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No 81
Helping you become a better player
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
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BOOST YOUR PLAYING Practising away from the piano Tips on staying motivated How to control texture
COREA INNOVATOR AND PIONEER OF JAZZ PIANO
Learn the famous BRAHMS LULLABY
Arrangements What makes a good arrangement? Arrangements galore in this issue’s Scores 300 years of piano arrangements
12
PIECES TO
LEARN
BEGINNER TO ADVANCED
IN-DEPTH
LESSONS ON
Schubert arr. Liszt Der Müller und der Bach
PIANOS TO PUT ON YOUR CHRISTMAS WISH LIST
For information on Steinway & Sons pianos or to arrange a private appointment to visit our London showroom, please call 0207 487 3391 or email
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Pianist 81
CONTENTS
December 2014 - January 2015 The next issue of Pianist goes on sale 30 January 2015
72
74 10
80 4
Editor’s Note
4
Composing Competition Preview of our new competition: make your own arrangement and see it published!
6 Readers’ Letters 8
9
News Stunning Freire and Bolet CD box sets, Minimalism festival in London, an edgy Bösendorfer on display, celebrity amateur pianists step up on stage WIN! A Yamaha Clavinova worth over £1,700
14 24 How to Play 2 Lucy Parham on Liszt’s arrangement of Schubert’s poignant Der Müller und der Bach (Scores page 59) 26 How to Play 3 Janet Newman on Nazareth’s exotic Valsa Confidências (Scores page 38) 27 The Scores A pullout section of 40 pages of sheet music for all levels. Plus read about our online lessons!
45 Beginner Keyboard Class Hans-Günter Heumann’s Lesson No 9: e chromatic scale
12 Expert Talk Tim Stein on the value of practising away from the piano, and the Pianoforte Tuners’ Association on dealing with a piano with a heavy touch
67 Pianist Digital Store Find out about the handy new Pianist online store where you can download any score you want from past issues
14 Chick Corea A vibrant force who pioneered solo jazz piano style, fusion and so much more over the past 60 years, Chick Corea is still a force to be reckoned with in the world of jazz. Inge Kjemtrup talks to him about his amazing career
68 By special arrangement Michael Quinn traces a history of transformation, showing how (and why) composers from past to present successfully re-work music of all styles and genres
18 How to Play Masterclass 1 Mark Tanner on staying motivated
Barry Douglas 72 Celtic about hisSpirit Celtic Reflections disc,talks which includes his own arrangments of Irish songs, and his continuing project to record all of Brahms’s solo piano oeuvre
20 How to Play Masterclass 2 Graham Fitch on bringing out texture Don’t miss Graha m’s online lessons!
22 How to Play 1 Melanie Spanswick on Gounod’s e Pipers (Scores page 30)
74 Mahan Esfahani Jessica Duchen meets Mahan Esfahani, one of today’s most thrilling harpsichord players and a fierce advocate of the overlooked instrument
Cover photo (and centre photo above): Toshi Sakurai (2014), courtesy Chick Corea Productions. Images this page: © Eugene Langan (Douglas); © Hyperion Records (Esfahani); Amy T Zielinski (celebrities). Notice: Every effort has been made to secure permission for copyrighted material in this magazine, however, should copyrighted material inadvertently have been used, copyright acknowledgement will be made in a later issue of the magazine.
78 Subscribe today for just £4.50 an issue by Direct Debit and receive one of Lang Lang’s books from his new ‘Mastering the Piano’ series worth £9.99 80 Piano Round-up It’s a great time of year to consider an upgrade to your existing piano, so Gez Kahan has made a survey of some of the most exciting pianos out there – acoustic, digital and other – and finds a few bargains too 86 CD Review Top marks for Igor Levit’s classy Bach Partitas, with Bavouzet’s Haydn, Danny Driver’s Schumann and Piano Rarities annual not far behind 88 Sheet Music Review Christmas classics, Brazilian and Afro-Caribbean styles, Autumnal jazz and more 89 Classifieds
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Editor’s note
Pianist
S
ome pieces of music juststand the test of time. We hear them on the radio or in concert, time and time again, sung by different people, played by different instruments. Justthink of Pachelbel’s Canon and how it’s been arranged for every conceivable combination of instruments. Yes, the word ‘arrangement’ plays a leading role in this issue. at’s because I thought it was time to consider what an arrangement is – why certain pieces lend themselves so well to being arranged, and what actually makes a good (and bad) arrangement. Start by taking Michael Quinn’s tour of the history of the arrangement on page 68 – beginning with Bach, then winding through
www.pianistmagazine.com PUBLISHER Warners Group Publications plc Director: Stephen Warner Publisher: Janet Davison EDITORIAL 6 Warrington Crescent, London, W9 1EL, UK Tel: +44 (0)20 7266 0760 Fax: +44 (0)20 7286 0748 Editor: Erica Worth
the composers of theheClassical andsome Romantic eras and arriving at the present day, where speaks to very gifted composer/arrangers. Inside our Scores there are arrangements aplenty, from a simple setting of Brahms’s caressingLullaby to a jazzy Baroque take onWe Wish You a Merry Christmasand a soulful Danny Boy. e advanced piece is Liszt’s arrangement of Schubert’s song Der Müller und der Bach, perfectly taught by Lucy Parham on page 24. Even concert pianist Barry Douglas is getting hooked: in the article on page 72, he talks about why he decided to arrange Celtic folk tunes. And for the icing on the cake, next issueyou will be able to enter our unique Composing Competition (see below). I’m sure I’ll find a talented arranger or two among you! Competitions like this are great, aren’t they? Here’s another: for the second issue running, we have a fantastic ‘Win a Piano’ competition. is time it’s an ever-popular Clavinova that’s up for grabs. Should you not be so lucky as to win it, we’re here to tempt you to consider an upgrade or maybe find a bargain in our four-page piano round-up on page 80. After all, it is Christmas. Back to where I began, with pieces that stand the test of time. If you’re looking for your favourite pieces – those you’ve always wanted to learn, for example, or more pieces from a composer you love – now you can delve into our huge back catalogue of scores with the launch of the Pianist Digital Store. Read all about it on page 67. I nearly forgot to mention our cover artist, the one and only Chick Corea. On page 14, Deputy Editor Inge Kjemtrup interviews this legend of jazz, a performer who has, for sure, stood the test of time. P.S. Don’ t forget to enter our fantastic competition on page 9 – it ’s your chance towin a Yamaha Clavinova worth over £1,700! ERICA WORTH, EDITOR
N E X T I S SU E DON’T MISS THE EXCLUSIVE PIANIST COMPOSING COMPETITION
e winning arrangement will be featured inside the Pianist Scores and on the covermount CD! Inside the pages of this issue, you can read all about the art of arranging music, and play some of the arrangements included inside this issue’s Scores. Now’s the time to get creative with your own arrangement. Make an arrangement of a piece you love and enter it in the Pianist Composing Competition.Your arrangement can be in any style you like and can be based on any music from any genre – Bach, Bacharach, Basie. Anything goes!
[email protected] Deputy editor: Inge Kjemtrup
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Pianist
The entries will beABRSM judged by a panelDirector of experts, including Editor Erica Worth, Syllabus Nigel Scaife and Ronnie Scott’s house pianist James Pearson. Don’t miss the next issue of Pianist, out 30 January 2015, for full details. For early access to the competition, register for the . SUBSCRIBE to the Pianist e-newsletter sent on 16 December e-newsletter at www.pianistmagazine.com . In the meantime, get scribbling!
4• Pianist 64
Registered : Warners Group Publica tions, West Bourne, Lincs, PE10Address 9PH. ©Warners Group Publicati ons plc. AllStreet, rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission strictly prohibited. Every care is taken in compiling the magazinedan no responsibility can be taken for any action arising from information given on the papers. All information, prices and telephone numbers are correct at the time of going to press. No responsibili ty can be taken for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or transparencies. Printed by Warners Group Publications plc. Pianist ISSN 4200395 is published bi-monthly (6 times a year / February, April, June, August, October, December) by Warners Group Publications c/o USACAN Media Corp. 123A Distribution Way, Building H-1, Suite 104, Plattsburgh, N.Y., 12901 U.S.A.. POSTMASTER: send address changes to Pianist, c/o Express Mag, P.O. BOX 2769, Plattsburgh, N.Y., U.S.A. 12901- 0239.
ISSN 1475 - 1348
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5• Pianist 81 * Terms and conditions apply. Ask your dealer for details. ** Model shown is the CLP-585PE. Specifications vary across the range. Not all features mentioned are found on all models.
Readers’ Letters Get in touch WRITE TO:The Editor, Pianist, 6 Warrington Crescent, London, W9 1EL, UK OR EMAIL:
[email protected] STAR LETTERwins a surprise CD. Letters may be edited.
STAR LETTER
Chipping away at a piano club in Wales I am writing to you after reading the article in Pianist No 79 on piano clubs to tell you about the club I founded in Wales 2009. I started the piano completely from scratch as an adult and had just done Grade 3. My teacher realised that I had a problem playing in front of others and suggested that I join a piano circle in Cardiff, an hour away. My husband and I drove there one Friday night in the pouring rain. I was made to feel very welcome but I was out of my depth and it was a long way to go on a regular basis. I then thought, why not start a club of my own? I already knew two people who would be interested. e group soon grew. We are now 20 – and there is a waiting list! I was looking for a name for the group so with the help of my first member we came up with the name, ‘Dyfal Donc’, a Welsh proverb that means ‘chipping away at the stone and getting there in the end’. We meet once every two months and I always host it in my home. I email the group about a week before to ask them for their pieces and my husband organises the program. With so many players this avoids the ‘can I go first?’, ‘can I go last?’ and so on. I don’t encourage more than five minutes per person as all this takes nearly two hours. ey arrive at 10.30am on a ursday morning and we start with coffee and cakes, often brought in by some of the members, then we start playing at 11ish after all the nattering over coffee. At about 1pm, when we have finished, I ply them with wine and canapés and sometimes lunch. We have a really good time and as we all feel more at ease playing in front of others. To sum up: I really do believe that piano groups are a wonderful idea. ere is enough pressure to learn new pieces and techniques without having to endure exams. Although it is obviously a serious matter, as we all want to play our pieces well in front of others, we have a lot of fun doing so. A piano can be a lonely instrument unless you share it as we ‘Donckers’ do. Kate Probert, Gower Peninsula What a lovely letter. Y our piano group sounds ideal (and lunch with wine afterwards – perfect!). A surprise CD is on its way to you.
Diabolical stretching? I really love your magazine, however, your Star Letter in the current issue [No 80] of Pianist has me open mouthed in astonishment! ese exercises are quite diabolical and could really destroy the pianist’s hand. I would never, ever recommend them to anyone under any circumstances. e warning given by the gentleman from Canada was insuffi cient. If I suggested them to my students I would be afraid of being sued! Remember Robert Schumann? I think most of my colleagues would agree with me on this topic. It would be very interesting to hear what teachers and pianists think. Brenda Lucas Ogdon, London We’d also be interested to hear what other readers think about these exercises. Are they too extreme?
‘El Desperados’ fight stage fright Inge Kjemtrup’s article ‘Kindred Spirits’ [issue 79] accurately highlighted the issues adults face when trying to find a sympathetic audience to play their hard-rehearsed pieces. I, too, am in that position (age 60 and working towards Grade 5 Piano) and fully appreciate the problem of ‘shaking hands’ when anyone is listening. As a result, and with
the encouragement of my music teacher, I have formed ‘El Desperados’. e group exists to give adults who are desperate to overcome the physical symptoms of nervousness the opportunity to play in front of others in the same situation. Unlike a piano club, though, I want to encourage students of any instrument. At our first meeting we had four pianists, a recorder player and a trombonist. We are based in the northwest of England. Anyone interested can find out m ore by going to www.eldesperados.weebly.com. Geoff Bennett, Lancashire
If you have information about Arthur Meyrick for Paula, send an email to
[email protected] and we’ll forward it to her.
Phases with a Fazer I have a middle-of-the road upright – the make is Fazer. e supplier told me it is Finnish, but I cannot trace any information about the company. e piano is about 40 years old, overstrung, under-damper, and is 8¼ octaves. What can you tell me about the maker? Tony Bowden, Oxon Fazer was established in 1940 in Helsinki and was bought by Hellas in 1989. You may want check the octave count, as it may have 7¼ octaves, not 8¼. Practically the only style of Fazer in the UK was a small 109cm high model made from about 1970 to 1988 that came with a practice pedal and usefully long music desk. Do any other readers own a Fazer?
Loving
Nola
Many thanks for bringing us the score Nola, which appeared in issue 79. is challenging piece demonstrating early ‘stride’ style will bring much pleasure once mastered. I’m getting there slowly! e present edition (No 80) features Cole Porter’s I’ve Got You Under My Skin. It is a valuable exercise in adding extra notes producing more chords and playing in your own style. Chris & Pat Byrne, Dorset
Bringing back the romance!
I am trying to collect information for a biography on my former piano teacher Arthur Meyrick (1916-1985) who lived in Nottingham
I really love Pianist magazine, and I do not use the word love casually. When I was a teenager in Totnes, Devonshire, I was preoccupied with films and Hollywood stars. Every ursday I waited for the magical sou nd of Picture Show and Film Review being dropped through our letterbox. I would spend hours poring over every page with unaccountable excitement, reading every review, feature and news item, and scrutinising the photographs of my heroes and stills of the coming films. en I came to New Zealand and my interests changed. ere was no magazine in those days covering British Steam Rail, another of my obsessions. So life seemed to lose its enchantment. I now have romance back in my life with
and taught me in the 1970s. If any of your readers have any information about his life, musical training or career I would be delighted to receive it. He was an outstanding teacher with a unique approach. I was fortunate to observe many hours of him teaching beginners and would like to document his teaching method so that others can learn from it. I would also like to place his biography on Wikipedia. Paula Melville-Clark, Queensland, Australia
Pianist . I experience the familiar thrill of anticipation each month, even if it is delayed emotional gratification because of the distance from London to New Zealand. I am writing to say thank-you from a rejuvenated pianist in his mid-seventies, and from my longsuffering wife Penny, who now benefits from a better-tempered old man. Best wishes to you all. Dr Garth Chivalle Carpenter, nr Wellington, New Zealand
Outstanding teacher
6• Pianist 81
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News
All the latest news from the world of the piano
British pianist wins Nottingham International Jazz Competition wenty-nine-year-old British pianist om Hewson has won first prize in the fourth Nottingham International Jazz Piano Competition (NIJPC) 2014. Vying for the top prize with an international group of four finalists, Hewson (pictured) gave a thrilling performance in front of a large
THEY’LL TAKE MANHATTAN (AN D LONDON TOO) Igor Levit, Joanna MacG regor, Danny Driver and more conquer the capitals
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Tey weren’t separated at birth, but Russian pianists Igor Levit (pictured above) and Daniil Trifonov certainly do have a lot in common. Born in the same Russian city (Nizhny Novgorod) four years apart, they were both prizewinners at major international piano competitions, and, although they are both only in their twenties, they are already wildly admired by critics and audiences. rifonov, who wasPianist No 79’s cover artist, is taking on New York in December and January. He starts with a solo recital featuring Bach/ Liszt, Beethoven (the final Sonata) and Liszt ( ranscendental Etudes) at Carnegie Hall (9 Dec) and then has four dates playing Rachmaninov’s First Piano Concerto with the New York Philharmonic under Juanjo Mena at Lincoln Center (30 Dec; 2, 3 & 6 Jan). Levit, meanwhile, is the focus of a special series at London’s Wigmore Hall. For his first programme on 27 December, he plays Beethoven Sonatas No 22 and 29 (‘Hammerklavier’), Bach’s Partita No 2 and Ronald Stevenson’s Peter Grimes Fantasy on Temes from Britten . Te remainder of the series is comprised of an all-chaikovsky recital on 27 Jan, a duo concert with tenor Simon Bode (8 Feb) and a modern recital (Cardew, Rzewski) on 20 July. Another Russian, the composer Alexander Scriabin, is the focus of a pair of recitals that Garrick Ohlsson is presenting in several cities. Dates include the Wigmore Hall (6 Jan, 27 April) and San Francisco Performances (7 Dec, 14 Mar). ‘When an art form seems particularly inflated and prolix, springcleaning is in order,’ said American composer John Adams, whose music, along with works by Phillip Glass, erry Riley, Arvo Pärt and Steve Reich, features in Minimalism Unwrapped at Kings Place, London. Highlights include Joanna MacGregor (pictured above) in an evening devoted
to ‘the godfather of Minimalism’, Erik Satie. Yes, the Gymnopédies will get an outing, but so will the witty Sports et divertissments (8 Jan). For the quiet end of the Minimalist spectrum, there’s Morton Feldman’s Patterns in a Chromatic Field, played by cellist Oliver Coates and pianist Danny Driver (9 Jan). Tere’s a study day (10 Jan) as well if you’re
still struggling toto getNew yourYork, headGerman around Minimalism. Heading back pianist Martin Helmchen plays Dvořák’s infrequently heard Piano Concerto with the New York Philharmonic under Christoph von Dohnányi (11-13 Dec) at Lincoln Center. Helmchen made a well-received recording of the Dvořák a few years ago, so audiences are in for a treat. For full details of the concerts described above, go to daniiltrifonov.co m, wigmore-hall.org.u k, kingsplace.co .uk, carnegiehall.org, sfperformances.org and lincolncenter.org
and enthusiastic audience at the Nottingham Albert Hall on 5 October. In the final, Hewson, along with three other young pianists – Antonio ruyols (American, age 24), Jakub Pluzek (Polish, 26) and Krisztian Olah (Hungarian, 18) – was required to play two compulsory pieces, as well as about 25 minu tes of ‘free choice’ pieces and then a two-minute improvisation based on an ‘unseen motif’, which was only given to him on the evening of the final. Hewson’s prize includes a series of gigs at world-famous venues including Ronnie Scott’s (London), 606 Club (London) and Jazzland (Vienna). Te NIJPC is organised by Nottingham-based Clement Pianos, with support from Bösendorfer (competitors played on a Bösendorfer grand in the final) and media sponsorship from Pianist . ‘Te standard was higher than ever this year,’ commented Clement Pianos. ‘Being a finalist in the competition has been a great boost for the careers of the pianists from 2008, 2010 and 2012 and we are looking forward to seeing the four 2014 finalists’ careers flourish over the coming months and years.’ Go to www.nijpc.com to see videos from the NIJPC 2014 grand final
LIFE ON THE EDGE
Meet the Bösendorf er designers behind the innovative grand on 3 December How did Bösendorfer, one of the world’s oldest piano companies, go about building a trail-blazing concept concert grand like the Edge (pictured right)? Find out for yourself by attending a free special event on 3 December at 7pm at Yamaha Music London on Wardour Street. Ferdinand Brau, Bösendorfer’s most senior and technical manager, will introduce guests to the company’s ‘hand build’ philosophy and explain how innovative instruments such as the Edge are conceived, designed and built. Among the innovations of this award-winning instrument are that when its lid is closed the sound is still projected upwards and outwards thanks to a subtle gap between the lid and the body of the instrument. Te Edge presentation is followed by a ‘how to design your own piano’ experience, giving you the opportunity to discuss your dream piano with some of the world’s top craftsmen and piano builders. Te evening concludes with a short recital. o reserve your place at the Edge evening on 3 December, send an email to simaoferreira@yamahamusiclond on.com or phone +44 (0)20 7432 4422
8. Pianist 81
READER COMPETITION
WIN!
