Ronan Apcar Plays Dulcie Holland (album liner notes)

Track list

1. Serious Procession by Dulcie Holland [02:03] Concertino for Piano and Strings by Dulcie Holland
   

2. I. Quite fast and animated [07:03]
   

3. II. Rather slow and expressive [09:40]
   

4. III. Lighthearted, an easy one-in-a-bar [04:29]
   

5. La Gran Salsa - for piano and string orchestra by Daniel Rojas [15:42] TOTAL RUNTIME [39:34]

A note from Ronan

“...if there is a piece of music there… that someone can play, even if it is a child… then I haven't lived in vain”

So said Dulcie Holland in a 1975 interview with Hazel de Berg, about 8 years before she would write her Concertino for Piano and Strings. This major piece would remain unpublished and virtually never performed.

Around when we recorded this album, Dulcie’s granddaughter Julie Ihle said to me that Dulcie would be so thrilled that people were still playing and listening to her music.

I first came across the Concertino when I was looking through her collection of maunscripts at the National Library of Australia, probably 2019, definitely by 2020. That first comb through the archives was for her solo piano music, of which I’d end up recording on my debut album: Dulcie Holland Crescent.

When I was asked by Leonard Weiss to suggest a concerto that I could play with Canberra Sinfonia, I remembered that Dulcie had this Concertino. We got to work transcribing, typesetting, and editing her handwritten manuscript and gave its “re-premiere” in 2022 - the only other performance I’ve ever found evidence of was a 1991 two-piano version in the States.

I have such a clear memory of saying “this piece needs to be recorded” immediately after that performance. I just thought that this piece was too good to never be heard again. So began a years-long effort to line up the musicians, venues, engineers, and funding to make it happen. Since you’re reading this, you can probably guess that I managed.

When you listen, I hope you can hear why I made such an effort. Dulcie’s Concertino is the only concerto in her oeuvre, and one of her few large-scale works. And it’s bloody good. I love the vivacious first movement and its many characters. The second movement is poignant, the end of which breaks my heart; for me, it’s genuinely one of the most beautiful passages in music. And that exhilarating third movement with its climax that makes my heart soar, the most incredible culmination of what - I think - is her greatest work.

In the spirit of recording Dulcie’s masterpiece, I wanted to find another piano concerto that was also Australian, extant, and unrecorded. And that was Daniel Rojas’ La Gran Salsa. I had so much fun sitting with all these Latin grooves, and thank Dan deeply for spending so much time with us on his piece: revising it just for us, listening to myself both with and without the strings, and allowing me to put my own solo in there!

And yes, there is another short piece from Dulcie on this record. I came across Serious Procession in the archives about six months before we recorded these two concertos and decided to chuck it on the album. Isn’t it such a little gem?

I want to thank every single person who has been a part of this journey, from the NLA archivists at the start to the ABC Classic label staff at the end. But I need make two special thank-yous. One to every single donor for throwing your support behind this project and giving it legs. And the other to Sam Weller and Ensemble Apex for jupming on board, and particularly to Sam for your help through this entire project.

Enjoy the music!

Program notes

Serious Procession (1950)

A short work from her early-to-middle period, Serious Procession is one of Dulcie Holland's many unpublished 'serious' works. Though brief, it's a perfectly succinct piece that efficiently develops a simple march-like idea into a substantial and arresting climax, complete with unexpected harmonies and modulations characteristic of Holland's music.

Concertino for Piano and Strings (1983)

Dulcie Holland's only concerto was described as a "masterpiece" and "fresh, alive with a distinctly personal language" upon its revival in 2022. Holland dedicated Concertino for Piano and Strings to American pianist Selma Epstein, a long-time collaborator who championed her music.

Traditional in its fast-slow-fast three movements, this unpublished work is Holland at her best: a sophisticated craftsmanship combined with her distinct personal voice. Characterised by a combination of British poise with Australian cheekiness, the solo piano and string orchestra to-and-fro throughout for a thrilling dynamic, with the double bass frequently breaking ranks and joining with the piano. Full of playful rhythms, soaring melodies, and moments of exquisite passion, the Concertino culminates in a soaring, overwhelming climax and an emphatic ending to one of Holland's greatest works.

La Gran Salsa - for piano and string orchestra (2019, rev. 2025)

In La Gran Salsa, Daniel Rojas pays homage to Astor Piazzolla’s famous piece Le Grand Tango by drawing on Latin American popular dance music, specifically salsa. The rhythms in this piece have been influenced by the clave, a 2-bar rhythmic to which every other rhythmic layer is organised around. These other layers are clear references to groove-inflected structures which are inherently motivic, repetitive and harmonically cyclical. There are a series of poignant and high energy episodes throughout this piece which are embellished with gestures, timbres and textures gleaned from tango and baroque music.

Credits

Ronan Apcar / piano soloist, liner notes & producer

Dulcie Holland / composer

Daniel Rojas / composer

Sam Weller / conductor, artistic director of Ensemble Apex

Doretta Balkizas / concertmaster

Matthew McGuigan (Hospital Hill) / recording & mixing engineer

Andrew Edgson / mastering engineer

Angus McKee / album photo and liner note photos

Matt Druery / album cover art

Ensemble Apex / string orchestra

Violin 1 / Doretta Balkizas, Hannah Solveig Gramß, James Armstrong, Emily Su, Hannah Kim Violin 2 / Madeleine Jevons, Marian Kwon, Candice Buchanan, Nat Kendy Viola / Daniel You, Curtis Lau Violoncello / Rachel Siu, Soobee Kim, Rena Tang Double bass / Jacques Emery

Digitally distributed by ABC Classic (ABCL0150D) CDs produced and distributed direct-to-consumer by Ronan Apcar (ABCL0150)

Releases October 23, 2026

Thank you to each and every private donor & supporter and a special thanks to Julie Ihle and the Estate of Dulcie Holland.

This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its principal arts investment and advisory body.

This project has been supported by Judith Neilson and the Phoenix Cultural Centre.

Liner notes © 2026 Ronan Apcar

Recordings ℗ 2026 Ronan Apcar