Duo Echo
Jennifer Pifer, oboist, and Joshua Pifer, pianist, formed the Duo Echo while both studying at Miami University in Ohio. After the initial collaboration and first recital performed together in 1999, the Duo Echo continued for the purpose of bringing classical music concerts to rural population centers. The community organizations that hosted our first concerts were frequently very rural and often had only an upright piano, but our concert would draw audiences from up to 100 miles away. The audiences for these intimate concerts were integral in our learning to interact with an audience while on stage. It was a unique chance to provide a free community service while developing a musical identity.
Concert programs incorporate a balanced mix of familiar pieces, performed many times together over 20 years, and new music. The Duo Echo chooses music with constant interplay between the piano and oboe, that draws on the audience to enhance the performance experience. Duo Echo concerts are truly a mutually rewarding experience involving musical performance and lectures on composers, history, and music.
In 2003, Jennifer and Joshua married at Wittenberg University and commissioned the duet, Un Terre Pour Deux, from award-wining, Canadian composer, Andre Cormier. Over the years, the Duo Echo has increased its scope of performance venues to include museums, universities, and performing art centers.