A CLAVINOVA One lucky Pianist reader will win a Yamaha Clavinova CLP-535
WORTH OVER £1,700
Readers of Pianist will know by now what a popular instrument the Clavinova is. It’s great for all levels of piano players – from the beginner student to the more advanced pianist. Te new CLP-535, which was launched this spring, is the first Clavinova to feature sound samples taken from both the Yamaha concert grand CFX and Bösendorfer Grand Imperial pianos. In total, there are eight piano and 26 other instrument voices, all of which have been greatly improved compared to previous models. Te model starts with an affordable price tag of £1,415, goin g up to £1,732 for the Polished Ebony finish. ogether with 88-key sampling and 256-note polyphony, the 30W x2 amplifier and speaker system has also been upgraded to deliver the dynamic sounds of the instrument in superb quality.
interface has been completely redesigned and is now both easier to use and less intrusive. By placing all controls to the left of the keyboard and incorporatin g a new back-lit LCD screen, the whole instrument has been given a more sophisticated appearance. Tere’s a 16-track MIDI sequencer, audio recording and a new built-in lesson repertoire with over 300 songs. Te instrument can also interface with Yamaha’s popular NoteStar App for iPad, with optional wireless connectivity. Te styling is designed to create the image of a traditional upright piano and there are six colour choices, including Black Walnut, Dark Rosewood, Mahogany, White, Polished Ebony and the new White Ash. Te lucky winner will be able to choose whatever finish they want! LIST EN • LEARN • PLAY
12LEARN
PIECES TO
BEGINNER TO ADVANCED
IN-DEPTH
LESSON ON
S c hube rta rr. Lisz t D e rM ülle rundde rB a c h
ouch and response are, of course, extremely important in a piano, and on the CLP-535, they are outstanding thanks to the revolutionary GH3X action with escapement feel and synthetic Ivory key tops. Te user
PLA Y T HE W IST FUL
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LISTEN TO THE SOUNDS OF THE CLAVINOVA ON OUR CD! You can hear Schube rt’s Impromptu No 2 and Debussy’s Rêverie played by Yamaha’s latest Clavinova on our Covermount CD.
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WIN THIS CLAVINOVA PIANO!To enter, answer the question below Enter online at www.pianistmagazine.com/competitions QUESTION: How many colours does the Clavinova CLP-535 come in? A. 6
B. 10
C. 4
To enter by post,simply send a postcard to: Lauren Roberts, Clavinova Competition (PIA0110), Warners Group Publications, 5th Floor, 31-32 Park Row, Leeds, LS1 5JD. Please include your full name and contact information. Please mark on the postcard if you do not wish to receive information by post, telephone or email from Pianist or Yamaha Music UK. Closing date Friday 30 January 2015. UK entrants only.
News
All the latest news from the world of the piano
REVIEW: NELSON FREIRE AND JORGE BOLET
Birthday box sets from two keyboard giants o mark Nelson Freire’s 70th birthday this part October, Sony has collected all of the Brazilian pianist’s CBS/ Columbia Records LPs in a seven-CD box set. Here we can hear the debut release of the young Freire in three of the most popular concertos by chaikovsky, Grieg and Schumann – plus a hairraising Liszt otentanz (all first released in 1969). What a debut! Te Munich Philharmonic and Rudolf Kempe must have felt that they had let a tiger into the recording studio. Chopin, a composer always close to Freire’s heart, is represented in the box set by a classy account of the 24 Préludes and a selection of mazurkas, along with other works, all from a new remastering of a 1971 German LP. Te Brahms and Schumann selection (recorded in 1969) are up among the very best, and the Liszt Sonata (1972) is not far behind the classic account by Freire’s long-time friend Martha Argerich. Te only downside to the new set is that CBS/Columbia’s piano recordings always sounded clangy and studio-dry, however, it’s a small price to pay for such major talent. Decca has recently lured Freire back into the studio to record more top-flight Chopin, scintillating Liszt and some marvellous Brahms concertos with Riccardo Chailly. Now, with the latest Freire and Chailly combo, we are presented with what will surely be the reference version of Beethoven’s Fifth Piano Concerto. Beethoven’s last sonata is a bonus to the disc, which shows Freire is a Beethoven player in the very top league. Another Freire release this year, Radio Days , came about when Decca unearthed some radio broadcast tapes from 1968-79. It is a wonderful chance to hear Freire in concertos he might not get the chance to record again. Yes, there is the chaikovsky First again, however, here Kurt Masur is alert, even if the orchestra struggles at times to cope with the Freire brilliance. A towering Rachmaninov Tird and a thrusting Prokofiev First are highlights in this set, which shows Freire as truly deserving of the sobriquet, ‘one of the most exciting pianists of this or any age’. If the Cuban-born pianist Jorge Bolet was still alive, he would have celebrated his 100th birthday in November. Troughout his life Bolet was aloof to the recording executives, choosing to spend less time in the studio and more time at the Curtis Institute, where he taught. However, when he had concert engagements (way too few for his massive talent), he played with perfect technique and a glorious mahogany tone unmistakab ly his own. On this handful of RCA LP transfers included in a new Bolet box set from Sony, we hear Liszt playing on a majestic level. It’s not flashy, bombastic or in any way superficial. On the contrary, some might find this Liszt too sedate and lacking sparkle. Nothing could be further from the truth: it is a direct link back to Bach and Beethoven, with the music sculpted into massive columns of sound. Every single phrase is shaped to perfection no matter how many notes. Tis fine box set also has a few live recordings from Carnegie Hall and it is obvious that Bolet’s note-perfect and overall control of even the most hideously difficult transcriptions were not edited in a recording studio. Bolet is like a huge tank massively forcing his way through mountains of notes, leaving a trail of perfectly rounded and outlined musical thoughts that no other pianist to this day has managed to copy. Listen to what a true master pianist can do with even the slightest Strauss waltz transcription – you’ll be swept off your feet. Marius Dawn
Nelson Freire Te Complete Columbia Album Collection (Sony Classical 88750 02282, 7 discs); Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 5 with the Gewandhaus Orchestr a, plus Sonata op 111 (Decca 478 6771); Radio Days (Decca 478 6772) Jorge Bolet Te Complete RCA and Columbia Album Collection (Sony Classical RCA Red Seal 88843014722, 10 discs) 10. Pianist 81
WHEN THE STARS COME OUT TO PLAY For a second year in a row, British pianist and Pianist contributor Lucy Parham launches her Sunday morning Word/Play series at Kings Place, London with a C elebrity Christmas Gala. On 7 December at 11.30am, Parham will be joined on stage by an impressive group of actors, writers, comedians and journalists, all of them keen amateur pianists, to play chaikovsky’s Album for the Young and Nutcracker Suite. If last year’s event (pictured, above) is any indication, a great time will be had by all. Tis year’s line-up includes comedian Alistair McGowan; actors Jane Asher, Edward Fox, Simon Russell Beale, Stephen Boxer and Niamh Cusack; broadcasters Kate Derham, Clemency Burton-Hill and Sarah Walker; novelist Conrad Williams; Philharmonia MD David Whelton; journalist Rosie Millard and Guardian Editor Alan Rusbridger. Te Word/Play series continues on 25 January with a ‘Just William’ story presented by actor Martin Jarvis and composer and pianist Richard Sisson. o find out more about the new season of Word/Play and the Celebrity Christmas Gala, go to kingsplace.co.uk
YOUR CHANCE TO SHINE ON STAGE
Register now for the Piano Showcase on 23 January Tere’s been an excellent uptake from readers keen to perform at our Piano Showcase on 23 January at Schott Music Recital Hall in London, but there are still a few spaces remaining. As described in the last issue’s News, this first Piano Showcase, presented by
Pianist magazine and Schott, aims to be a friendly event that gives pianists at all levels a chance to play in front of a supportive audience. Remember, the Piano Showcase is free of charge, there’s a wide choice of repertoire to choose from, you don’t have to memorise your music, and you can bring along a friend or family member to see you play. Don’t miss this wonderful opportunity to step on stage! For full details on how to take part in the Piano Showcase, go to www.schott-music.co.uk/schottpianoshowcase
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News
All the latest news from the world of the piano
Q&A
with Tim Stein My teacher has suggested that I practise away from the keyboard. Can you give me some suggestions on how best to do this?
Most, if not all, of our practising is done at the piano, and it is just as effective (sometimes even more so) to practise away from it. It might seem odd, but it is a bit like being an objective observer. When we are so wrapped up with the practicalities of the instrument, the technical obstacles and so on, we often end up overlooking more essential musical considerations. Practising away from the piano can help us with such things as rhythm, structure and even fingering. More importantly, it can help us develop the all-important ‘inner ear’, in which we can train ourselves to hear the musical sounds in our head. Where to start is really up to you. You might want to make a recording of yourself playing your pieces, and then listen back with the score. en, taking a pencil in hand, you can make notes in the score and circle such things as incorrect notes and rhythm. Let’s say that you are unsure about the tempo. Put your metronome on and check that you are keeping a steady beat, tapping with your pencil on the score. You could do this for an individual bar or an entire section. Or it could be that you are unaware of the dynamics or not even sure that you are putting them in convincingly, so again listening back to what you are playing can be very helpful.
Practising away from the piano can improves your rhythm, structure and even fingering, and can help develop the all-important ‘inner ear’ When you are away from the instrument, working out tricky rhythms can seem so much easier. If you don’t know how to play a rhythm in a certain bar, write in the counts, sub-dividing into smaller musical units if you have to (writing in the half beats, for instance), and then tap out with a pencil. It should make more sense when you eventually play it on the piano. e same can be said of any technical issue or fingering. Sometimes just looking at the difficulties on the page and thinking mentally with a clear head how to break them down into manageable parts can work wonders, especially when you are not bogged down with the physical aspects of playing. You can even use time away from the piano to memorise. Map out on the score with a pencil the contrasting sections, if there are any, and the basic harmonic outline. en, take a short while to look at a small section carefully before going to the piano to see how much you can recall. Bit by bit this process gets easier, until you can eventually remember larger sections. With time, and a bit of effort, you will start to become a more objective listener, and your playing overall will start to improve greatly. Go to pianistmagazine.com to watch Tim’s online piano lessons for beginner players, and you can also visit Tim’s own website at www.pianowithtim.com
FREE-RANGE PIANOS
How this herd of new Yamaha pianos landed at Leighton Park School near Reading Should you happen to be strolling around the grounds of Leighton Park School just outside Reading town centre, you will be unlikely to come upon the herd of Yamaha pianos pictured above. e photo was taken to mark the fact that Leighton Park has joined Yamaha’s Music Education Partner Programme, purchasing 19 keyboard instruments from the maker. e co-educational day and boarding school, which boasts an excellent music programme, celebrates its 125th anniversary in 2015. To help choose the instruments at the Yamaha European headquarters in Hamburg, Leighton Park brought in pianist and composer Julian Joseph. e collection of instruments that was selected includes grands, uprights, digital and stage pianos. Leighton Park is also the first UK educational institution to purchase the piano manufacturer’s flagship CFX concert grand. If, like Leighton Park School, you are ready for a keyboard upgrade, look no further than Yamaha’s latest Piano Upgrade scheme. is scheme, for UK-based piano owners only, can give you up to £2,000 in part-exchange to get a newer Silent series piano, or to get a Disklavier, Clavinova or AvantGrand. is special scheme only runs until 15 January, so act quickly! For more information about Yamaha’s Piano Upgrade Scheme, go to www.uk.yamaha.com
UNDER THE LID
Top tuners and technicians from the Pianoforte Tuners’ Association (PTA) tackle your instrument queries e touch on my piano is very heavy. Can it be rectified? Touch can vary from piano to piano. Some people like a heavy touch, others a light touch. e touch weight of the piano action is set in the factory by adding lead weights to the keys to help balance the key against the action components and hammers. High friction in the piano can cause a heavy touch and this should be checked first. Your piano tuner can advise on this when servicing the piano, which will include reducing friction on problems areas such as key pins, as well as regulation (fine adjustmen ts to the action so that it works to its optimum). Another ca use might be that the replacement parts are heavier than the srcinals – this is mostly due to modern hammers being used on older instruments that had lighter hammers srcinally. If the action is regulated well and friction is normal, then re-weighting is the only answer. is can be done in the traditional way or a by a new method called PTD, Precision Touch Design. John ompson, MPTA 12. Pianist 81
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INTERVIEW
CHICK COREA aying with know him for pl Whether you eturn to Forever, or for R Miles Davis or e Spain – Chick Corea is lik s ng so awed famous jazz legend. An an undeniable up talks to him Inge Kjemtr
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ou might think that once a performer achieves ‘legend’ status it might mean that the performer would never be able to do anything unexpected ever again. ey’d just be playing their greatest hits endlessly. But if you’re Chick Corea, a certified legend of jazz, and you’ve played with everyone in every corner of the globe, and you’ve gathered truckloads of awards and fivestar reviews, you don’t need to prove anything. You can focus on whatever interests you. All the nervous striving of youth is gone, and you can relax. Not that you can imagine Chick Corea as being anything other than relaxed. is is a man, after all, who has played with such jazz greats as Miles Davies, Stanley Clark, John McLaughlin, Sarah Vaughan, Herbie Hancock and Gary Burton, and led several of his own bands, notably the influential Return to Forever. He’s greatly admired for his trio outings (his 1968 albumNow He Sings, Now He Sobs is a landmark of the genre), while his solo albums are equally ground-breaking. Several of his compositions, including the famousSpain, are jazz standards, while hashis also delved the classical world he – on own termsinto of course – playing Mozart concertos, and writing and performing his own concertos. Last year, at the famous Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York, he was honoured with an entire week of concerts. On stage, the 73-year-old star seems as relaxed as he might be in his own living room, as I witness for myself at
INTERVIEW
G u l d a st an da r d
Chick Corea o
is always creative and always coming up with upgrades. In fact they have an upgrade of their concert grand piano called the CFX, which made a huge gigantic leap in quality as far as I’m concerned, and it’s become my favourite piano so I request it everywhere I go. Fusion forever
Many listeners know Corea’s work from the years in between the Miles Davis Band and the Elektric Band, that is, his time as leader of Return to Forever. e band began in 1971 with Corea on keyboards, joined by saxophone and flute player Joe Farrell, singer Flora Purim and bassist Stanley Clarke. e sound was ‘fusion’ – a convenient grab-all term for an excitingly hard-topin-down blend of jazz, Latin, rock and more. Corea’s best-known tune, Spain , came out of this era. Spain opens gently with Corea’s musings on Rodrigo’s guitar concerto, Concierto de Aranjuez, and explodes into a Latin fiesta that is a sheer expression of joy and energy. Even while he was leading Return to Forever on its high-octane tours, Corea was looking to explore a more inward world, given his view of the piano as ‘a natural solo instrument’. e logical next step was a solo album and for that, he turned to producer Manfred Eicher and his eclectic ECM label. e result was Piano Improvisations and Children’s Songs , among others. I ask Corea about the role solo piano has played in his career. ‘rough the years I’ve done at least a few solo piano concerts, because I like to assess my own musical output by myself without other musicians, just to see where my imagination might go and where my tendencies might be,’ he explains. ‘ But this year is the longest piano solo tour I’ve ever done. I’m out on the road for a couple of months and I’m really enjoying practising the piano and being out in front of audiences on my own.’
n how conc ert pianist F riedrich Guld a sparked hi I became cu s interest in rious about Mozart Mozart back great Austrian in the 1980s pianist, and w hen I met Fr he became Mozart perf ied rich Gulda, a friend of mi ormances, his the ne. He was w Beethoven an I attended a ell known for d Bach. But piano festiv his he also loved al in Munich a duet conc to improvise and Gulda w ert with me. . as part of it, He said, ‘I do him on stag an d he asked to n’t want to me e.’ We met on play et Chick bef stage and im it was a blast orehand, I’ll provised the . At one poin meet whole concer t he played piece of mu t together an this solo an sic. It was go d d launched rgeous. I tho composing into this com ught, this mu in the classica posed st be a young l style. When was that pie co mposer, the concert ce you were was over, I as playing?’ An didn’ t know ked Gulda, ‘ d he look ed w h a t t ha t w What at me kind of as? and said, because I tho lik e yo u m ean ‘That was Mo ught, gee, t zart!’ And tha hat’s beautif by Mozart’s t t oo ul. k me aback, Because bef music that mu ore that I was ch. I told Gu said, ‘Ye n’t of the Moz s, ar of course you would.’ Then alda, I’ d lik e t o lear n mor int rigued e ab ou t tha month later t double conc t. He , he sent me erto and said, with the Con the mini scor ‘You play the certgebouw e second part of Amsterda introduction an m d we’ll play at the Mozar , and I naively t Festival.’ T accepted an ha t w d I became as my fir st enthralled af ter that.
