Clifton Hill Community Music Centre, Melbourne © 1979

Background

Collaborative piano/keyboard duo by David Chesworth & Philip Brophy.

Credits

Pianos & compositions - David Chesworth & Philip Brophy

1979

Clifton Hill Community Music Centre, Melbourne
Latrobe University Moat Theatre, Melbourne

1980

Clifton Hill Community Music Centre, Melbourne
Open Stage, Melbourne
Present Themselves 7" EP - Innocent Records
"D9 Divine" on compilation LP New Music 1978/79 - Innocent Records

1981

"Da Da Da Da Da Da" on compilation LP New Music 1980 - Innocent Records

Overview

David and Philip started the Dave & Phil Duo to perform each other's short instrumental pieces. The idea was to play 'parlour music' po-faced. The compositions mostly sound like piano exercises, and in live performances the pair generally struggled to perform the pieces. The project merged minimalism, melodiousness and malfunction in equal measure. On one occasion, they co-composed a suite of vocal works utilizing the duo's live vocals accompanied by a duo backing-track recording. The track "Da Da Da Da Da Da" on the New Music 1980 compilation LP comes from that suite of pieces.

The Innocent catalogue described the duo's EP as "Four short/sharp/sweet instrumental piano pieces for four hands". The liner notes for the composition "D9 Divine" on the New Music 1978/79 compilation LP said "A rigorous rendition of the D9th chord with plenty of chromatic passing notes. One of us stayed still, the other did the moving - music is tidier done this way."

Open Stage, Melbourne © 1980

Technical

The EP was recorded at Latrobe University recording studio where David was studying. David engineered the session. David and Philip played the grand piano, electric piano, celeste and harpsichord. The procedeure was always that one person would compose a song for the two to play, so half the tracks of the duo are composed by David, the other half by Philip.

The labels on the record were printed on the wrong side - this is mentioned on the silk-screened covers.

Latrobe University Moat Theatre, Melbourne © 1979