Thursday 19th April, 7.00 pm

All Saints Church, Howick, Auckland, N.Z.Bruce Paine and Rex Button playing guitar duets at Torbay house concert

The programme will consist of a varied mix of music for two guitars including works by John Downland, Myung Pio Kim (Korean), Enrique Granados, Joaquin Rodrigo, Jorge Cardoso, Hector Quine, Ernesto Nazareth and Alfredo Vianna.

Bruce Paine and Rex Button are delighted to be invited back for a repeat performance for the 'Thursdays at Seven' concert series

Please note: Entry is by donation.

Bruce Paine & Rex Button - Biography

Guitarists Bruce Paine and Rex Button have had a long friendship and association as duet partners since meeting as participants of a John Mills Summer School in Palmerston North.  Early on they explored a wide range of duet repertoire together and participated in master-classes with visiting overseas guitarists when the opportunity arose.

With a keen interest in solo repertoire as well, they worked towards a combined concert featuring pieces from both disciplines (the best of both worlds that they could muster at the time).  Their first public performance together was a well received concert for Amnesty International that took place in an acoustically inspiring, octagonal church in Glen Eden.

Although not an established "professional" duo with an on-going career, Bruce and Rex have met as regularly as time permits in order to keep the music alive.  Since the Amnesty concert they have played in a variety of situations, including performances for the Clef Club, Savage Club, St Lukes Anglican Church, some Paine family wedding ceremonies (one accompanied by pipe organ), house concerts and more. 

Due to respective family and University commitments, they took a break from duo work which lasted nearly ten years but started again in 2004 as had been anticipated.  With renewed enthusiasm and new ideas to explore they have enjoyed nurturing a varied collection of music with a view to recording and performing the works. Their concert "hiatus" ended in December 2005 when they presented a short programme of renaissance duets as part of a Howick "Thursdays at Seven" concert.  This was followed some months later in October 2006 when they presented their first full programme of guitar duets for the Torbay concert series.

The programme to be presented on the 12th April will consist of music recently learned and pieces that have been old favourites since the Paine-Button duo formed.  With this concert they look forward to continue to share their love of guitar music and their mutual enjoyment of all that duet playing is about.