At his Barbican Centre concert in May, Corea thrilled the audience by playing Spain . is was not a passive experience though, because he got the audience to sing along. He’s a brilliant communicator, keen to interact with his audiences, even while he keeps them on their toes – one latecomer trying to make her way to a front-row seat after the first tune got a swift comment from him: ‘ere’s a good seat right there!’ Corea places himself in the long line of composer-pianists such as Duke Ellington, Bud Powell, Bill Evans and elonious Monk, a lineage reflected in his Barbican show, which included Ellington’s Sophisticated Lady, Evans’s Waltz for Debby and Monk’s Work. Like those artists, Corea is a great collaborator. A partnership with vibraphonist Gary Burton resulted in several albums from the trance-like Crystal Silence (1972) to Hot House (2013), which won him his 19th and 20th Grammy Awards, for best instrumental solo and best instrumental composition (for Mozart Goes Dancing).
‘My teacher was a good example for me because he got a beautiful sound and played it without a lot of effort, very gracefully, and that was an image that I aspired to’ In recent decades, his collaborations have extended to the classical world – I can’t help but think that his old piano teacher would have been delighted by this. Corea had long been drawn to certain composers (Bartók, for one), but it wasn’t until concert pianist Friedrich Gulda dragged him into a public performance of Mozart’s concerto that his interest was really piqued [see box, above]. He’s since worked with Bobby McFerrin on two Mozart discs and composed large-scale works for piano and orchestra. Today Corea devotes a lot of his energies to a new generation of jazz players and has recently launched a series of online music workshops, ‘so musicians all over the planet can tune into the live broadcast,’ he says. ‘We did our firstIt webcast a studio near my home. was like from having a TV show without the usual strictures. I could go on as long as I want.’ I end my interview by asking Corea what he thinks of the future of jazz, and his answer is refreshingly simple: ‘e future of jazz and the world is in all our hands; it’s up to all of us to put some quality in our lives.’ ■
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HOW TO
Tactics and techniques for STAYING MOTIVATED
What’s your motivation for playing the piano? How do you get yourself to practise when you feel uninspired? Pianist and teacherMark Tanner shows how to sustain your energy and drive omeone once quipped that genius is one per
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cent inspiration, 99 per cent perspiration; the same might be said of piano playing. Sticking to the task is central to the development of any skill-based activity. When we tot up the thousands of hours that go into ingraining such skills, any encouragement will prove invaluable. We are told that success breeds success, but sustaining a positive cycle – feeling motivated, practising effectively, steadily improving – isn’t so easy when one is operating under one’s own steam. Te question is, is it fair to expect all this drive and energy to come from our teachers or family, or is it to be found from within? For each of us the answer will be subtly different, although self-motivation is surely the ultimate route to sustained satisfaction and development. Perhaps, for you, the simple pleasure of playing provides all the motivation needed, but in case you feel your playing needs a little LC, here are a few practical tips to ensure your motivation remains high and your piano playing continues to blossom.
playing faster, but it is essential to know that your technical and musical strategies
Mark Tanner is a pianist, composer, ABRSM examiner
will actually work when up to speed. I have encountered many adult players who find great difficulty in taking their performances to the next level. In reality, no amount of slow, methodical practice will help you to play faster – you’ll just become more adept at playing it slowly! Work at a section for roughly ten minutes, well under speed, then immediately attempt it at a brisker pace before taking a moment to regroup and decide what still needs fixing.
and writer. A dozen of Mark’s compositions appear on the current TCL and LCM syllabuses. He recently released a CD on the Priory label with Michael George, bass-baritone, singing his own arrangements of well-known folk songs. Mark will be giving the world premiere of Colin Decio’s Piano Concerto ‘In memoriam John Ogdon’ at the Cheltenham Town Hall on 31 January 2015, with the Gloucester Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Glynn Oxley. Find out more at www.marktanner.info
Enjoying scales and arpeggios
Practising two ways at once
How can you keep from getting bored when practising your pieces? Te answer lies in setting yourself fresh challenges so that there is always something new to be working on within each piece. o this end, I advocate two forms of simultaneous practice, which will continue to pay dividends even when you are getting closer to a performance date. Te first form of practice is what I call the ‘pencil behind the ear’ approach – breaking up the music into sections and getting down to nitty-gritty details such as fingerings or localised coordinatio n issues, but taken slower than the target
Te key to improving scales and arpeggios is maximising the satisfaction you get from working them up. It is therefore important to see them as a challenging musical endeavour, as opposed to a tedious rigmarole. Naturally, scales will soak up varying amounts of your practice time depending on what you are working towards, but it is imperative to thread them into a daily regime so that they become an integral part of your piano playing – after all, this is precisely why scales are included in exams! Aim to get your scales flowing along early in the learning process as possible, even if at first they are a little steady in tempo and perhaps lack the purposeful shape that
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pace. Te second is what I call the ‘bull in a china shop’ stage, by which I mean allowing yourself to launch yourself at it, albeit still in sections, but now up to something nearer to the target tempo. Te point of this dual attack is to check that your painstaking work is continuing to be both relevant and productive. Naturally, you should expect more clangers to occur when
TOP TIPS STAYING MOTIVATED
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Get yourself a good teacher! Going it alone can be seriously hazardous to your pianistic health.
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Self-motivation ultimately becomes indispensable for pianists; keep inspired by meeting up regularly with fellow pianists with similar skills and ambitions.
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Take full advantage of exams, courses, summer schools, piano clubs, music festivals and concerts, all of which provide invaluable encouragement and orientation.
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Take every opportunity to attend professional piano concerts, positioning yourself close to the soloist in order to observe what they are doing.
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Set yourself achievable goals when practising, but alternate regularly between slow and fast practice modes to check things are gradually progressing. 18• Pianist 81
will ultimately earn you ‘posh’ marks in music exams. Fundamentally, examiners want to see that two aspects are firmly in place: key awareness (i.e., knowing how many sharps or flats appear in each major and minor key) and technical control (which breaks down into things like hand coordination and evenness of touch), hence these aspects will need individual attention initially. At their best, scales should sound intuitive, directed and ‘performed’, not stumbling and syllabic. Te dreaded ‘note-by-note’ rendition is an indication that the machinery is not really working effectively, and/or that you’ve not yet ingrained a reliable knowledge of the keys. Pay particular attention to the passing of the thumb in both scales and arpeggios – if the thumbs appear visually ungainly, involving a marked up-down movement of the wrist, then as likely as not they will sound bumpy too; hence smoothness of action is paramount, even when playing staccato scales. Changing the rhythm, from straight quavers to dotted for example, is one way of keeping scales fresh and fun to play, as is starting and finishing at the top of the scale instead of always at the bottom. Varying articulation, for example slurslur, dot-dot, is another way of ensuring your scales avoid sounding mechanistic, and again this all feeds into how rewarding they will be to practise. Aim
MASTERCLASS to apply a discernible crescendo up to the top note and a decrescendo back down, so a unified, shapely performance results. If you’ve really got the measure of your scales, have a bit of fun by trying to play threes-again st-twos between the hands (it’s best to start with hands two octaves apart if the left hand is doing the threes); activities of this kind help to prevent the rot setting in and keep the brain ticking. Try climbing up the scale of C major and then coming straight down through the key of D flat, back up again with D and back down in E flat, and so on. If you can do this chromatic climb through the scales
a fun experience; it’s also an excellent way of involving other members of the family – how many scales and arpeggios can you play without repetition, hesitation or deviation? Examinations offer pianists a rigorous infrastructure for evaluating progress. Although teachers often use exams as a means of instilling motivation and discipline, in reality certain aspects easily become neglected when the teacher is not on hand to crack the whip. is is where self-motivation needs to become channelled into a positive plan of action,
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seamlessly, covering just one octave each time, you’ll whizz through all 12 majors (try the minors next!) in perhaps 30 seconds or less, leaving you time for working on the more troublesome ones. Flashcards are widely used as a means of ensuring all the relevant scales get covered. Write each scale/arpeggio onto a card of its own, for example, ‘Scale of F sharp major, hands together, legato’. It stands to reason that letting yourself off the hook with the easy scales each time will increase the risk of not getting around to, say, B flat melodic minor, so shuffle the pack each day before you get down to business in order to randomise your practice. Keeping one pile for scales and another for arpeggios will also help to mimic what will be asked of you in the exam. Dust off the metronome and fix on a tempo early on – this will only provide a provisional yardstick, for you should gradually be able to ratchet up the pace until you reach a speed that permits comfortable fluidity. Frequently, pianists come to grief at the hand-turns, i.e., when negotiating the upwards into the downwards part of the scale/arpeggio, so you could usefully spend time going round and round within one octave to tighten up this crucial manoeuvre in as controlled and even way as possible. As far as overall speed is concerned, don’t get overly hung up on achieving a lightningquick pace; evenness and control are immeasurably more important that speed for its own sake. Remember to practise all relevant examples hands separately as well as together – it’s surprising how being asked to do this in an exam can unhinge you a little if you’ve not been used to doing it at home. Try to commit them all to memory as you learn them so that you can concentrate on refining how they look,
as discussed above in the sections on practising pieces and practising scales and arpeggios.
passages as they work their way up to the top of the piano, and aim to introduce new colours at the sections beginning at bars 33 and 55.
sound and feel under the fingers. A few seconds spent ‘ghosting’ the first octave of the trickier scales or arpeggios might reduce the risk of needing to restart them. Finally, once you’re confident they are shaping up nicely, you might try an adaption of the great BBC Radio 4 game, Just a Minute . It is a brilliant way of elevating the playing of scales from a potentially burdensome task into
seem to generate. Pay less attention to flamboyant gestures and notice instead how each part of the pianist’s body is contributing, however subtly, to producing an exquisitely balanced yet well projected sound.
INSPIRED MOMENTS Mark Tanner’s motivating advice on studying 3 of this issue’s scores
Taking examinations
Entering music festivals
Music festivals can play an invaluable role in motivating and promoting the advancement of the amateur pianist. At a music festival, pianists frequently get to play on an instrument superior to those encountered at home or belonging to a teacher, while a larger performing space can offer a glimpse of what it is like to play in a professional setting. Quickly getting used to a strange piano is central to success in competitive music festivals, since in most cases you won’t be offered the chance to try it out beforehand. After the adjudication, piano specialists sometimes give mini-masterclasses, rendering the overall festival experience a really memorable one by demonstrating and giving advice in ways not possible in an examination. Unlike exams, festivals thrive on audiences, made up principally of parents, teachers and fellow participants. A good way of initially getting to grips with playing to an audience is to imagine there is just one person there – luckily, audiences do not have collective intelligence! Many festivals have adult classes as well as ‘open’ or ‘recital’ classes, and these provide the chance to present several pieces or movements, alongside scope for learning how to take applause. Attending concerts
It is worth pointing out how beneficial and inspirational attending professional piano recitals and concertos can be. I’d urge you to sit as close to the pianist as you can, to really capture the sense of immediacy and energy that top players
NazarethValsa Confi dências [Scores page 38]: Although the Brazilian composer Ernesto Nazareth received classical training, he readily absorbed styles and idioms from Africa and elsewhere. A Chopinesque flavour often creeps through too. ThisValsa is a rather emotional, lyrical tango, bearing no tempo marking, just the indication ‘espressivo’, suggestive of a gently undulating, unflustered pace. For the waltz feel to emerge, you will need to lend gentle emphasis to the first beat of each bar in the LH and place the subsequent chord(s) more delicately. Don’t be in a hurry to reel off the long quaver
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Grieg Gavotte fromHolberg Suite [Scores page 42]: As was common in the 19th century, Grieg chose to feature music from a bygone era, at the same time paying homage to the Danish-Norwegian playwright, Ludvig Holberg. The Suite comprisesfive movements, all of them 18th-century dance forms, making this an early example of neo-Classical writing. The Gavotte holds a special charm, with its characteristic launch on the second beat of the bar (bearing in mind that it is written inalla breve time). Give it a stately, ‘gallant’ feel, bringing the melody clearly to the fore while allowing the grander passages to stand proud by means of the LH’s octaves and bolder dynamics.
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We Wish You a Me rry Christmas [Scores page 51]: What better motivation is there than the nearness of Christmas, I wonder? Subtitled ‘with apologies to Bach’, Sean Montgomery’s enterprisingly ‘fugal’ arrangement of this topical tune has much to commend it as it wends its way through a number of distant keys. Limit the use of pedal here, just as you would in any Baroque piece, but by all means be liberal with dynamic ideas, ensuring all voice entries are announced confidently. Don’t get bogged down by the contrapuntal complexities and overlook the need for a light-hearted portrayal!
keeping buoyant and motivated. A surprising number of adults seem resigned to functioning without lessons and it has to be said that in many cases this is a recipe for disaster. I would encourage all amateur pianists to have lessons, preferably evenly spaced, but not necessarily weekly or fortnightly. Adult learners need a different kind of teaching from children, though their requirements are every bit as great, and arguably the ramifications of slipping into bad habits can be far worse. Even the thought of a lesson looming in six weeks’ time should be sufficient to steer us away from digital distractions for an hour or so a day and may add a frisson of excitement to the solitary business of practising. Something else to consider is that the thorny topic of repertoire selection really needs input from someone who understands you and your particular attributes, such as stamina, hand size etc. Finally, we might spare a thought for our teacher, whose own need to feel motivated during the lesson will likely impact on the quality of what is taught to us! ■
Working with a teacher
Lastly, it would be hard to overestimate the importance of a good teacher in 19• Pianist 81
In the next issue Mark Tanner discusses techniques for playing Romantic music.
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HOW TO
Bringing clarity to TEXTURE
How can you play with more depth of tone? Teacher and performerGraham Fitch discusses how learning to colour, shape and control the texture of a piece can improve your tone hugely n the last issue’s article on tone, I described how to create a beautiful singing line on the piano. We achieve this not just by playing the melodic line stronger than the background material but also by how
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we shade, shape and inflect the line, as well a s the type of touch we use. In this article, I am going to talk about texture in piano playing and show how to discover and shape the different types of texture in our pieces so we add dimension and bring the music to life. Most of us are lucky enough to have been brought up on a steady diet of Bach, the Two-Part Inventions being the purest examples of equality between the two hands. As we progress through the Sinfonias and the Preludes and Fugues, we find music in three, four or even more parts. Some piano music is inspired by the orchestra, and knowing the composer’s symphonies and other orchestral works really does help us play with greater range and understanding. Imagining the timbre of an oboe solo soaring over sustained muted strings, for example, will help us to achieve more colour and dimension in our playing than if we are just thinking in terms of piano sound. Remember that an oboe solo marked piano will still penetrate firmly – dynamic markings are not all about decibel levels. Sometimes the music might be inspired by the string quartet, where the texture is more homogenous. We hear each line clearly as a discourse between four equals. In this example from the slow movement of Beethoven’s Piano Sonata in A opus 2 no 2, play the upper three parts without especially favouring the top line – all are more or less equal in the blend. e bass line is surely imitating a pizzicato cello, and we might reproduce the effect of vibrato by adding a short dab of pedal on each note: Another type of texture is m elody and accompaniment, or foreground
at www.pianistmagazine.com. Graham demonstrates everything that he discusses on these pages – and more. There’s nothing like watching the expert! Graham is a pianist, teacher, writer and adjudicator, and writes a popular blog, www.practisingthepiano.com.
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and background. How far apart we put these two layers of sound depends
When it comes to Alberti basses in Classical-period music, we can all agree they should be softer than the solo line – they are, after all, accompaniments. But within this soft dynamic level, we need to make a decision as to the type of texture we want to create. Is the LH a smooth surface for the singer to glide across (imagine a plush carpet) or something a bit grittier (perhaps a pebble beach)? We vary our LH touch accordingly, from over-holding the notes of the chord in the first instance to more active fingerwork in the second. e choice is often ours. Before we go much further, we need to look at what voicing is in piano playing. Voicing is our ability to control the tonal balance between the different elements that make up the music, whether this is the voicing of an individual chord or differentiating between the strands that make up the musical texture. Except for percussive tone clusters, a chord on the piano is rarely intended as an amorphous blob of sound. It is a living organism in which each finger involved contributes to the hierarchy of tonal priorities, so that the melody finger will be stronger than the filler (or harmony) notes. If
on the style of the period and our personal taste. Where appropriate, we might decide to play the RH much stronger than the LH (assuming the RH has the melodic line), and we create a ‘Mona Lisa’ sound. e foreground dominates the soundscape and the background is very far away. As we shall see later, what gives this type of texture real depth is very slightly bringing out the basses – those low bass notes that underpin everythin g else. Let’s look at the first movement of Mozart’s Sonata in C K545. ere are places where the RH is clearly the soloist and the LH the accompanist (such as the opening), but later the LH emerges from its servile role and engages in a dialogue with the RH. e hands are now equal partners (see next column):
both hands are involved, there will be this sense of top (melody) as well as bottom (bass), with harmony notes in between, graded by the ear of the individual player. No two pianists will reproduce exactly the same tonal balance. I have often joked that piano playing would be easier if our hands were attached the other way round, so that strong thumbs, instead of the weak fifth fingers, were on the outsides of the hands, and would be responsible for top melodies and foundation basses (the latter so often neglected). Let’s take the first chord from Schumann’s Etudes Symphoniques opus 13 and play a game with it. As an academic exercise, I am going to give each note a percentage value based on its contribution to the overall sound. Of
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MASTERCLASS
course, this is not to be taken literally and it would be impossible to realise it, but I hope it will help me make a point. Here it is in context: legatissimo
accompanimen tal figurations and we risk losing this if we put them too far into the background. In the Intermezzo from Schumann’s Faschingsschwank aus Wien (shown below), it would be a mistake to subdue the brokenchord figuration. Play the accompaniment quite strongly to bring out the turbulence in the music: (m.d.)
3 1
2
3
m.s.
m.s.
