgeons awards, prizes and scholarships include the University of Toronto Faculty of Musics highest graduating award, the Eaton Scholarship (1989), and Yale University School of Musics highest honor, the Deans Award for top graduate (1993). In addition she received Yales Charles Miller Award for best recital. She is a recipient of an Ontario Arts Council Chalmers Award for graduate studies with a master teacher, and the Harry Jerome Award for achievement in the arts. Edward Turgeon received the coveted Forsyth Memorial Scholarship from University of Toronto Faculty of Music. At Yale University he received the Catherine Winchell and Phillip Nelson Memorial scholarships, awarded to an outstanding piano performance major, as well as the prize for best chamber ensemble (1993).
The Turgeons received Bachelor of Music degrees in piano performance from the University of Toronto (1989), Master of Music (1993), Master of Musical Arts (1994) and Doctor of Musical Arts (2000) degrees from the Yale University School of Music. Their summer studies included piano and chamber music master classes (1986 1990) at the Banff Centre for Music and Sound, as well as European studies at the Holland Music Sessions, International Jeunesses Musicales Chamber Festival and Courses in Germany, and the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival in Connecticut.
At the University of Toronto, Anne studied with Marietta Orlov, and Edward with James Anagnoson. At Yale University Edward studied with Peter Frankl, and Anne with Boris Berman. During summer studies, the Turgeons coaches included John Perry, John OConor, Karl Heinz Kammerling, Marek Jablonski, JeanPaul Sevilla, Gyorgy Sandor, Lorand Fenyves and Claude Frank. They received fourhand coaching from Karl Ulrich Schnabel, Peter Frankl and Peter Serkin.
The Turgeons have served on the faculties of Algoma University College, Algoma Conservatory, Mount Holyoke College, the HARID Conservatory and Florida Atlantic University. They currently serve as keyboard faculty and ensemble-in-residence at Florida Atlantic Universitys Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of the Arts, in Boca Raton.