Maria du Toit & the Wits Trio

Maria du Toit and the Wits Trio perform at St Andrews Presbyterian Church Greenpoint  on Wednesday 9th November at 8pm. The Wits Trio comprises Zanta Hofmeyr (violin), Malcolm Nay (piano) & Maciej Lacny (cello).
The programme includes Beethoven Trio Opus 11, the Brahms Trio in C Minor and the Khatchaturian Trio for clarinet, violin and piano.
 

Maria du Toit was for thirteen years the principal clarinetist of the CPO. She has won an international clarinet competition in Romania, six in South Africa and has made 3 solo cd's, including one of the complete concerti by Spohr. Maria has given concerts and master classes in the USA and Europe.

Zanta Hofmeyr graduated from The Juilliard School of Music where she studied under Dorothy Delay and Hyo Kang. In 1985, after her New York debut at the Carnegie Recital Hall (now Weil recital hall), she returned to South Africa.
A recipient of numerous awards and scholarships, Zanta’s most recent awards include a nomination as best female artist at the KKNK arts festival, and a SAMA nomination for her CD Cantilena.
Zanta teaches violin in Johannesburg and at the University of Pretoria. She often acts as string coach for youth orchestras and has been on the faculty of the International Chamber music Festival at the University of Stellenbosch.
Her recordings include “Zanta Hofmeyr plays Arioso” with organist Wim Viljoen and with pianist Malcolm Nay on the album “Romantic Violin”. In 2009 she released “Cantilena” – a second collaboration with Wim Viljoen. In 2011 a new CD Beethoven Tango was released in which she and pianist Charl du Plessis perform works by Piazzolla, Sting and Jazz standards. She has featured as soloist with South African orchestras in performances of concertos by Britten, Beethoven, Bruch, Mendelssohn, Hofmeyr etc.
 
Malcolm Nay is widely regarded as one of the finest chamber pianists and accompanists in South Africa.
After graduating with a BMus from Wits University where he studied with Pauline Nossel and Isabella Stengel, he travelled on scholarships? to America, where he studied with Bela Siki.
As a soloist, he has appeared with most of South Africa’s major orchestras. He is remembered especially for performances of the Mozart concertos in Gauteng which he conducted from the keyboard.
Malcolm Nay is also a highly regarded recitalist, and has given distinguished solo recitals at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) Arts Gencor Gallery, the Durban Music Society, the Wits Great Hall for the Johannesburg Music Society, and at the Baxter Theatre in Cape Town. He has also given performances at both UJ and the Wits Atrium. Mr. Nay is a sought after adjudicator at prestigious music competitions throughout the country. He continues to perform extensively at the larger festivals in South Africa.  Malcolm Nay is currently Associate Professor at the School of Music,  University of the Witwatersrand.
 
Maciej Lacny was born in Cracow (Poland) in 1977. He graduated from the F. Chopin High School (1995) and the Cracow Conservatory of Music (2001).  He was in Prof. Z.Lapinski’s cello class. Mr. Lacny also obtained a pedagogical diploma from the Cracow Conservatory of Music.
Between 1995-1999 he performed in concerts with the Cracow Quartet in Switzerland, Belgium, Holland and Germany. He performed with orchestras the likes of Sinfonietta Cracovia, Capella Cracoviensis, Cracow Opera, Breslau Symphony Orchestra. From 1996 to 2007 he also played as principal cello of the Cracow Radio Symphony Orchestra.
He is married to a South African flautist and lives in Johannesburg. Maciej is currently co-principal cello of the Johannesburg Festival Orchestra. He has played in several recitals with acclaimed pianist, Malcolm Nay.