Pedale
We want the ear to be directed to the top note of the chord since it is in the melody line. Remembering that top notes will be naturally less resonant than those underneath, we’ll give it 40 per cent of the total sound. Looking at the RH, the lowest note is an octave doubling of the melody note and as such acts as its shadow. We have to be careful to sketch this in very lightly – say, 5 per cent. Te next note up (the E) is much more important, since it is the third of the chord, and we want to give a very clear sense of minor key here. So we’ll give it 20 per cent. Te lowest note, the bass C sharp is extremely important because it underpins not only the first RH chord but also all the other chords in the bar. But, remembering that it has a good deal of its own natural resonance because of its register, it gets a value of 20 per cent. Te two remaining notes, tonal relations % values the G sharps, are to my ear much less important. We certainly don’t want 40 to hear the growl of a bare fifth in the 5 20 LH, so would play the bass G sharp 5 very lightly, but as much as 10 per cent because of its length. Because we are in danger of exceeding the quota, the other G sharp in the RH gets the 10 remainder (see diagram at right). 20 In music constructed in three layers, we often find the accompaniment in the midd le. In his wonderful book Te Art of Piano Playing , Heinrich Neuhaus spoke of the ‘pot-bellied monster’. Tis is a fault in piano playing where the harmony swallows both bass and melody. If we want to build a hierarchical sound where we can sense foreground, background and middle ground it is not just the volume that counts, but also the texture – the type of touch we use within a given dynamic level. In the example below from Schubert’s G flat Impromptu, it is not hard to see that the harmonic middle needs to be played more softly than the top melody, but the rippling quavers also need to be extremely even tonally and yet rhythmically structured. An Impressionistic wash won’t do here:
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Very often a composer will create three layers in the texture but not complicate the page by notating this explicitly – they expect educated musicians to know what is happening. One such example is from Chopin’s D flat Nocturne (shown below), in which the task of the LH is to create not only a transparent harmonic background for the RH melodic line but also a slightly more substantial bass line that underpins the whole: 1 2
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Sometimes it helps to work with an image. In this Chopin Nocturne, I imagine an aquarium. Tere is a bottom layer of gravel and rocks, plant life floating gently in the middle, and a magnificent angelfish (the RH top melody) swimming serenely. How do we achieve this effect? Te melodic line needs our best quality legato cantabile (always projected , even in pp); play the bass notes tenuto by playing them slightly firmer and holding them a fraction of a microsecond longer than the rank and file semiquavers. n Te first movement of Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight’ Sonata is another piece in three layers, but it is difficult to say which is the more important – the top melody or the broken chords. Here, we may well feel the ghostly triplets are as important as the melodic line above. Sometimes there is a lot of energy in
In his next article on tone, Graham looks at how to achieve good quality sound in both extremes of the dynamic spectrum, controlling the keyboard in loud and soft playing.
21• Pianist 81
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SS T MIEI N’LA DOM E NICK’S W SPANS N SSI SO PI ECE LOE N TH E PAG
TR ACK 3
Charles GOUNOD (1818-1893)
B EGI NNER / I NTER MEDI ATE
The Pipers
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HOW TO
In1861,jus tafewyears afterthes ucces s fuldebutofhis opera Faust,Frenchcompos er Gounodwrotethis jollypieceforpiano.Thetitle Lespifferari,Impromptutrèsfacile s ugges ts a merry and light-hearted mood. ‘Pifferari’ comes from an Italian word meaning‘s mallnine-holeflutes imilartooboe’,thoughinFrenchthewordcameto meanmanykinds ofwinds –s owhetherit’s aflute,bagpipeoroboeis upto you! Playingandpedaltips: This pieceis charming,butfullofplayfulnes s .Itals ohas a
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lovelypas toralequalitytoit.Yous houldtryyourhardes ttomakethemelody–which moves quicklyandlightlyupanddownthekeyboard–s ounds eamles s .Noticehow itdies awayattheend,as ifthepipers are walkingoffintothedis tance.Evenifpedal is notneces s ary,ourhous epianis tChenyinLis ugges ts adabof s hortpedalhereand there.Seewhats hehas s ugges tedonthes coreandgiveit atry. Re a dMe la nie Spa nswic k’sste p-by-s te ple sso no nthispie c e o npa ge 22.
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The Pipers A steady pulse in the left hand, eet ngerwork in the right and a wide range of dynamics will help you bring extra zest to this energetic and fun piece, explains teacher and authorMelanie Spanswick Ability rating Info Key: F major empo: Allegro Style: Romantic
Beginner 3Finger
agility 3 Rhythmic grasp 3 Evenness of tone
Tis charming, lively little piece is full of energy and brio. It’s perfect for those with elementary skills (around Grade 2-3 level) who wish to tackle rapid scalic passagework combined with a crisp, dance-like rhythm. Beginner to intermediate pianists will appreciate the joyful and melodious ‘pipers’ thematic material and the fairly straightforward diatonic harmony. Marked Allegro, this piece requires a swift pace. Experiment with tempo. A metronome speed of approximately dotted crotchet equals 120 beats per minute is probably ideal. You may also want to listen to the recording on the covermount CD for a clear overview of tempo, phrasing and dynamic markings. Fingering is crucial due to the fast, fleeting passagewo rk in the right hand (RH). Tis passagework is the primary technical challenge throughout. I have suggested some fingering, which is printed in the score, but you can change it and adjust to suit your hand. Separate hand practice is also important. Start with the left-hand (LH) part, which consists of static chords centred on the key (F major). Te chordal patterns are similar throughout, and the accents require a firm finger grip cushioned by a flexible wrist that will allow the finger tips to sink into the key bed producing a warm sound.
to a a z i R e ic r b a F ©
Melanie Spanswick is a classical pianist, teacher, adjudicator, author and presenter. She regularly conducts workshops and masterclasses in Germany as well as for EPTA (European Piano Teachers Association). She adjudicates for the British and International Federation of Festivals and curates the Classical Conversations
Will improve your
Series, where she interviews eminent classical pianists on camera. These interviews are published on YouTube. Her book, So You Want To Play The Piano? has been critically acclaimed. Find out more about Melanie at www.melaniespanswick.com and www.soyouwanttoplaythepiano.com
necessary [see house pianist Chenyin Li’s suggested pedal markings on the score]. As the LH remains in the same position, it’s quite feasible to join every chord. Aim to produce a smooth legato tone, which involves transferrin g finger weight evenly, while at the same time bringing out the secondary melodic material in the lower part of each chord.
should still be subordinate in volume of sound to the RH melody.
An interesting character trait in this piece is the use of phrasing in the melodic line. Te 6/8 time signature combined with the rests on many of the second quavers (in the groups of three per dotted crotchet), provides a wonderful dance-like feel akin to a jig, capturing the flavour of pipers playing. Tis rhythm requires disciplined practice and an incisive pulse is necessary. Practise at half speed to begin with, counting aloud to account for each beat. Doing this will guard against ‘rushing’ the rests, and will lead to a stable pulse and a bouncy, cheerful quality.
Play the scale, arpeggio and related chords (tonic, subdominant and dominant) of F major as a primer, before you start learning the piece
Every LH chord has a middle C, played by the thumb. o voice each chord effectively, give the lower note greater emphasis, tone and shape (the notes F and A on beats one 1 and 2 in
Articulation is paramount, especially in the RH. Phrasing also needs vigilance. Te fingering for passages such as bars 5-8 requires frequent hand position changes, which can be very helpful for efficient articulation, forcing the fingers to leave the keyboard in order to make time for each rest. Te phrase marks (or slurs) like those in bar 6, benefit from a ‘drop-roll’ approach, where the hand/ wrist sinks down into the keys on the first note, beat 3 of the bar (in this case a G) and then rolls upwards to beat
bar 1, for example). ry balancing the hand towards the weaker fingers, the fourth and the fifth, and make sure they strike each note fully, stroking the keys using plenty of arm weight. Te transfer of weight from the stronger side of the hand to the weaker should encourage the thumb to play lightly. Legato is a crucial feature in the LH, and without it, the use of some pedal may be
4 (a B ), lifting off cleanly at the end of the note. Bear in mind that note endings are often as important as their beginnings. Te second note (the B ) will be slightly lighter than the first (G), adding to the sparkling, flowing character. Note too, that the rests are crucial in a work such as this; be sure to account for every one. While the LH chords are meant to be accented, they 22• Pianist 81
Strong fingers provide total clarity in the longer scalic passages such as bars 21 to 29. One way of achieving the desired full sound is to practise producing
Learning Tip
a large tone, with each finger working independently on the fingertip pad, going down, deep into the key bed, encouraging each finger to gather strength. At the fou r-part chords at bar 37 the outer parts of each hand must highlight the melodic matieral (especially the RH top line). Practise this line alone, without the other parts, shaping and colouring the melody, before adding the accompanying lines softly. Ten put hands together slowly, increasing the speed accordingly and employing the metronome for total rhythmic reliability. In this piece, Gounod presents us with a wide range of dynamics, from ppp to ff. Tis should be taken into account from the outset. It’s much easier to build tonal changes into a piece during the early stages of learning, and it also really characterises a performance. Particularly important are the accents in the LH, the climax from bars 25-29 ( fortissimo), and the ending from bars 46-54, which dies away to ppp. Be sure to observe the pause on the last chord and add some sustaining pedal for added colour too (as marked). A small rit. might work from bar 50 onwards to give the impression of a band of pipers and their catchy song drifting away into the distance. ■
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HOW TO
SCHUBERT ARR. LISZT
Der Müller und der Bach Liszt transformed a touching Schubert song into an equally exquisite solo piano piece that demands singing tone and a singer’s mindset. Concert pianist and teacherLucy Parham takes you through it Ability rating Info Key: G minor empo: Moderato Style: Romantic
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important that you listen to the srcinal song. Liszt has embellished the srcinal a lot and it is important to know where this has happened. I believe that Liszt has transcribed this piece with such integrity that the essence of the piece is never lost. You can sense Liszt’s absolute devotion to the piece.
Tis beautiful gem is one of my favourite pieces for solo piano. I have played it many times in recitals and I have never failed to be surprised about how much audiences love it too, as it is extremely poignan t. Tere seems to be a message in this piece that, even without the words, goes straight to the heart. In the 1840s and 50s Schubert’s songs were rarely heard outside Vienna, yet Liszt was so su re of their f uture success that he set about transcribing them for the piano. When Liszt was travelling around Europe, dazzling his audiences, the songs of Franz Schubert were among the many new pieces he introduced to his public. Although some people were somewhat derogatory about the piano solo arrangements, we do have Liszt to thank for introducing them to a wider public [read the article on arrangements on page 68]. In fact, Liszt transcribed over 100 of Schubert’s songs as well as many by Mendelssohn, Schumann and even Beethoven. Tey are all well worth discovering. ‘Der Müller und der Bach’ is one of the songs from Schubert’s song cycle Die schöne Müllerin. Te poetry is by Wilhelm Müller and tells the story of a young man journeying through the countryside, who falls in love with a miller’s daughter. He encounters many problems and much heartache along the way. In ‘Der Müller und der Bach’, the penultimate song in the 20-piece cycle, he talks to the brook about his unrequited love for the miller’s daughter. It is a long narrative in the song cycle and there isn’t enough space to explain the whole story here. In essence, the mood of this song is very
its inner meaning. I would suggest that you write the translation into the score. Tere are some crucial words that are enhanced by the particular harmony that they fall upon. Secondly, it is very
At the opening, make sure you have a real feeling of three beats in a bar. Te 3/8 marking is significant here. Although it is only moderato you still need for the line and melody to keep moving. ,
Lucy Parham performs her words and music programme Beloved Clara on 3 Dec at the Apex, Bury St Edmunds with Martin Jarvis and Joanna David. She performs Odyssey of Love at Salisbury Theatre (Martin Jarvis/Joanna David) on 16 Jan and at Yvonne Arnaud Guildford (Henry Goodman/Harriet Walter) on 17 Jan. Her new season of Sunday morning coffee concerts combining words and music at Kings Place commences on 7 December with a celebrity gala. For other dates and details, please visit www.lucyparham.com
At the star t of the s ong, the miller and the brook are talking to each other. Te miller talking about a true heart that is wasting away in love. It’s significant that Schubert uses the key of G minor for the miller and the major key for the brook’s reply. Always try to colour the darker, minor key. Te first two bars represent the piano introduction. Te ‘voice’ (melody) enters in bar 3, so you need to focus on this immediately. ry and balance your tone so that the accompaniment is secondary to the projection of the melody. In bar 10, try to keep a sense of flow and work ‘over’ the bar line. When you encounter a large right-hand (RH) chord (such as in a bar in 19) you can take the top (highest) note with the left hand (LH). Tere’s a sprinkling of fingering within the score. I suggest
Learning Tip Read the English translation of the srcinal song, as it is crucial to know what all the words mean, and listen to the srcinal song
a few weeks later, you might forget what you had chosen. Tere aren’t any pedal markings on the score. You need to judge the pedal by using your ear. You don’t want any dry sound within this piece. It needs to be well pedalled, but clean. A lot of half pedalling will be needed, especially in bar 3 when the melody enters. Te piece gets more technically difficult at bar 29, but there are some things you can do. On the third semiquaver of the LH (29) you could pop this B into the RH to make it easier. Tis happens a lot, so keep your eyes out for this. Troughout this section, try to feel the optimism of the brook’s reply. ‘Dolce’ is the marking here, so find a real sweetness of sound without losing the projection of the line and the melody. Also, notice the German word ‘schmerz’ at bar 31. Tis word means ‘pain’ and you need to be aware of this while playing and consequently imbue the harmony with that feeling. In bar 33 the LH becomes more difficult as it is written in tenths. I would suggest you play these two notes as quickly as possible, almost with a ‘whipping’ feeling from the fifth finger to the thumb, as you do not want the LH to sound laboured. Te word ‘ossia’ on the score at this point means ‘alternative’.
sombre and yet sometimes the cloud is lifted to reveal hope.
n i e st n r A n e v S ©
you work on the fingering that suits you best, and mark it in clearly. I cannot stress enough the importance of marking your fingering on the score, otherwise, if you return to the work
You will see that there is an easier alternative in thirds provided for those who find this passage difficult. In a lot of his pieces Liszt did this, adding an easier version for pianists with smaller hands. Keep the sentiment very intimate here and imagine a very private conversation. At bars 38-9 take a gentle ritardando for a bar or two and return to your tempo properly at bar 40. Again, at
wo things are very important as you begin to study this piece. First of all you must read the English translation of the song as it is vital that you know what all the words mea n. Tis piece is very difficult to play if you do not know the story that lies behind it and 24• Pianist 81
ISS ’T M ’S DONPARHAM LUCY SONE S S PIEC LOE N THI GE
TR ACK 12
Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) arr. LISZT
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bar 41 on the third LH semiquaver (E), trying putting it in the RH to make it easier. is applies for the rest of this passage. e first time you really feel the sense of abandon and passion is in bar 49. at’s the point at which you can really begin to let things go. I would suggest practising this section with everything apart from the melody, and then adding the melody later. is will ensure you know what is really going on underneath in the accompaniment. Some LH alone practice here will also be valuable. At bar 54 make sure you balance the RH top line and do not get weighed down by the lower line in the LH, especially when you have to spread the chord. You could also try singing the top line while playing at the lower line. At bar 59 you want to ease into the ritardando and into the triplets that are coming up at bar 60. Try to create a beautiful sound at bar 62 and 63 when you have a smorzando into the miller’s gentle reply. At bar 64 the piece reaches a technically even more challenging level. I would suggest you play the ossia in the bass because it gives more of the effect of the brook. Note that Liszt asks for ‘malinconico espressivo’ – melancholy. If you do decided to go for the triplet version, try getting it really smooth in your LH alone before you add the RH. It’s really worthwhile to spend som e time practising hands separately for this passage, not least for the fact you are
13/11/201 1 41: 21
trying to get a pizzicato effect in the RH in the lower semiquavers. Bar 82 is so exquisite a moment that you really want to get this correct; take your time over the top RH note. As the mood changes you want to ease into the next section, and fade away until you reach bar 92, which is like the final uttering. In his transcriptions, Liszt often adds an extra verse where there are no words, and this piece is no exception. is final verse forms a gentle and telling coda and he is very explicit about telling you to keep the accompaniment very quiet – see the instruction in bar 92. At this point in the pie ce it is very important that the accompanying demisemiquavers in both hands are kept very much on the key. Do not release your fingers from the surface of the key, otherwise it will sound too clattering. It should sound like a soft murmur here. Give a gentle swell at bar 100 and remember to observe the con anima marking at 105. is means ‘with love’ and definitely not ‘with animation’ (a common mistake in translation!) Each ensuing two-bar phrase here wants to sound quieter and quieter. You need to feel that the brook is literally ebbing away. Lift the pedal slowly to create the perfect atmospheric ending. ■ Lucy Parham plays this piece on this issue’s covermount CD. e track comes from her ‘e Romantic Piano’ 2-CD (Sanctuary CD RSB 202). Full details at www.lucyparham.com
Lucy Parham on arrangements to try Other approachable Liszt arrangements of Schubertinclude ‘Wohin?’ (‘Whither?’), which also comes from Die schöne Müllerin. Liszt also made a fine arrangement of Schubert’s much-loved ‘Ave Maria’. His arrangement of ‘Ständchen’ (Serenade) from the song collection Schwanengesang (Swan song) appeared inside issue 59 Scores. It’s one of the few Liszt arrangements that he composed of a less virtuosic nature, though there is also a more difficult version. Liszt arranged six of Chopin’s opus 74 songs under the titleSix Chants
polonais S480. ‘The Maiden’s Song’ and ‘Frühling’ are the most famous. In 1848, Liszt made an arrangement of Schumann’s ‘Widmung’ (‘Dedication’), which comes from the Myrthen songs that Schumann gave to Clara as a wedding present. Liszt changed the title to ‘Liebeslied’, but most know this arrangement as ‘Widmung’. It is one of my favourites. ‘Frühlingsnacht’ comes from Schumann’s song cycleLiederkreis and means ‘spring night’. The srcinal and the arrangment evoke a spring night with rustling trees, singing birds, etc. Finally, if you want to veer away from Liszt, look at Balakirev’s transcription of Glinka’s song ‘The Lark’.
