| Summary: | M.Mus. Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, 2008 === The broad structure of this reflexive essay is twofold: First I discuss my experience of making a compact
disc (CD) recording with the Trio Hemanay, which consists of three performer-musicians – Marian Lewin
(cello), Helen Vosloo (flute) and myself, Malcolm Nay (piano), and second I offer an analysis of Hendrik
Hofmeyr’s Notturno Elegiaco for Piano Trio, a work composed specifically for the Trio Hemanay,.
I draw on writings of other performers and recording artists, who have contemplated and engaged with the
recording process, in order to place myself, the Trio and our music-making within a South African
context. I further contextualise the Trio with reference to other well-known performing ensembles in
South Africa.
I refer to the inception and constitution of the Hemanay Trio and give some insights into aspects that
inform the aesthetics and rationale of its establishment and existence. I also discuss the practicalities of
financing and producing such a recording, and the extent to which non-musical issues inevitably impact
on the artistic outcome. I further elaborate on the value of documenting music through recordings, both
from a personal and from an objective perspective, and I reflect on what I have learnt from the recording
experience; where relevant, I collate this with the experience of my two colleagues. In Part II, I offer an
analysis of the musical content and a stylistic scrutiny of Hendrik Hofmeyr’s Notturno Elegiaco, recorded
by Trio Hemanay on the CD under discussion (the only current recording of this work).
This essay is written in a narrative form, which allows me to discuss the inception of the recording, the
development of the process and the elements that have contributed to the acquisition of greater insights for
both me and for the Trio, all of which may influence future projects.
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