Dutch pianists Lucas Jussen, 33, and his brother, Arthur, 29, have been performing together since they were kids. Now regulars in the world’s top concert halls, they still share a room, and plates of food, on tour.

ARTHUR: Lucas is three-and-a-half years older than me, and when I came home from hospital, the first thing he did was hug and kiss me. That says something about the bond that was to develop; he accepted me straight away.

He’s very easygoing and social, and I always played with Lucas and his friends when we were little. We slept in the same room, even though we each had our own; we could talk more. We still share a room when we’re on the road. We joke that if you go out with either one of us, you get the other brother, too. Thankfully, we like each other’s wives. Lucas has been with Annelise since he was 14, so I know her very well. I met my wife, Brenda, more recently.

I’m a bit OCD. Lucas and Annelise bought an automatic vacuum cleaner and named it Arthur, so you can see how they mock me for that. I’m probably a bit square while Lucas is more spontaneous. If there was an important test, I’d start preparing a week before, whereas he’d do it all the day before. We’d end up in the same place, just via different methods.

We really understand each other. One time, we were playing in Hamburg and, for some reason, I felt very nervous before going on stage. Lucas sensed this. Ten seconds before we went out, he said to me, “Look where we are; it’s amazing. Let’s enjoy it.” I instantly relaxed and we had a fantastic concert.

Lucas had an especially busy year last year. He was moving house as well as performing a lot. I felt he was a little on edge, so I took on a lot of the admin that we usually share. I didn’t mind because I like to be organised and I knew it would just take something off his shoulders. We didn’t have to discuss it. We’re a very good team. If Lucas makes a joke on stage, I’m usually the first and loudest to laugh.

What I find frustrating about him is also what I love. Lucas will give the receptionist or cleaning maid as much time as the boss; actually, he probably gives more to the maid. I really admire it but, sometimes, if you’re running late and he’s chatting for 10 minutes, you think, “C’mon!” But that’s just him; he’s very outgoing.

We rehearse separately 90 per cent of the time and come together for the last 10 per cent. There’s no hierarchy when we play: it’s very important that there’s not one boss, there must be a complete lack of ego in that way. Every millisecond, I’m listening to what Lucas is doing and he’s doing the same, so who is leading can change within that millisecond.

When we’re sitting together [playing the same piano], I know when he wants to use one of the pedals, because I feel his leg gently touch mine. I know then to move mine away. That’s the easy thing about being brothers: you don’t have to bother saying, “When I touch your leg, it doesn’t mean I hate you.”

We both like to work out and keep healthy and pretty much eat the same food; it’s not like one of us wants Chinese and the other Italian. We often get two plates of food, say a pasta and a salad, and share them. Even when it comes to music, we have the same tastes. We both like Frank Sinatra, Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder, Kool & the Gang, and Kylie Minogue.

LUCAS: I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t with Arthur; I’d play more with him than with my own friends at school. We’ve asked our parents how we came to get along so well and they simply say, “It’s just luck; either you do or you don’t.” We certainly know siblings who really work on their relationships but don’t have the deep connection that we do.

Arthur is a big dreamer – and I mean that in the literal sense. He’ll often have vivid dreams and talk in his sleep. One time, he woke me to tell me, “Calm down, calm down. It’s OK.” I woke up and said, “What’s the matter? I’m fine.” He looked me straight in the eye but he was fast asleep, probably dreaming.

Arthur likes to have structure in the way he approaches piano-playing and life; he likes to know what’s coming. He’ll be the one to fill in the visa forms. If a flight is delayed and we have to go on stage without a shower, I’d probably be easier about it than he would. I’ll be the one to say, “C’mon, it’ll be fine. We won’t smell as nice, but we’ll work it out.”

In terms of our looks, Arthur’s hair is more styled, whereas mine’s a bit wild. He’s more into fashion trends than I am, too: I tend to be a bit more classical. And he loves perfume. There’s a duty-free shop at Amsterdam airport with a huge fragrance section. We fly out of that airport two or three times a week and he would’ve been in that shop 300 times. He’s gone deep down the scent rabbit-hole and I don’t think he’s ever coming out.

We spend more time apart from each other now that we’re both married. Last year, I spoke out because we’d done more than 100 concerts and I wanted to pull back on the intensity of that. Arthur wasn’t in the same headspace as me; he wanted to keep going. The difference [in what we wanted] was only small, but things came to a head. We talked it through, though, and met in the middle. He came to realise later that pulling back a bit had been good for him, too.

I really admire Arthur’s drive to be the best he can be every time we go on stage together; he has a big tank in that way. It’s inspiring to have someone beside you who can deliver that drive all the time. If I’m having an off day, it pulls me through.

Arthur and Lucas Jussen will perform with the Sydney and Melbourne symphony orchestras from August 31 to September 12.

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