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SS ’T MI ’S DON EWMAN JANETNSSON IEC E LE THAISGPE ON P
TR ACK 7
Ernesto NAZARETH (1863-1934)
I NTER MEDI ATE
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HOW TO
We’vepublis hedtwotangos byBraziliancompos erErnes toNazarth(inis s ues 66and 70)andheals owroteover 40waltzes .This waltz,‘ins piredbythepoetCatulloda PaixãoCearens e’was publisedin1913.Lis h tentorecordings byBrazilianpiani s ts s uch as ArthurMoreiraLimatogeta s ens eoftherhythmicfreedomonecanhave. Playingandpedaltips: This gorgeous waltzs houldhaveaniceliltto it.Rubatois definitelyallowedhereandthere(lis tenonourcovermountCD howChenyinLi makes agenerous rubatoattheendofbar16,forexample–it’s wonderful).Abrighter
s ectionappears atbar33.Makes ureyouhavefleetfingers throughout.You’llneeda s trongRHtechnique,withgoodarticu lationandevennes s ofs ound.Practis everys lowly atfirs t,onlybuildingupthetempogradually.Makes ureeachfinge r/notefeels s eparate fromthenext.Frombar55,theRHplays highinthetreble–this s houlds ounds weet and‘tinkly’,almos temulatingamus icalboxs ound.Wh enyoureachtheend,goback tothes tartandfinis hatthe‘Fine’atbar32.Pedallinghas beenmarkedintothes core. Re a dJa ne tNe wma n’sste p-by-ste ple sso no nthispie c e o npa ge 26.
Es pr es s ivo
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3 4 3 2 34
FULL SCORE ON PAGE 38
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ERNESTO NAZARETH
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38 coreAZAR s ET -FI AL.ind 38 d
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Valsa Confdências With a soundworld between Piazzolla and Chopin, Nazareth’s beguiling waltz is a pleasure to play – and dramatic rubato and dynamics are a must, says teacher and performerJanet Newman Ability rating
Intermediate
Info Will improve your Key: A minor 3Sense of rubato empo: Tempo comodo (relaxed/easy) 3 Lightness of touch Style: Argentinian-inspired waltz 3Memorising Te Brazilian composer Ernesto Nazareth composed a great deal, mostly in a small-scale forms, with something like 200 works (mostly for piano) composed over his lifetime. I had not come across Nazareth before, so it has been a pleasure to experience something new both in playing and writing about this piece [Nazareth’s Brejeiro appeared in Pianist No 70’s scores; Tango Brasileiro was in issue 66]. He used popular idioms in his music, such as the tango, and was in demand as a pianist playing in cafes, clubs and at society parties. I was reminded of the Argentinian composer Astor Piazzolla when I played the piece, and certainly, I also picked up something of a flavour of Chopin within the piece as well, which made playing it very enjoyable. At the star t of the p iece the key is A minor, which gives a very wistfu l, melancholic character to the music. Tere’s a feeling of ‘time passed’, and the reflective quality of the piece can be shown in the way that you judge the rubato that the music clearly calls for.
Make a ritardando at the end of bar 16 before you move into the return of the main theme. Te return is almost identical to the opening apart from a few additional ornamentations and lefthand (LH) changes.
naturally lean into the next; feel the third beat leading the music on and never accent the first beat as all this does is make the music leaden and pedestrian. Learn all of the fingering
and direction quickly, which will help the memorising process. Memorising puts both the player and the listener into a more direct contact with the music, and by understanding and analysing key structure, you will gain a better all-round musicianship. ry it and see!
accurately and if you are having
Starting at bar 17, make sure that the LH keeps balanced and subtle by practising it ‘blind’. On the first beat of bars 17, 18 and 22, when you have a small leap, keep your LH thumb extended above the octave as it gives you a marker and you won’t need to look down at your hand to see if it is in the right place. Tis is quite important, as on the whole, it is best to keep your hand covering the keys so that you can move effectively around the keyboard.
Tere’s a feeling of ‘time passed’, and the reflective quality of the piece can be shown in the way that you judge the rubato throughout At bar 27 where it is marked ‘plangente’ (‘sad’ or ‘unhappy’), try to darken the tone as these bars need a firmer quality, and playing into the keys will help to colour the sound effectively.
Rubato (literally translated as ‘stolen time’) is extremely difficult to pin down and teach because it is such a personal quality that each player will interpret instinctively. In the opening, I feel that the music ‘unwinds’ so start a little slower than you intend and gradually reach the desired speed within a ba r or two – it really is almost impossible to give precise instructions about this as it really is a matter of taste and instinct. I like to linger at the top of the phrases (bar 3 and bar 7) as it feels such an expressive moment and it gives the listener a chance to hear the falling C-B (bar 3) and B-A (bar 7), which seems to characterise the pensive mood set in this opening section.
A piece like this where the form is clear and very repetitive makes it very easy to memorise. By comparing the sections and the ways in which the music differs, you can get a strong idea of the structure
Play with a livelier and more extrovert approach when the key brightens at bar 33 and leads into C major (bar 35). Te waltz can come to life here, even though the dynamic remains pp, and for a short time the mood of the music lifts and seems more optimistic. I would also allow the phrases to move forward as the impetus seems to fit the character well. Te line of the music leads to Janet Newman is Head of Keyboard at the Royal Grammar School in Guildford. In addition to her teaching, she is in demand as a freelance pianist and is an examiner for the ABRSM.
bar 48 and a crescendo would make sense here as it will give the music a high point to aim for. On a more mundane technical point, the right-hand (RH) quavers need to be evenly played throughout but always with a sense of the inner phrasing clearly understood. By this I mean let the ending of each bar 26• Pianist 81
Learning Tip Practise all of the LH with the pedal to make the coordination between hand and foot become completely instinctive
problems with controlling the evenness of the quavers, do some ‘holding up’ practice that I have mentioned in previous articles: choose one of the three beats in the bar and turn it into crotchets and be able to do this with each beat at will – as this really helps you to gain control over each note. At bar 53-54, I rather naughtily like to fade away in dynamic rather than keep it forceful. I do this even though this does go against the composer’s own directions at bar 55 where he asks for p subito – and so understandably, you may well prefer to stay boldly forte ! In the final section, which has moved into the key of A major, the RH needs to point out the top notes a little as it is a hint of an inner melody, so just bring out this out with care. Let the LH act as a cushion of harmony, keeping it almost imperceptible so that the RH has centre stage in this section which, although it has moved into a brighter key, still has a reticent, nostalgic feel. It’s worth considering what the meaning of ‘confidências’ in the title might bring to the music – the implication of something secretive or hidden is certainly a quality redolent throughout the piece. Once you get to bar 73, make the LH more prominent by keeping the bass line joined and cantabile. Te dotted minim forms a little countermelody and this adds a depth of tone and contrast to what has so far been a RH-dominated piece. Also make sure that you help this to stand out by playing the chord on the second beat very gently – almost as an afterthought. Prepare for the final ritardando where it is marked, and just allow the music to unwind naturally, just as it began. ■
Pianist 81 December 2014-January 2015
Scores
LEARN MORE WITH OUR VIDEO LESSONS
Contents 28
BORODIN From Polovtsian Dance No 17 (arr.)
website to find an array of video lessons – from the basics of playing to more demanding technical issues. All you need to do is go to www.pianistmagazine.com/tv to get started with the complete piano learning experience!
29
DI CAPUA ARR. KEMBER O Sole Mio
30
GOUNOD The Pipers
Our latest videos include:
33
CZERNY No 71 from Practical Exercises for Beginners op 599
34
BRAHMS ARR. SCAIFE Lullaby
36
TRADITIONAL ARR. KEMBER Danny Boy (Londonderry Air)
38
NAZARETH Valsa Confidências
Go to the Pianist
Tim Steinand John Maul have
made some 30 plus lessons for Pianist, all devoted to the basics of learning the piano. Tim’s latest lessons are on slurs, rhythm and using the thumb. Past video lessons include the basics of chord playing, sight-reading, fingering for beginners, how to sit, geography of the keyboard and more. ese beginner-level lessons are demonstrated on a Roland.
Graham Fitchcontinues
his Masterclass series – this time the subject is ‘texture’: how you can learn to colour, shape and control a piece to bring more depth of tone to your playing. Graham’s lessons come directly from Steinway Hall, London, where he demonstrates on a Model D concert grand.
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42
45
GRIEG Gavotte, No 3 from Holberg Suite KEYBOARD CLASS The chromatic scale
49
HAYDN First movement from Sonata in G Hob.XVI:8
51
TRADITIONAL ARR. MONTGOMERY We Wish You a Merry Christmas
55
59
LYADOV Prelude No 1 op 11 SCHUBERT ARR. LISZT Der Müller und der Bach
Typesetting by Spartan Press Music Publishers Ltd
Quick guide to UK/North American note value terminology semibreve /whole note minim/half note crotchet/quarter note quaver/eighth note semiquaver /16th note demisemiquaver /32nd note
Alexander BORODIN (1833-1887)
TRACK 1
BEGINNER
From Polovtsian Dance No 17 (arrangement) The Polovtsian(also spelled ‘Polovetsian’) Dances were composed for an interlude in Borodin’s opera Prince Igor. This excerpt, from the 17th dance, iscalled ‘Gliding Dance of the Maidens’. The song‘Stranger in Paradise’ fromKismet also uses this melody. Playing tips:Notice the marking at the start ‘lento and espressivo’ – very slow and expressive. You will need to find a really good finger legato in thispiece, and we have
Practise the RH on its own first, so that you get to grips with the phrasing. Feel the bottom of each note, to ensure a good singing tone.The fingering will allow for good legato playing.
Lento e espressivo
The dynamic is ‘p’ at the start and it stays soft throughout the piece.
1
2
given fingerings that will help you with this. If the fingerings don’t suit your hand, though, do try others. Think in long phrases. The RH has to sing while the LH ishet calm accompaniment. Pedalling is included in the score, but you if are a real beginner, we suggest that you don’t add the pedal until the notes are 100 per cent secure. Take a look at the technical tips within the score.
5
4
5
3
2
3
2
1
5
4
2
1
3
Key of F major (B flat accidental). Only use the pedal when all the notes are secure.The pedal is there for enhancement!
2 5
2 5
3 5
The LH needs to be the pulse of the piece. Keep things moving, even if the marking is lento slow). (
1
5
4
2 4 5
2 4 5
4
32
3 5
Taper the phrase off gradually (with a little diminuendo) between bar 6 and the beginning of bar 8.
5 1
3 5
321
1 2 4 5
1 2 4 5
5
3
2
1 3 5
1 3 5
1 3 5
Be prepared for the LH chord at the start of bar 6. It might feel awkward at first. 9 5
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2
4
2 4 5
5
3
1 2 5
2
1
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4
1 3 5
1 2 5
1 3 5
1 2 4
Notice the fingering over the RH F in bar 15. Move the thumb silently onto the note. 13 1
2 5
1
4
5
2 5
4
1 2 4 5
3 2 1 3
1 2 4 5
28• Pianist 81
1 3 5
4
3
2
1 2 4
5 2 1
1 5
If you have a wide enough hand span, try the fingering 2-3-5.This will allow for a better legato.
Eduardo di CAPUA arr. KEMBER
TRACK 2
BEGINNER
O Sole Mio Composer and arranger John Kember writes: This popular Neapolitan song, with music singer Tony Martin recorded There’s No Tomorrowto di Capuo’s melody. While by Eduard di Capua (1865-1917) and lyrics by Italian poet Giovanni Capurro, dates stationed in Germany with the US Army, Elvis Presley heard the melody and on his from1898. ‘O solo mio’ literally translates as ‘My sunshine’, and begins with the words:discharge requested new lyrics. The re-written song, It’s Now or Never, went on to ‘Che bella cosa è na jurnata ’e sole’ (‘What a bea utiful thing is a sunny day’), so your become a worldwide hit for Presley in 1960. Others may remember the melody put performance needs to sound bright and happy to reflect this. Classic recordings of this to other words advertising a certain brand of ice cream product! Take a look at the technical tips within he t score. song are by Enrico Caruso, Beniamino Gigli andMario Lanza. In 1949 theAmerican The word ‘cantabile’ at the start means ‘to sing’.
This piece is a great exercise in RH double note playing. Try to voice the two-note chords, with an emphasis on the melody top note.
An da nt in o 5 1
5 3
3 1
5 3
2 1
Key of C major. cantabile
21
5
21
5
The LH starts out as a simple accompaniment. Make sure to raise the hand for the rests.
7
2 1
3 1
4 2
5 3
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2
1
1
2
marc.
3
2 4
3 5
The word ‘marc.’ is an abbreviation for ‘marcato’, which means ‘marked’.
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3
The LH now becomes part of the melody. In fact the melody is dispersed between the hands.
2
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19
5
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5 3
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29• Pianist 81
5 1
2
ISS ’T M DONELANIEK’S
M WIC S SPAN NE SHSISO PIEC LE T N O PAGE
TRACK 3
Charles GOUNOD (1818-1893)
22
In 1861, just a few years after the successful debut of hisoperaFaust, French composer Gounod wrote this jolly piece for piano. The titleLes pifferari, Impromptu très facile suggests a merry and light-hearted mood. ‘Pifferari’ comes from an Italian word meaning ‘small nine-hole flute similar to oboe’, thoughni French the word came to mean many kinds of winds– so whether it’s a flute, bagpipe or oboeis up to you! Playing and pedal tips:This piece is charming, but full of playfulness. It also has a
Al le g ro
1
1 3
2
3
lovely pastorale quality to it. You should try your hardest to make the melody – which moves quickly and lightly up and down thekeyboard – sound seamless. Notice how it dies away at the end, asif the pipers are walking off into the distance. Even if pedal is not necessary, our house pianist Chenyin Li suggests a dab of short pedal here and there. See what she has suggested on the score and give it a y. tr Read Melanie Spanswick’s step-by-step lesson on this piece on page 22.
= 120
1 5
5
BEGINNER/ INTERMEDIATE
The Pipers
2
1 2
1
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1 5
3
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sempre marcato
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sim.
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1 3
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sim.
30• Pianist 81
4
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1 3
1 2
1 4
Charles GOUNOD (1818-1893)
TRACK 3
BEGINNER/ INTERMEDIATE
The Pipers
17
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1 3
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cresc.
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1 5
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1 4
Charles GOUNOD (1818-1893)
TRACK 3
BEGINNER/ INTERMEDIATE
The Pipers 33 5
4
1 5
1 3
37
4
2
1 2
5 1
3
3
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1 4
2 1
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1
1 5
3 1
4 2
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2
3
1 3
5 1
2
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2
1 2
1 4
2 1
3 1
4 2
1 2
1 4
1 5
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2
5
dim.
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1 3
1
5 1
1 2
2
1 2
1 5
47
51
2
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1 5
1 3
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1 5
1 3
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1 3
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1 4
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1 4
2 3
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1 2
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1 2
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1 4
1 5
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32• Pianist 81
1 3
2
1 5
1 5
2 3
1 5
2 3
1 3
1 2
1 4
Johannes BRAHMS (1833-1897) arr. SCAIFE
TRACK 5
INTERMEDIATE
Lullaby (Wiegenlied), No 4 from Five Lieder op 49 16 5 4
4
4
4
una corda
3
20
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5 4
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5 3
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rall.
33
L.H. 3
4 5
35• Pianist 81
4
5
TRADITIONAL arr. KEMBER
TRACK 6
INTERMEDIATE
Danny Boy (Londonderry Air) Composer and arrangerJohnKember writes:The lyrics of Danny Boy were written by played it as an encore on his concert DVDTokyo Solo. an English songwriter, Frederic Wetherley.He srcinally setthem to another tune but Playing tips:The lyrics are melancholy, hence the mainly gen tle dynamics. You’ll need in 1913 he altered it to fit the traditional melodyLondonderry Air. A popular anthem careful phrasing and a legato touch applied to both the melody and inner lines. among the Irish diaspora,Danny Boy has been interpreted as a message for a son going Awareness not only of the mood, but of the actual lyrics while playing help to achieve off to war or leaving Ireland to begin a new lifeabroad. The song has been recorded this. Pianist has added some fingerings, plus pedal markings, in the score. by a variety of artists, including Gracie Fields (1939), Glenn Miller (as a tango, 1940), Pedal tips: It depends how luscious or delicate you want this to sound. We suggest Andy Williams (1961), Elvis Presley (1976), Eric Clapton (1996), Charlotte Church four pedal changes per bar, but one can also try just two. and Sinead O’Connor (both in 1998). My favourite version isby Keith Jarrett, who Read what John Kember has to say about making arrangements on page 68.
Unhurried and molto legato 3 1
2
5 3
2 1
4 1
3 1
3 1
5 2
1
1
espress.
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1
2 4
3
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5 2 5
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1
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2
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2
sim.
2 1
6
36• Pianist 81
3 1
1
TRADITIONAL arr. KEMBER
TRACK 6
INTERMEDIATE
Danny Boy (Londonderry Air) 5
9
2 1
5 2
1 1
12
5
2
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
5 2
1
5
5
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3 1
3
5 1
2
15 3 1
5 1
5 1
1
3
2
1
18
rall. 21
dim.
37• Pianist 81
1
S
IS ’T M AN’S DONNEWM JANET SONE S IS PIEC LE ON THAGE
TRACK 7
Ernesto NAZARETH (1863-1934)
INTERMEDIATE
Valsa Confidências
P 6 2
We’ve published two tangos by Brazilian composer Ernesto Nazarth (in issues 66 and section appears at bar 33. Make sure you have fleet fingersthroughout. You’ll need a 70) and he also wrote over 40 waltzes. This waltz, ‘inspired by the poet Catullo da strong RH technique, with good articulation and evenness of sound. Practise very slowly Paixão Cearense’ was published in1913. Listen torecordings by Brazilian pianists such at first, only buildingup the tempo gradually. Make sure each finger/note feels separate as Arthur Moreira Lima to get a sense of the rhythmic freedom one can have. from the next. From bar 55, the RH plays high in the treble – this should sound sweet Playing and pedal tips:This gorgeous waltz should have a nice lilt to it. Rubato is and ‘tinkly’, almost emulating a musicalbox sound. When you reach theend, go back definitely allowed here and there (listen on our covermount CD how Chenyin Li to the start and finish at the ‘Fine’ at bar 32.Pedalling has been marked into thescore. makes a generous rubato atthe end of bar 16, forexample – it’s wonderful). A brighter Read Janet Newman’s step-by-step lesson on this piece on page 26.
