France Revisited, Vol. 2

On 17 April 2026, Divine Art is delighted to present France Revisited, Vol. 2, the second volume of French music for piano four hands from Piano Á Deux, the husband and wife team of Robert and Linda Stoodley.

France Revisited, Vol.2 includes Gabriel Fauré’s Dolly Suite, George Onslow’s Sonata No.2 in F Minor, Op 22, and the Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 by Franz Liszt, arranged for four hands by Franz Bendel with new cadenzas by Piano Á Deux – this is the premiere recording.

Fauré’s Dolly Suite is a charming set of six duets for four hands, written for the daughter of Emma Bardac, who eventually married Debussy. The Suite was often re-visited by Fauré, and in 1906 was arranged for orchestra by Henri Rabaud. The piano duets were first premeired by Alfred Cortot and Édouard Risler in 1898.

Born in France but of English descent, George Onslow’s music found approval from elites like Robert Schumann and Felix Mendelssohn, being crowned the “French Beethoven” by his publisher and other contemporaries, although later falling out of favour. During their research into less well-known composers, Piano Á Deux discovered Onslow’s duet sonatas in a dusty library drawer. The Opus 7 Duo Sonata was recorded for the first volume of France Revisited and the Sonata No.2 in F Minor, Opus 22 is heard in this second volume. Given many performances by Chopin and Liszt, it is conceived on a grand scale, symphonic in structure and reflects the Beethovenian aspects of Onslow’s style.

Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 is probably one of the best-known solo pieces in the piano repertoire, from a composer who stands like a colossus in the pianist world, crossing geographical boundaries. Piano Á Deux have taken Bendel’s arrangement for four hands, adapted it and written their own cadenzas, returning the piece to its virtuosic persona.

An adventurous piano duo with a wide repertoire which includes major classical works and their original arrangements from the world of opera, film and musical theatre, Piano À Deux have performed in countries like Singapore, Italy, Germany and Finland to standing ovations. Meanwhile their concerts on cruise ships have won them a large following of seasoned concertgoers as well as new audiences who are delighted by their unique themed programs, exquisite music-making and charisma blended with humour.

“Novel programming presented with charm, humour and drama, combined with their original arrangements has won them many fans worldwide. Surprisingly, Robert & Linda met online, not through music. They married in 2008 and “Piano À Deux” was formed in 2010. Piano Á Deux have been hailed as being worthy of taking on the mantle of longtime Divine Art recording artists Goldstone and Clemmow, a duo whose career was aborted by the untimely death of Anthony Goldstone. Their playing in ‘France Revisited‘ Vol 1 was praised as “piano four hands …at its very best..”