‘Dynamic Duo’ might be a better name for percussionist pair Oliver Cox and Owen Gunnell, as they demonstrated at the JDP last week in a concert that was so bursting with energy and vitality it was almost exhausting. From the moment Cox and Gunnell entered, leaping on to the stage with admirable athleticism and launching into the excitingly fast-paced ‘Bongo Fury’, it was clear we were in for a memorable evening. This opening number, composed by the duo for their debut at the Edinburgh Festival in 2002, certainly got things off to an attention-grabbing start, with a rhythmic kaleidoscope involving bongos, cow bells, shakers and plenty of foot-stamping.

Most of the two-hour programme centred on the marimba, with music by the likes of Bach, Chopin and Prokofiev, right through to Philip Glass and Paul Desmond, rearranged for one or two marimbas, often with other percussion instruments being brought in as well. In Isaac Albéniz’s ‘Suite Española’, arranged for two marimbas, the players used four sticks each, and were practically dancing their way up and down the length of the instruments, each player a whirlpool of energy.

But they were capable of great tenderness, too, and Prokofiev’s gentle, lyrical Prelude in C, originally written for the harp but transcribed here for two marimbas, was played with sensitivity and appropriate lightness of touch.

There was even an opportunity for some audience participation, and three brave souls allowed themselves to be persuaded to join the duo onstage for Paul Desmond’s Take Five, originally written for Dave Brubeck’s jazz quartet and arranged here for the vibraphone, drums and cymbals.

The programme was interspersed with witty banter and entertaining anecdotes, creating an atmosphere more akin to a family party than a concert.

This duo’s wonderful rapport, both with each other and with their audiences, together with their extraordinary versatility, virtuosity and physical prowess, adds up to a visual and artistic feast that is exhilarating and utterly irresistible.