Espressivo 3 4 3 2 3
5
5
5 4
31
1 2
4
3
4
2 1 2
3
1 2
31 4234
5
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4
3
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5
1 2
3
9 3
3 12 434
13
3
4
3
2
1
2
3
1
2
3
5 2
1
1
1 2 3
3
1 2 3
38• Pianist 81
4
Ernesto NAZARETH (1863-1934)
TRACK 7
INTERMEDIATE
Valsa Confidências 5
17
3 4 3 2 3
4
31
4
3
5
2 1 2
3
5
22
2
1
1 3
23 2 212321
1
5
27
4
3542
1
2
13542
4
Fine
13 2
13 2 1
3
2
1
3
2
1
5
1
plangente
4
1
5 2
2
4
4 2
33
38
2
1
2
3
5 3 2
42521
1
5 2 1
5
3513
5 1
2
1
1
2
5 3 1 1
2
4 1
2
4
1
4
1
5
4
2
5
1
cresc. 1
3
39• Pianist 81
1
Ernesto NAZARETH (1863-1934)
TRACK 7
INTERMEDIATE
Valsa Confidências 1.
43
47
5 2 1 1
4
3 5
3
5
2
1
3 1
3
3
1
3
1 3 1 2
2 1
2
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5
4212
1 2
5 1
4
5
1
2. 5
rit.
5
4
51
4
1
3
1
5 1
3
5
5
5 1
subito
4
57
4
3
4
4
1
4 1
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5 1
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4
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1
2
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4 1
2
5
5
5
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4 1
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40• Pianist 81
5
1
1 2
5 4
5
1 2
1 2 3
1
Ernesto NAZARETH (1863-1934)
TRACK 7
INTERMEDIATE
Valsa Confidências
67
5
5 1
4
2
1
4
2
5
4
1
2
1
4
71
5
5
1 2
1
4
5
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3
1
4
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5
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cresc.
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75
4
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2
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5
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5 1
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3
1
sempre
1 2
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79
3
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4 1 2 4
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1 2
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2 4 2 3
5
5
rit. 83
5
5
5
D. C. al Fine
1
1 3 5 5 3 1
3
41• Pianist 81
Edvard GRIEG (1843-1907)
TRACK 8
INTERMEDIATE
Gavotte, No 3 from Holberg Suite op 40 17
4
3 2
4
4
4 2
4 3
4
23
5
4
3
3 1 2 1
2
2
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4 4
22
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354
3
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2
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2 3
1
27
4
1
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5
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3 2
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peasante
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37
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p o c oap o c or i t .
43• Pianist 81
532
Fine
HANS-GÜNTER HEUMANN
AZE R TY
BEGINNERS zerty XXXX (XXXXX)
KEYBOARD CLASS LESSON 9: THE CHROMATIC SCALE
On these four pages,Pianist covers the most basic stages of learning the piano through a series of Keyboard Class lessons created by Hans-Günter Heumann. This ninth lesson covers the subject of the chromatic scale, which we come across in almost all types of piano music. Here are some playing tips and exercises to get your chromatic scale playing working seamlessly.
Chromatic Scale • The (Greek
chromatic scale chroma = colour) consists only of semitones (half tones). It ascends and descends, uses every key, and may begin on any note.
• If there is a series of semitone steps in a melody, this is known as chromaticism.
Exercise No 1
Play with your third finger on the black key and first finger on the white key, except where there are two white keys a semitone apart, in which case the fingering is 1–2 or 2–1.
Exercise No 2
Play with each hand separately, then together. Play the chromatic scale beginning on different notes. The left hand plays an octave lower than notated.
45• Pianist 81
PLAGE
HANS-GÜNTER HEUMANN
Entry of the Gladiators A opZ 68 E PLAGE
KEYBOARD CLASS
RTY
XXXX (XXXXX)
Julius Fučík(1872-1916) If you’ve ever been to a circus, you will recognise the melody that starts at bar 13. This piece offers plenty of chromatic scales to master. An exercise to further develop your chromatic scale playing appears on the final page of this lesson.
zerty
A
du faux texte Bella terra et mari civiliaexternaque toto in orbe terrarum saepe gessi, vi ctorque omnibus veniam petentibus civibus peperci. Externas gentes , quibus tuto ignosci potuit, conservare quam excidere malui. Millia civium Romanorum sub sacramento meo fuerunt circiter quingenta. Ex quibus deduxi in colonias aut remisi in municipia sua stipendis emeritis millia aliquanto plura quam trecenta, et iis omnibus agros adsignavi aut pecuniam pro praemiis militiae dedi. Naves cepi sescentas praeter eas, si quae minores quam triremes fuerunt.Bella terra et mari civilia externaque toto in orbe terrarum saepe gessi, victorque omnibus veniam petentibus civibus peperci. Externas gentes, quibustuto ignosci potuit, conservare quam excidere malui. Millia civium Romanorum sub sacramento meo fuerunt circiter uingenta. q Ex quibus deduxi in colonias aut remisi in municipia sua sti pendis emeritis millia aliquanto plura quam trecenta, et iis omnibus agros ads ignavi aut pecuniam pro praemiis militiae dedi. Naves cepi sescentas praeter eas , si quae minores quam triremes fuerunt.Bella terra et mari vilia ci externaque tot.
46• Pianist 81
HANS-GÜNTER HEUMANN
KEYBOARD CLASS
AZE R TY XXXX (XXXXX)
zerty
Julius Fučík (1872-1916)
Nationality: Czech Period: Romantic
Born in Prague, JuliusFučík studied composition with Antonín Dvořák. In 1891 Fučík began military service. In 1895 he was appointed as second bassoonist at the German Theatre in Prague, in 1896 he became conductor of the Prague city theatre and his career as a military musician began in 1897, and over 400 of his works are in existence. Fučík’s most famous piece, theEntry of the Gladiators (also known as the March of the Gladiators ) is known around the world because it is in the repertoire of circus orchestras of all over the world!
47• Pianist 81
PLAGE
HANS-GÜNTER HEUMANN
Finger Fitness exercise A PLAGE
KEYBOARD CLASS
Z ERTY XXXX (XXXXX)
Building on the fingerings you’ve worked on so far, here’s an excellent exercise full of chromatic challenges to try. Pay special attention to the contrary motion scales at bar 13.
zerty
A
du faux texte Bella terra et mari civiliaexternaque toto in orbe terrarum saepe gessi, vi ctorque omnibus veniam petentibus civibus peperci. Externas gentes , quibus tuto ignosci potuit, conservare quam excidere malui. Millia civium Romanorum sub sacramento meo fuerunt circiter quingenta. Ex quibus deduxi in colonias aut remisi in municipia sua stipendis emeritis millia aliquanto plura quam trecenta, et iis omnibus agros adsignavi aut pecuniam pro praemiis militiae dedi. Naves cepi sescentas praeter eas, si quae minores quam triremes fuerunt.Bella terra et mari civilia externaque toto in orbe terrarum saepe gessi, victorque omnibus veniam petentibus civibus peperci. Externas gentes, quibustuto ignosci potuit, conservare quam excidere malui. Millia civium Romanorum sub sacramento meo fuerunt circiter uingenta. q Ex quibus deduxi in colonias aut remisi in municipia sua sti pendis emeritis millia aliquanto plura quam trecenta, et iis omnibus agros ads ignavi aut pecuniam pro praemiis militiae dedi. Naves cepi sescentas praeter eas , si quae minores quam triremes fuerunt.Bella terra et mari vilia ci externaque tot.
48• Pianist 81
TRADITIONAL arr. MONTGOMERY
TRACK 10
INTERMEDIATE
We Wish You a Merry Christmas (with apologies to J S Bach) Composer and arranger Sean Montgomery writes: The theme makes a great subject for Bach would not have written any dynamicshad he arranged thispiece! We suggest an a fugue, and as an organist, I am a huge fan of Bach, hence the decision to arrange it mf throughout, with some very subtle crescendos and decrescendos when required. in the style of Bach. It might seemstraightforward but isn’t– slow practising is required Fingerings have been added byPianist, and should be used as aguide. The hands sit in order to play it at speed. I would suggest a light detached playing style throughout.well over the notes, so this should be a real joy to learn and perform. Playing tips from Pianist:In this Bach-inspired arrangement of a well-known 16th- Pedal tips:No pedal required, in order to keep thedetached feel. century English carol, you’ll immediately notice how there are no dynamic markings . For more information about the composer, visit www.seanmontgomery .com. = 17 5 1
5
2
1
4
4
1
1
4
2
2
3
5
9
3
2
2
4
4
2
5
13
3
2
2
2
1 3
2
51• Pianist 81
1
3
3
TRADITIONAL arr. MONTGOMERY
TRACK 10
INTERMEDIATE
We Wish You a Merry Christmas (with apologies to J S Bach) 17
5 1
5
21
5 1
5 1
1
25
1
1
1
4 1
1
2
1
5 1
3
4 1
1
29 1
1
4
1
5 1
3
3
33 2
1
2
1
1
52• Pianist 81
1
2
TRADITIONAL arr. MONTGOMERY
TRACK 10
INTERMEDIATE
We Wish You a Merry Christmas (with apologies to J S Bach) 37
40
1 3
5
5
1 5
43
1
46
5 1
2
4
3
1
49
4 1
5 2
5 1
1
53• Pianist 81
2
3
2
TRADITIONAL arr. MONTGOMERY
TRACK 10
INTERMEDIATE
We Wish You a Merry Christmas (with apologies to J S Bach) 53
5 2
5 2
4
5
1
2
1
1
1 1
2
1
57
2 1
3
1 3
60
63
2
5 2
1
5 1
5
1
2
2
1
1
66
5
5
1
1
5
3
1 2
54• Pianist 81
3
4
4
Anatoly LYADOV (1855-1914)
TRACK 11
INTERMEDIATE/ ADVANCED
Prelude, No 1 from Three Morceaux op 11 19
23
26
29
4
5 2
4
(senza ped.) 33 4
56• Pianist 81
1
4
Anatoly LYADOV (1855-1914)
TRACK 11
INTERMEDIATE/ ADVANCED
Prelude, No 1 from Three Morceaux op 11 rit. 37
41
a tempo 4-5
2
1 5
2
1
1 5
2
2
45 4-5
49
54
rit.
57• Pianist 81
a tempo
1
ISS ’T M M’S RHA DON Y PA LUC E PIEC THIS E ON
L ES
TRACK 12
SON
Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) arr. LISZT
ADVANCED
Der Müller und der Bach
PA G 24
The composer and pianist Franz Liszt (1811-1886) was a great admirer of Schubert As Lucy Parham notes in her lesson, Liszt is careful to convey the mood of the and arranged some 100 of Schubert’s songs for the piano. In 1846, Liszt took six songssrcinal song and colours the music withreference to the text –you’ll see that the words from Schubert’s Die schöne Müllerin cycle of 20 songs and collected them as are printed in the score. In the song, the lovelorn miller talks to the brook about his Müllerlieder. He placed ‘Der Müller und der Bach’ as the second piece in his cycle, beloved turning her affections elsewhere, and now ‘A true heart/Wastes away in love’. while it was the penultimate piece in Schubert’s cycle. Lucy Parham gives a step-by-step lesson on this piece on page 24.
Moderato
Wo
ein treues Her - ze in L ie
3
2
be -
ver geht, -
da wel
ken -
die
1
malinconico espressivo
8
Li - lien auf je
15
mit
22
An
-dem
seine Thrä -nen die
-
gen sich zu,
Beet.
Men
Da mu ss in die Wol ken -
schen nicht -
und schluch zen - und sin
seh’n.
-gen die
der Voll -mond
Da hal ten-
See
-le
zur
59• Pianist 81
da
die Englein
Ruh’.
smorz.
geh’n,
die
Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) arr. LISZT
TRACK 12
ADVANCED
Der Müller und der Bach Con intimo sentimento
Und
wenn 29
sich die
Liebe
dolce
Sternlein
neu
Schmerze
ent
m -el
er
- ringt,
ein
blinkt,
ein
1
1
ein
dem
5
3
- es,
am
Him
-
5
33
3 2
ossia
Sternlein,
ein
n eu
- es,
am
37
Him
-mel
er blinkt. -
Da
rit.
2 1
springen 41
die
Ro 4
- sen,
halb
roth
5
sempre legato 60• Pianist 81
und
h alb
weiss,
die
Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) arr. LISZT
TRACK 12
ADVANCED
Der Müller und der Bach wel
- ken
nicht
wie
d er -
aus Dor
- nen
- reis,
und
die
45
49
En
gelein schneiden
-
geh’n al
le
-
Mor
gen -
die
Flü
zur
gel-
Er
sich
de-
ab,
hin
und
ab, -
und
53
ossia
rit.
geh’n al 57
-
le
Mor
gen -
zur Er
de -
hin
ab. -
rit. 2
3
61• Pianist 81
1
4
2
1
3
5
Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) arr. LISZT
TRACK 12
ADVANCED
Der Müller und der Bach
Ach, Bäch
lein, liebes
Bäch- lein,
du
61 2
4
2
2
4
2
smorz. malinconico espressivo
ossia
meinst
es
so
gut,
ach, Bäch
lein, aber -
weisst
du,
wie
66
Lie 70
3 2 1
be
thut.
Ach un
4
62• Pianist 81
ten, -
da
Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) arr. LISZT
TRACK 12
ADVANCED
Der Müller und der Bach
un
- ten
die küh
le-
Ruh,
ach, Bäch
lein,-
liebes
74
2 3
1
1
Bäch- lein,
so
sin
ge-
nur
zu,
ach Bäch
lein -
liebes Bä ch
-lein
78
1
2 3
sin - ge
1
2 3 1
nur
zu.
83
dolce armonioso
63• Pianist 81
1
2 3
so
TRACK 12
Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) arr. LISZT
ADVANCED
Der Müller und der Bach cantando espress.
88
perpendosi
93
96
99
32
5
1
2
3
2
53
4
1
2
102
64• Pianist 81
l’accompagnamento
Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) arr. LISZT
TRACK 12
ADVANCED
Der Müller und der Bach 105
con anima
108
4 2
111
dolce armonioso
una corda
114
117
calando
smorzando
65• Pianist 81
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66• Pianist 81
REPERTOIRE
B s cia rangement Michael Quinn traces a history of arranging, showing how everyone from Bach to Birtwistle has freely re-worked music of every age, genre and style – and he talks to two contemporary arrangers about the secrets of their craft onsult any music or reference dictionary for a definition of ‘arranging’ and you could be forgiven for thinking that it is a somewhat mechanical artifice employed by composers to make the proverbial circle fit the no less time-honoured square hole. One respectable tome, the Oxford Companion to Music, will tell you that ‘By “arrangement” in music is meant the adaptation to one musical medium of music srcinally composed for another’. e equally venerable Encyclopædia Britannica concurs, describing an arrangement as ‘any adaptation of a composition to fit a medium other than that for which it was srcinally written,’ but goes a little further than that by adding the telling qualification, ‘whil e at the same time retaining the general character of the srcinal’. Somewhat surprisingly, perhaps, Wikipedia gets even closer to the nub with its ela boration of arranging as ‘a musical re-conceptualization of a previously composed work. It may differ from the srcinal work by means of re-harmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or development of the formal structure’. If nothing else, the art of arranging points to music’s special claim to being the most malleable of all the art forms. All music, from whatever age, in whatever style or genre has readily lent itself to adaptation and re-imagining. While it may be inconceivable to imagine someone ‘arranging’ the Mona Lisa, Anna Karenina or Citizen Kane, historically composers have had few, if any, such inhibitions about re-fashioning their own (and others’) music, regarding
C
it as amenable to assuming othermadrigals and new forms. Assomething early as thewholly second half of the 16th century, ‘apt for voyces or viols’ were being composed in arrangements in all but name, while the even earlier and era-defining Fitzwilliam Virginal Book includes a number of choral pieces arranged for keyboard. No instruments have played a greater part in the history of arrangements than those that belong to the keyboard family. Ever since they began to become more versatile, popular and, with the emergence of the piano in the 19th century, seemingly ubiquitous, keyboards have been at the centre of the often hidden art of arranging.
JS Bach was unquestionably the first master of arranging, blending artifice and art to often sublimely imaginative ends, even in the unenviable task of arranging 16 violin concertos by Vivaldi for harpsichord (and three others for organ). It was Bach, too, who showed that arranging need be neither slavish nor unsrcinal. One noted Bach biographer, Albert Schweitzer, disapprovingly observed of his harpsichord re-working of his own C minor Concerto for Two Violins and Orchestra: ‘Had he not done it himself, we should be protesting in his name today against so un-Bach-like a transcription.’
