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From Beethoven to Albeniz
From Beethoven to Albeniz
Artist: Walter Schenkman
Genre:
Music for piano
Category:
Antologies
Composer:
Various Artists
Supported languages: Italiano
Extended description:
The opening Beethoven Sonata is illustrativeof the composer's tendencies toward calm contemplation and inward reflection in his later years (he died in 1828 at age 58). It also points to his new-found interest in the music of J. S. Bach. While a deep lyricism pervades the first movement, and traces of earthy humor dominate the second, the Bach influence appears in the alternating succession of Arioso and Fugue in the work's conclusion. The Ariosi lament the composer's failing health just as the final fugue "gradually regains strength" (the composer's own words) to end on a triumphant note.
The second portion of the program illustrates different approaches in the treatment of the miniature on the part of four Romantic composers. Schubert's naive delight in his dances stands in strong contrast to Schumann's more sophisticated treatment of the Waltz rhythms in his 12 short pieces of the Papillons - all loosely tied together by thematic cross-references back and forth. A quanint touch is offered at the end with the sounding of the six high A's: the composer himself notes that "as the clock strikes six, the Carnival bustle i sover." Brahms' two Waltzes strike a tone both more serious and more passionate; while the four Chopin Preludes performed here cover a wide range of emotions: from the resigned mood of the first in A minor, the high solemnity of the third in C minor, to the carefree attitude of cheerful gaiety in the second in G and the last in A major. The concluding A major of the group also abandons the four-square rhythms of its earlier companions and reverts back to the Walts rhythms that dominate most of the pieces of this segment of the program.
The concluding portion of the program contrasts the subtle French Impressionistic style of writing for the piano in Debussy's work to the comparatively blunt approach followed in Mussorgsky's "Russian realism". In looking over his Gardens, Debussy's vision appears to be distorted by the gently falling or wind driven rain - occasionally even interrupted by flashes of brilliant sunlight... And the moods of the Girl with Flaxen Hair change quickly as she tries to sit still for her portrait! Mussorgsky's realism features blocks of Russian folk song material interspersed with musical quotations from a Russian Orthodox Church service. A peeling of bells concludes the service as life returns to normal. This portion of the program also introduces a leading character of our performance, the cigar.chomping Albeniz himself. Isaac Albeniz was born in 1860 and made his pianistic debut at age four - to the utter amazement of his audiences! He died at age 49 before completing the final number of the 12 pieces of his major opus, Iberia, in 1909. In the Albaicin presented here - nr. 6 in the Iberia series - a guitar-like strumming introduces the haunting Gypsy melody in open octaves tha will hold center stage throughout the piece. The composer transforms this melodic line and adorns it with rich Romantic harmonies as he builds his work to its grand climax - and the Gypsy melody returns to usher in a forlorn epilogue. The Tango in D - intended as encore - has ever been one of the composer's most popular works.
The second portion of the program illustrates different approaches in the treatment of the miniature on the part of four Romantic composers. Schubert's naive delight in his dances stands in strong contrast to Schumann's more sophisticated treatment of the Waltz rhythms in his 12 short pieces of the Papillons - all loosely tied together by thematic cross-references back and forth. A quanint touch is offered at the end with the sounding of the six high A's: the composer himself notes that "as the clock strikes six, the Carnival bustle i sover." Brahms' two Waltzes strike a tone both more serious and more passionate; while the four Chopin Preludes performed here cover a wide range of emotions: from the resigned mood of the first in A minor, the high solemnity of the third in C minor, to the carefree attitude of cheerful gaiety in the second in G and the last in A major. The concluding A major of the group also abandons the four-square rhythms of its earlier companions and reverts back to the Walts rhythms that dominate most of the pieces of this segment of the program.
The concluding portion of the program contrasts the subtle French Impressionistic style of writing for the piano in Debussy's work to the comparatively blunt approach followed in Mussorgsky's "Russian realism". In looking over his Gardens, Debussy's vision appears to be distorted by the gently falling or wind driven rain - occasionally even interrupted by flashes of brilliant sunlight... And the moods of the Girl with Flaxen Hair change quickly as she tries to sit still for her portrait! Mussorgsky's realism features blocks of Russian folk song material interspersed with musical quotations from a Russian Orthodox Church service. A peeling of bells concludes the service as life returns to normal. This portion of the program also introduces a leading character of our performance, the cigar.chomping Albeniz himself. Isaac Albeniz was born in 1860 and made his pianistic debut at age four - to the utter amazement of his audiences! He died at age 49 before completing the final number of the 12 pieces of his major opus, Iberia, in 1909. In the Albaicin presented here - nr. 6 in the Iberia series - a guitar-like strumming introduces the haunting Gypsy melody in open octaves tha will hold center stage throughout the piece. The composer transforms this melodic line and adorns it with rich Romantic harmonies as he builds his work to its grand climax - and the Gypsy melody returns to usher in a forlorn epilogue. The Tango in D - intended as encore - has ever been one of the composer's most popular works.
W. Schenkman
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