‘If it hasn’t got heart and doesn’t pay credit to the srcinal composer, whatever you do won’t be worth it!’ -Composer and arranger John Kember Bach provided a musical mother lode of possibilities for countless generations of composers and arrangers. Mozart arranged fugues from e Well-Tempered Clavier for string trio, Gounod’s Ave Maria borrows from the first piece in that same work, Liszt almost gleefully plundered Bach with often spectacular results. And Rachmaninov, Elgar, Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Segovia, Berio and Birtwistle have all, like many before since, succumbed to the seemingly irresistible temptation to arrange hisand music. As did the very different musical personalities of Brahms and Busoni, both of whom arranged the famous Chaconne from the Second Violin Partita for piano. Brahms, enterprisingly, set it for the left hand only [see issue 80’s article on left-hand repertoire]. Busoni was certainly no stranger to arranging Bach, so much so that his wife was often (so legend has it) greeted as ‘Mrs Bach-Busoni’. In his essay ‘e Value of the Arrangement’, Busoni famously argued in defence of his arrangement of Liszt’s Rhapsodie espagnole for piano and orchestra
68• Pianist 81
Left to right: Bach, a noted arranger, whose music in turn was ar ranged by Brahms and others; Liszt, the master arranger, took from Bach, Schubert, Schumann and more; Busoni liked his Bach; Rachmaninov was a dab hand at piano arrangements
by provocatively asking, ‘Where does arrangement begin? Of this Spanish Rhapsody there exists a second version by Liszt that bears the title Grand Fantasy on Spanish Melodies. It is a different piece with some of the same motives. Which of them is the arrangement? e one that was written later? Or is the first not already an arrangement of Spanish folk songs?’ Composers and arrangers wrestle with that same dilemma still. As the piano’s popularity grew in the 19th century, it provided both a tool to explore and a platform to elaborate on the music of predecessors and peers and quickly became the conduit of choice for composers who were wishing to pay homage to, or comment upon, existing mu sic in their own arrangements. As early as 1826, a critic in the magazine Harmonicon was declaring: ‘Our age has been called, proverbially, the “arranging age”.’ We still live in that age. Composers, songwriters, musical theatre, television, Hollywood and advertising have all rapaciously re-worked music of every age, genre and style to bend it to their own needs. And to the needs of others. Symphony for four hands For many musicians and audiences, arrangements remain, as they always have been, a means of encountering – and playing – music they might not otherwise have had access to, if only for reasons of scale alone. e earliest known piece for two keyboards is Giles Farnaby’s ‘Piece for Two Virginals’ in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book , while the first surviving piece for four hands on one instrument was Nicholas Carlton’s A Verse for Two to Play on One Virginal or Organ , which dates from the middle of the 16th century. Bach’s extensive catalogue includes pieces composed for up to four harpsichords and orchestra, while Mozart, who wrote two sonatas and a fugue for two pianos, famously wowed London audiences by playing duets with his sister during their visit to the capita l in 1764-5. e 19th century witnessed unprecedented growth in the volume of arrangements being made, the form revelling in an elasticity that soon saw pieces being written for two players at one piano, two players at two instruments and even as many of as eight hands on four pianos. Chopin’s cut-crystal miniatures were regularly arranged. Liszt, that most
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combustible of composer-pianists, did more than most to promote and develop the burgeoning art of arranging, making his debut in St Petersburg in 1842 with a programme comprised entirely of arrangements, including songs by Beethoven (Adelaide ) and Schubert ( e Erl-King) and his own fantasia on airs from Don Giovanni and Chromatic Galop . Later, Mahler brought arranging into the 20th century with four-hand, two-piano arrangements of a number of his own symphonies, as did others, occasionally to more extravagant effect. (Newly released on Melba Recordings is a first-ever recording of Heinrich von Bocklet’s ▲ 1914 arrangement for eight hands on two pianos of the mighty
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69• Pianist 81
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INTERVIEW
CELTIC SPIRIT Pianist and composer Barry Douglas reveals another talent in a new CD of his arrangements of the Irish folk music he grew up with You are obviously very inspired by Irish/Celtic folk music to have released a whole CD. Did you grow up with this music? My mother was from County Sligo and I spent weekends and summers there, and was lucky to be one of the gang in the traditional music arena. However, I am a simple classical pianist at the end of the day. What make s Celtic music unique? It is a pure example of universal human expression – maybe a Jungian collective (un)consciou s, or a beautiful example of music that can emotionally move people from all different cultures around the world. Tell us about the pieces on the disc. ese pieces are timeless poems and melodies. What is very interesting and note-worthy is that if it had not been for the Linen Hall Library and Edward Bunting [a famous Irish composer and folk music collector], the airs would not have even been written down. In 1792 a huge group of Irish harpists, including Turlough O’Carolan [two pieces by O’Carolan appear on the disc], descended on Belfast so that Bunting could transcribe this great music. A huge achievement! How did the recording come about? It was a lucky moment for me. In September 2013, at the Schubert recording sessions in Cork, we finished the recording more quickly than planned. Chandos encoura ged me to use the extra session time to try something different. ey asked me what I might like to do, and I said well, I have these Irish airs and folk songs that I arranged for piano. So we cracked on. I called my friend Eimear [McGeown] and got her in to play Irish flute and tin whistle with my piano arrangements underneath. Had you composed/arranged before this project? I have been composing since I was eight years old. Luckily, I was modest and didn’t push my wares! I was a prolific writer of music, writing piano preludes and even a few orchestral pieces between the ages of eight and 15. I wrote services for church and a couple of masses. I played the organ and conducted choirs from the age of 12, which meant I had the chance to play for hours, as improvisation was often needed. I loved to improvise on the piano too and still relax in the evening by meandering around the place musically.
in a ‘Romantic’ sweep and moves us with his hushed whispers, he is always a sincere and elegant master. Which are your favourite Brahms solo pieces? I love all of Brahms’s works. However, I have a soft spot for the opus 76 piano pieces, which will be on my final three discs. What Brahms solo piano pieces would you suggest an amateur pianist of an intermediate standard might learn? Always the two opus 79 Rhapsodies. e Intermezzi a re quite accessible and many are realisable very quickly. ey really give a lot of satisfaction the more you work at them. You played the First Brahms Concerto at the BBC Proms this summer with London Symphony Orchestra and Valery Gergiev. How was that? It is always a sheer pleasure to work with Valery. He is a consummate artist, and the LSO is one of my best friends – what a great orchestra!
What do you think makes a good arrangement?
What are the challenge s of playing Brahms? Like in all music, the challenge is to help it project to the audience. Music is full of detail but ironically the trick is to present the essence of the music to the listener. is is sometimes quite diffi cult. It is good to prepare carefully and focus on detail but then when you perform it should be about the
It should haveshould some of essence of the srcinal and of the new; the arrangement feelthe like it is the srcinal.
broad message to admire.
■
Barry Douglas spoke with Erica Worth. Chester Music will be releasing your arrangements in a volume of sheet music. What level are they pitched at? ey are for an intermediate level, but some can be played by beginners. n a g n a L e n e g u E ©
You are in the process of recording the complete Brahms solo p iano works. What does Brahms mean to you? I am moved by his Classical foundations. No matter if he spreads his wings
is issue’s covermount CD includes Barry Douglas performing ‘e Last Rose of Summer’, from his Celtic Reflections CD (Chandos Records, CHAN 10821). A selection of Celtic Reflections scores will be available soon from Chester Music. Visit www.musicro om.com for more details. For further information about Barry Douglas, go to www.barrydouglas.com. Learn an arrangement of the famous Brahms Lullaby inside this issue’s Scores on page 34.
72• Pianist 81
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INSTRUMENTS
Mahan Esfahani Jessica Duchen meets the Iranian-American harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani, who is transforming the harpsichord from an early music artefact into a dynamic (and regularly programmed) part of today’s concert scene
M
ahan Esfahani is surely the most thrilling harpsichord player to have emerged on the scene in recent decades, and he's taken this supposedly niche instrument to new heights. I’ve arranged to meet him in a tea-room beside what remains of the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens in London. In the Victorian age this location was such a draw for
mainstream once again, and contemporary too. All the evidence suggests that his mission is succeeding. Esfahani has had quite a year. ‘Since the beginning of 2014 so much has changed that I can’t even think straight,’ he remarks. He is only 30, but has already been a BBC New Generation artist, gave (and sold out) the Proms’ first-ever harpsichord recital and this year won a Gramophone Award for a recording of CPE Bach on Hyperion that set the critics falling over
visitors the British Russian for railway station, ‘Vokzal’,tocame from capital it, or sothat thethe story goes. word Tis salon remains a rare and special taste of times gone by, with flavours (Japanese green tea with toasted rice) that are distinctly contemporary. It seems a fitting place to meet Esfahani. Te harpsichord, too, was the musical star of a bygone age and Esfahani’s artistry mingles the flavours of past and present in a remarkable way. Tis scarily intelligent Iranian-American musician has chosen to devote himself to a keyboard instrument that might seem confined to the rarefied echelons of ‘early music’, but for a few oddball concertos by the likes of Poulenc and Górecki. But Esfahani is a man with a mission: to make the harpsichord
one another’s superlatives. Now a further Future vote of plans confidence hasmodern arrived:as a contract with Deutsche Grammophon. include well as ancient music: he is planning major projects for both concerts and recording, including commissioning new works. What attracted him to the harpsichord in the first place is the same mysterious force that attracts any of us to a particular instrument: ‘I just think it’s a beautiful sound,’ he says. And contrary to popular opinion, he adds, it can produce a sustained and singing line: ‘Of course it sings. You just have to know how to play it. It is an uncommon instrument and I feel I am uncommon personally – so I identify with it. Maybe that sounds arrogant,
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n o ti c le l o C e b b o C e th t a n e k ta , s d r o c e R n io r e p y
H © s to o h p ll A
NEW RELEASES but it’s genuinely how I feel. I don’t play the harpsichord; I live through the harpsichord. It’s me.’ Esfahani was born in Iran, but the family left when he was 12 to settle in the US. His father was a pianist and encouraged the youthful Mahan to play Chopin. ‘I rebelled,’ Esfahani admits. ‘My parents adored Chopin, so my way of getting at them was to think: no, I want to play Bach.’ After attending Stanford University, he lived in Italy for two years (‘Tat was my introduction to European culture, and it doesn’t get much better than that!’). Further studies found him his closest mentor, the legendary Zuzana Růźičková in Prague – to date, the only harpsichordist to have recorded Bach’s complete works for the instrument. Close study ‘I think being a harpsichordist is a life study in precision,’ Esfahani remarks. ‘It’s a study into how to lift the notes. Some pianists are very good at approaching notes, but not so good at lifting from them. When I started
playing the harpsichord instead of the piano I had to completely rethink my technique – obviously the mechanism and the physics of it are different. I
‘I’m forced to think in so many layers of subtlety: the harpsichord is a study in keeping your ears attuned to very small things’ spent months, when I first started, peering into the instrument to see the jacks come up and pluck. ‘It looks so impersonal,’ he adds. ‘Unlike the piano, you don’t have a hammer with felt on it hitting three strings; you have one plectrum plucking one string, so you’re actually controlling a pluck. Tere are so many layers of subtlety in that pluck – and if you can control that, then you can control pretty much anything. And you can control the volume in a big hall: I promise you can, because it’s all about what people are picking up. I’m forced to think in so many layers of subtlety: the harpsichord is a study in keeping your ears attuned to very small things.’ Life on the road as a harpsichordist is as challenging as that of a travelling pianist, possibly more so. Although Esfahani has a network of local harpsichord technicians whose services he can call on, they are not so numerous – therefore he has learned how to do this work himself. ‘I travel with my box of tools,’ he says. ‘I do my tuning, I do my string replacing, I do my jack replacing, I do my quill cutting. I was once in the Balkans and had to get some boys with slingshots to kill a pigeon for the quills.’ He didn’t feel too good about that, he adds, but the show must go on – and in some places the instruments are falling to pieces. ‘What’re you gonna do?’ he shrugs. Esfahani speaks with a conviction and honesty that mirrors his playing. And he has no hesitation in speaking out against those who in his view ▲ might be holding back the cause of his instrument and its music.
JEAN-PHILIPPE RAMEAU
Pièces de clavecin Gramophone-Award-winning harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani has recorded Rameau’s Pièces de clavecin in the historic setting of the Music Room at Hatchlands Park in Surrey. This double album comprises the whole of Rameau’s output of keyboard suites, and Esfahani rejoices in its wealth of genius, its excitement and drama.
CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Images & Préludes II A new album from Marc-André Hamelin is always cause for celebration. Here in his first Debussy recording for Hyperion he presents the two books of Images: Debussy’s colouristic masterpiece, a bewitching compendium of ‘scents, colours and sounds’. Also recorded is the second book of Préludes, in a poetic and evocative performanc e.
ROBERT SCHUMANN
Novelletten & Nachtstücke In this new album Danny Driver brings his impeccable pianism, consummate style and imagination to Schumann’s Novelletten and Nachtstücke, less wellknown sets from his extraordinary output for the piano.
DANNY DRIVER piano
CDA67983
Downloading music from www.hyperion-records.co.uk Hyperion and Helios recordings are available for download. The download catalogue includes recordings no longer available on CD many that areinformation unavailableasfor downloadmany elsewhere. Hyperion downloads contain asand much additional possible. This includes cover artwork and, wherever possible, commentaries, sung texts and translations. (Please note, however, that not all media players read all of this information; it is all freely available on our website, as are complete PDF booklets.)
BACH THE ART OF FUGUE
OTHER LABELS AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD ON OUR WEBSITE
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CDA67920
MARC-ANDRÉ HAMELIN piano
you also get an ePub —ideal for an iPad— and you get to choose the size of the print!
Mahan Esfahani at the Cobbe Collection in Surrey. He is playing a harpischord made by Andreas Ruckers in 1636 and refurbished by Henri Hemschni Paris in 1763
CDA68071/2
(2 compact discs)
MAHAN ESFAHANI harpsichord
Gimell
Reading booklets on your phone or tablet If you’ve ever tried reading a booklet PDF on your phone, or even on a tablet, you’ll know how unsatisfactory this can be. But did you know most downloads from Hyperion now come with full texts, translations and even sleeve notes actually embedded into the audio file in all the available formats? Ideal when you’re learning the words to songs, or just to pass the time on long journeys. There’s also an ePub version of the booklet included with the
CDs, MP3 and lossless downloads of all our recordings are available from
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INSTRUMENTS
Mahan Esfahani
Up Close Who are your favourite harpsichord players of the past and present? I have a lot of respect for the harpsichordists of what we might call the ‘grand old manner.’ People like Wanda Landowska, who had that great romantic sense for provocative rhythm, and Ralph Kirkpatrick, who had a technique so frightening that it elicited the respect of people like Horowitz. They are, of course, of two or three generations ago. But some of their playing, as preserved on record, is truly inspiring. I probably listen to Zuzana R˚ užiˇcková’s harpsichord playing every day – but, of course, I studied with her! Her commitment to new music is something I find to be important. George Malcolm probably had the greatest ability to make the harpsichord a mainstream instrument and I try to follow his model. Of living harpsichordists I have a lot of time for Christophe Rousset – he’s so perfect in every way. I also think that Blandine Verlet is an absolutely beautiful player and should be better known outside harpsichord circles – it’s so well thought-out and unpredictable at the same time. Can we hear these players on CD? Here are five sets everyone should have as a starter. Then branch out, please! 1. Wanda Landowska:Bach Goldberg Variations (1931 and 1945 recordings – HMV and RCA, respectively) 2. Ralph Kirkpatrick: Scarlatti 21 Sonatas (1971/1966 – DG/Archiv, reissued in 2004) 3. Christophe Rousset: Couperin Complete Harpsichord Works (Harmonia Mundi) 4. Gustav Leonhardt: The Edition (Sony Classical, 2008), especially the discs of English virginals music and Froberger, which are not to be believed 5. Hommage à Zuzana R˚užiˇcková, especially the second dis c which has three modern concertos (Supraphon 2012) If you could play only one piece in the whole repertoire, what would it be? The Well-Tempered C lavier , because I consider it to all be one grand piece. This is, of course, an easy way to cheat on answering this question. If you could play only one composer from now on, who would it be? Johann Sebastian Bach. No contest on that! One musician, dead or alive, who you’d travel long and far to hear? I would love to have heard the great opera singers of the early bel canto period – Malibran, García, Giuditta Pasta, those sorts of people. My private sin is the most easily parodied period of Italian opera. It would be interesting to have seen Mahler conducting. One composer you’re not quite ready to tackle yet? Xenakis. Just not there yet. But I’ll get there. I don’t have the emotional maturity for the Handel suites yet, or a serious understanding of Froberger in the way that I’d like to have it. A major goal is to spend a few years only with the music of Girolamo Frescobaldi, the Italian Bach. If you weren’t a harpsichordist, what would you be? Probably a popular historian or travel writer of some sort. Or a philologist. I love to learn languages and script and I can spend all day reading long lists of etymologies; it’s a useful party trick to be able to write and translate words into several scripts and languages, but I would enjoy being dedicated to it as a profession. I like to translate a page of a foreign language every week (or two) simply as a hobby.
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Notably, he has even accused the early music movement of ‘intellectual laziness’. ‘First of all, historical performance is a big thing, very important,’ he declares. ‘Musicians of the calibre of Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Gustav Leonhardt made us see music in a new way and stripped away the sort of accoutrements that were hindering it; all this is well and good. But I remember the composer Peter Maxwell Davies once said: ‘e music knows things that I don’t.’ I find it very hard to believe that a great composer such as Bach would have yielded his music merely to what people knew at the time. ‘I think great composers create music for posterity – that follows logically,’ he continues. ‘ey would not have done the things they did if they were not expecting their music to be under repeated scrutiny for many years. Maybe they didn’t expect 500 years, but 50 years is a long time – we have authors like Philip Roth and Kingsley Amis whose works we have been looking at for 40 years now and it follows that music would be the same way.’ Scores into sound
But intellectual laziness? Really? ‘Intellectual and artistic laziness are actually the same,’ he says. ‘Basically, there are artistic solutions to what we do. So when we “translate” the score into sound, we have to solve certain things: phrasings, articulations, tempo, dynamics, expression, how to bring the music off the page and make it three-dimensional. To say that in that period according to a few sources they did this or that, they always did a certain thing at a cadence and they always articulated notes like this – that’s solving those issues in a seemingly objective way that doesn’t allow people to criticise you artistically. ‘If you make your decisions solely artistically, we can have a discussion and you can take issue with what I do. But once I start to bring in sources and objective knowledge, then because we live in a society where something that’s printed is more official and is taken more seriously, I could use that as ammunition to win that war. at is very lazy – and it is artistic self-abnegation. You’re sidestepping the artistic battle by picking and choosing bits out of history. It’s arrogant. It’s like this is a Taliban that we’ve created. And that’s why there’s been a reaction on the other side, something I’d call wilful ignorance.’ ‘I’m not against “early music”,’ he adds, ‘but I’ll be honest, I don’t socially feel a connection with it. I think there’s a lot of issues of class and race associated with early music and I find this off-putting. Also, I love a lot of other things too. I love piano music, I love new music, I love Wagner for better or worse. Why can’t the harpsichord be part of a brotherhood of instruments?’ Well, exactly. But supposing you want to have a shot at playing the harpsichord yourself, having been inspired by his playing: how would you begin? First, says Esfahani, make sure you can play the piano. ‘Get a strong piano technique,’ he insists. ‘If you get to the harpsichord too soon, you risk losing the perspective of its place among all the other instruments. In Italy they require a student to have a piano at home before they study harpsichord, which is very wise.’ As for finding an instrument and a teacher, that is not so difficult, he says ‘In the big cities there are instruments and teachers; you can hire instruments; and for youngsters there are good junior programmes theequipped Royal College, Academy and Guildhall. We’reatwell in this Royal country.’ ere is no excuse, then. Go and hear Esfahani play – and if you have ever discounted the attractions of the harpsichord, perhaps you will find that it’s time to think again.■ Listen to Mahan Esfahani play Rameau (Track 13) and CPE Bach (Track 14) on the Pianist covermount CD. See his full discography at www.hyperionrecords.co.uk and his full schedule of concerts at www.mahanesfahani.com.
Keyboard for ReluctantSkills Pianists Sue Anderson
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Music Teacher: July 2007
Part One: 14–20 August 2015 Part Two: 20–26 August 2015 The Friendliest Piano Summer School in the World!
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Faculty includes: Dmitri Alexeev, Paul Badura-Skoda,
• scale playing made easy
Philippe Cassard, JoséMatthias Feghali, Carlo Grante, Harry Harris, NikkiPeter Iles, Donohoe, Eugen Indjic, Kirschnereit, Murray McLachlan, Noriko Ogawa, Artur Pizarro, Vladimir Tropp
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Silence is
GOLDEN
Turn your old piano into gold From 1st September 2014 to 15th January 2015 you can get as much as £2000 extra part exchange allowance when you trade in your old digital or acoustic piano for a beautiful new Yamaha Silent Piano. All Yamaha Pianos are available with the Yamaha Silent System - Uprights and Grands. Ask your dealer for more information.
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uk.yamaha.com/silentpiano
MAKERS
This year’spiano round-up Fancy a new piano? It’s a great time of year to consider an upgrade and maybe find a bargain as well. Gez Kahan surveys some of the most exciting pianos out there – acoustic, digital and other
T
his year, forgo the reindeer-appliqué jumpers and holly-themed socks. Instead, treat your loved one (and/or yourself and your family) to a new piano. But what sort, what brand, what price range? at’s where Pianist can help. Here’s a by-nomeans-exhaustive set of piano possibilities for you to look at during the preChristmas rush or in the January sales. Prices given are generally for standard models and finishes. One important caveat is that the pianos discussed in this article were available in the UK at the time the article was written, but they may or may not be available everywhere – you’ll want to check with your local dealer.
GRANDS
Shigeru Kawai SK2 Classic Salon Grand
We begin in the grand manner, and at the top of the a lphabet, with Bechstein. Its UK distributor describes the C. Bechstein B212 (listing at £76,000) as ‘quite simply the alternative to the Steinway Model B’. Bechstein and Steinway have been rivals at the top end of the piano market since 1853, the year in which both they and Blüthner, another high-quality manufacturer, were established. Bechstein classes the B212, with a length of 6ft 11in or 212cm (hence the name), as a salon grand, with exactly the same feature set as its larger concert grands. Steinway, meanwhile, has its own alternative to the Steinway Model B, for those whose grandeur doesn’t quite extend to a salon-sized living space. ‘e must-have piano for Christmas,’ says Craig Terry, Managing Director of the company’s UK operation, ‘is the Steinway & Sons Model A grand. It is the perfect size for any home but delivers concert style performance in sound and touch.’ is measures 6ft 2in (188cm) but has the same size keyboard and action as the 6ft 11in Model B, ‘which any concert artist would play with joy,’ Terry sa ys. List price for Steinway’s Model A is £65,750. You don’t have to have founded your firm in 1853 to make a good piano, though. Paolo Fazioli, an Italian engineer and pianist, started his company in 1981, deliberately targeting the same market. Like all top makers, Fazioli has its own clutch of concert pianists and venues that swear by the brand, but is equally conscious that not everyone will have the space (or the £130,000 list price) for its Model F308 (10ft) flagship grand. So there’s a range of smaller options starting from the 5ft Model 156, and including UK distributor Jaques Samuel Piano’s recommen dation – the Fazioli Model F183 (6ft) at £69,500. Just over half a century earlier than Fazioli, Koichi Kawai established his own piano brand in Hamamatsu, Japan, and soon gained a reputation for quality and workmanship. After Koichi’s death in 1955 his son, Shigeru, took the helm, ultimately u nveiling (as his ‘personal legacy to the piano world’) the Shigeru Kawai Grand Piano line of hand-crafted instruments. e instrument pictured top right is the 5ft 11in (180cm) Shigeru Kawai SK2 Classic Salon Grand (180cm/5ft 11in), priced at £29,900. So far, so traditional. but even in the conservative world of the grand piano, there’s still room for new ideas. One such example is the Phoenix 212 in a ‘Tiger Wood’ finish, where the innovation goes much deeper than the striking veneer. e piano design is based on the acoustic body of Steingraeber and Söhne’s Model 212 piano, and produced by the German maker in Bayreuth, but to specifications exclusive to Hurstwood Farm Piano Studios, Kent in the UK. One unique feature is a thin carbon-fibre soundboard (developed at Hurstwood Farm), made possible by the characteristics of the patented Phoenix bridge agraffe system. is allows the piano to be strung without down-bearing, produci ng, says Geoffrey Sapsford of Hurstwood Farm, ‘its unique longer sound and pure tone, as the board is allowed to “breathe”.’ e piano also incorporates the latest carbon fibre/composite action from Wessel Nickel and Gross. e 6ft 11in Tiger Wood Phoenix 212 retails at £44,795 including VAT, free delivery in mainland UK, free first service in the client’s home and a matching concert benchpiano, with buttoned leather top. What if you want a grand but spacecalf (or budget) preclude the above. UK distributor Intermusic recommends the Ritmüller R9 , a 5ft 3in (161cm) instrument made by the Chinese Pearl River factory and coming in at £7,999. It has, says Intermusic, ‘a European mid-range to slightly mellow tone and a light yet responsive touch.’ e design, by Lothar omma, has recently been upgraded with enhanced component quality, newly calculated string lengths and neat touches such as a slow-fall fallboard. Also from China, and recommended by Jaques Samuel Pia nos for tone and touch, is the S. Ritter 145 – a 4ft 9in (145cm) starter-level baby grand piano at £6,499. 80• Pianist 81
C. Bechstein 212
Steinway Model A
Ritmüller R9 Fazioli F183
Steingraeber Phoenix 212
S. Ritter 145
(in ‘Tiger Wood’ finish)
THE GENRE-BREAKER The U1 TransAcoustic is bo th digital and acoustic We look next at uprights, starting with an instrument that really needs a section of its own (the rest of the uprights are discussed overleaf). When you first play the Yamaha U1 TransAcoustic, it is nothing more nor less than the company’s ‘traditional’ U1 upright. Kick in TransAcoustic technology (literally, that is – it’s activated via the centre pedal) and you have not just a ‘silent’ piano to keep the neighbours off your back when you feel the need to practice at 3am, but a volume-controllable one. is means that you can practise fff passages during the day without precipitating a domestic crisis. ere’s more: the TransAcoustic sound module might be a separate sound source, but it links with the piano’s own traditional sound system – the
Yamaha U1 TransAcoustic
soundboard resonance to makesolo it part of the instrument itself. So when youand playstring a digital sound,–whether or blended with the natural piano sound, it envelopes you in the same way that the natural resonance of a soundboard coupled with the sympathetic vibration triggered in harmonically related strings makes playing a traditional acoustic piano such an immersive experience. ere’s so much more to say about the £9,962 TransAcoustic that we could write a book – but there’s no need. Yamaha already has, and it’s free to download from iTunes. [Read Gez Kahan’s article about the TransAcoustic in issue 79]. 81• Pianist 81
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MAKERS
UPRIGHTS
Blüthner Model C
August Förster 116
Cavendish Contemporary 121
Grands may be grand, but they’re not the only option. As well as being less space hungry, uprights often offer a more-piano-for-your-money alternative to an equivalently priced grand piano. If it’s a high-quality instrument with a small footprint that you’re after, you might find what you want in the August Förster 116D (116cm/45.6in). Built by traditional craftsmen in Löbau near Dresden, Germany, this upright in its standard black finish clocks in at just £9,950, yet incorporates a Renner action and a practice pedal, and comes with a matching stool (and a five-year guarantee). Somewhat larger in the body is the Blüthner Model C, a 118cm-tall (46.4in) upright, handcrafted in Leipzig, Germany, which combines, says the company’s UK distributor, ‘elegance and sophistication with superb tone and touch.’ It’s not cheap, at £16,872, but it is classy. ‘Tis piano, with well-balanced scaling producing a full spectrum of tonal qualities, would be well suited in any drawing room, study or music room and would be suitable for any pianist from beginner to professional standard,’ says Blüthner. It’s a similar story with the 125cm (49in) Schimmel K125T and, at £16,490, a similar price. While Schimmel’s approach – the company has invested heavily in ‘Computer Aided Piano Engineering’ to refine its designs and develop a way to maximise the response of its soun dboards – might appear to lean toward the mass market (and Schimmel is indeed the largest-volume German manufacturer), this instrument and its 122cm (48in) and 132cm (52in) Konzert series siblings are aimed squarely at serious musicians. Tose looking at Schimmel but wincing at the made-in-Germany price might want to consider the made-in-Poland Wilhelm-Schimmel W114T at £5,990 or the larger 118cm version at £6,490 (45in and 46.4in, respectively). Te reason for the relative affordability of the Wilhelm-Schimmel instruments is that labour costs are significantly lower in countries on Germany’s eastern borders. Tis is no cheap knock-’em-out range, though. Te pianos are made under supervision using the traditional Schimmel method – even after the woods have been conditioned, the soundboards, for instance, still take six months to produce. Te same economic benefits apply to Petrof, a brand that celebrates its 105th anniversary this
Schimmel K125T
year. Still making its pianos entirely in the Czech Republic, Petrof follows traditional production techniques, focusing on hand crafting, toning and finishing. Pictured is the Petrof 131 M1, priced at £10,299 (131cm/51.6in). Moving further east, Kawai chips in with the Kawai K-300 , promising ‘grand piano technology in a upright piano at an affordable price of £5,000’. Noteworthy features include a soundboard tapered for a richer sustain, an extended keyboard length before the pivot point for similar control of touch to that of a grand piano, Kawai’s proprietary Millennium III Action with ABS-Carbon and a soft close fallboard. (Dimensions: 122cm/48in.) And staying with Far Eastern manufacture (albeit with a German name), there’s the Gors & Kallmann Concerto (120cm/47in). Tis is a large, traditionalstyle upright, available in black or dark rosewood at £3,015. It’s aimed at the learner rather than the professional market. Howard Martyn of the UK distributor, Piano Warehouse, says, ‘It would take a student right up to Grade 8 and beyond.’ Finally, while we’re in the ‘traditional’ upright section, there’s a new brand and, glory be, it’s English. Cavendish Pianos is a family business based in the Yorkshire Dales – a team of cabinetmakers, stringers, action builders and tuners hand-building pianos on the rural Bolton Abbey estate. Te company pitches its Cavendish Contemporary 121 (£6,995; 121cm/47.6in) at those who value ‘a mellow European sound and attention to detail’, and want ‘an ideal piano to see them through their grades and beyond’.
Gors & Kallmann Concerto
Wilhelm-Schimmel W114T Kawai K-300
Petrof 131 M1 82• Pianist 81
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2014 PIANO RELEASES 7 9 3 D C G I S
Alessio Bax plays Beethoven EDITOR’S CHOICE
Gramophone November 2014 8 8 3 D C G I S
1 7 3
D C G I S
Wagner Without Words Llŷr Williams “... technically superb ...the colours WiIliams creates from the keyboard in Siegfried’s Rhine Journey and the Parsifal suite are radiant and entrancing.” Te Guardian FIVE • James Rhodes
“a sincere, communicative and mindful musician ... Rhodes’s fusion of instinct, mindfulness and individuality stand out in any era.” Gramophone
www.signumrecords.com
Peregrine’s Pianos “Peregrine’s Pianos is a business with friendly staff who are driven by a genuine passion for pianos”
"I would like to thank you for our beautiful piano which is now the pride and joy of our music department”
"I am really enjoying my new piano! I think that every time I play it” “Peregrine's Pianos is one of my favorite London treasures”
“After trying out dozens of instruments around the country, I found my dream piano at Peregrine's Pianos in London” “I'm so pleased I chose this one!”
“Owning a grand piano was a long held dream. Peregrine's Pianos were able to make it a reality” Peregrine’s Pianos is here to sell and hire out fine, modern upright and grand pianos: we are the exclusive dealer in London for Schimmel pianos and Britain’s only August Förster dealer. Quotes are unsolicited and taken from our website: www.peregrines-pianos.com
Peregrine’s Pianos, 137A Grays Inn Road, London WC1X 8TU Tel: 020 7242 9865
DIGITALS Tere are plenty of reasons for choosing an entirely digital piano: economy of space, portability, connectivity and sonic variety are just some of them, and affordability is practically a given. Whereas few ‘acoustic’ pianos come into the ‘impulse purchase’ category, there are some digitals that cause rather less bruising to the wallet. One such is the Casio AP-250, the company’s ‘Xmas special’ for 2014. Te introductory model in Casio’s Celviano range, the AP-250 incorporates Casio’s latest technology including its AiR (Acoustic and Intelligent Resonator) sound generation system, which includes details such as Damper Resonance to add to the realism of the piano sound, and the ri-Sensor graded hammer action. Te Casio AP-250 is on promotion until the end of 2014 with a Christmas special price point of £499 (reduced from £699). Kawai has a new model in its ES portable piano lineup. Te Kawai ES100 (£609) has an authentic keyboard action and excellent piano voices (using technologies including 88-key sampling, advanced resonance effects and Kawai’s Harmonic Imaging system). Tere are also other instrumental and drum sounds, and features such as dual and split playing modes. Te Korg LP-180 (£569.99) exudes, says the company, ‘a sense of quality that exceeds its class.’ Te manufacturer also stresses its ‘slim, stylish body’ (just 27cm/10.7in deep), rich piano sound and weighted hammer action keyboard. Tere are ten sounds in total, plus three pedals, twin headphone jacks and reverb and chorus effects. Te Roland F-20 (£479) is aimed at beginners. Along with piano tones and an action derived from the company’s flagship models, the F-20 incorporates learning-specific features such as recording and metronome functions, and onboard rhythm accompaniment. Tere are also free Roland educational and play-along apps available for iPhone, iPad or iPod touch in conjunction with the F-20. Bringing our look at the seasonal piano market to a close, Yamaha has a new range of Clavinova digitals . Te sonic heart of the new six-strong CLP-500 series is the sound of Yamaha’s CFX concert grand piano. Tere’s also the sound of the Bösendorfer Imperial , plus a collection of complementary voices, including electric pianos and historic and orchestral instruments. [You can enter the Win a Clavinova competition inside this issu e; turn back to page 9 for details.] For some of the models in this new range, Yamaha has developed a natural wood keyboard with a new action and a refined escapement mechanism for increased control over sound and dynamics. Other features include a new reverb system accurately replicating the ambience of a range of venues, and a stereophonic equalizer to enhance the sound image when used with headphones. Ranging in price from £1,115–£3,792, Yamaha’s new Clavinova series includes Slimline Upright and Grand designs, and a variety of finishes. Pictured is the CLP535 PE model priced at £1,732. You can also see a video featuring Pianist magazine’s amateur competition winner Dominic Piers Smith playing the CLP-585 PE (£3,515) by entering the word ‘Dominic’ at uk.yamaha.com n
Casio Celviano AP250
Yamaha Clavinova CLP-535 PE
Korg LP-180
Roland F-20
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84• Pianist 81
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REVIEW
CD
Modern Bach playing from Igor Levit gets top marks from Marius Dawn, along with Bavouzet’s Haydn concertos and Driver’s all-Schumann CD Pianist star ratings: ★★★★★Essential – go get it! ★★★★Really great ★★★A Buy these CDs from thePianist website. Visit http://pianistmag/cdreviews
YULI AN N A A V D E EVA
Editor’s
CHOICE IGOR LEVIT Bach: The Partitas (Nos 1-6, BWV 825-830) Sony Classical 88843036822
★★★★★
Igor Levit received a deluge of praise for his recording of the last three Beethoven sonatas, and justifiably so. at recording was, in every respect, epoch-making and immediately put Levit on the list of top-league pianists. His technical control is simply awe-inspiring and he adds a personal touch without compromising what is set out by the composer. Levit stamps his own impression throughout, from the very first bars of the First Partita (always a litmus test for any Bach player). He never rushes; the tempos are firm but never rigid. e balance of the tone is beautiful without being Romantic, and the dynamic range is kept finely within the limits of the Baroque. Often, such as in the less inspiring ird Partita, he has a clear rhythmic sense of the forward drive which holds together the dance in a subtle way. e darker Sixth Partita, with its demanding opening Toccata, needs the pianist to keep a clear view of the line through all the movements, and Levit does exactly that, with an overview one gets so rarely. Levit’s cornucopia of Bach is in many ways even more convincing than his Beethoven sonatas, simply because the composer’s parameters are narrower. Levit is a modern Bach player whose intelligence allows him to play in a clear Baroque style, while always maintaining a singing tone from the grand piano. DA N N Y D R I V E R
JAVI E R PE R I AN E S
Schumann: Novelletten, Nachtstücke, Romanze in F sharp op 28 no 2 Hyperion CDA67983
fine release ★★Average ★Fair
JE AN-E FFLA M BAVOUZE T
Chopin: Préludes op 28; Schubert: Klavierstücke D946; Prokofiev: Sonata No 7
Haydn Piano Concertos: Hob.XVIII:3, 4, & 11 Manchester Camerata/Gabór
Mirare MIR 252
Takács-Nagy Chandos CHAN 10808
★★★★
★★★★★
Yulianna Avdeeva is the only woman after Martha Argerich to have won the Chopin Competition, but where Argerich is the firebrand, Avdeeva, who is no slouch, is more restrained. On this disc, her Schubert Klavierstücke are thoughtful and finely played, and her Prokofiev Sonata No 7 is never vulgar, even in the thunderous finale. Most of the Chopin préludes border on cautious (e.g. Nos 22 and 23), however they are played with elegance and tonal beauty. Avdeeva had the idea of combining these composers on one programme – the contrast between the thoughtful Schubert, volatile Prokofiev and multifaceted Chopin should be persuasive, even if I found it more confusing than convincing.
I have been more than delighted with the Haydn sonata series that JeanEfflam Bavouzet has been recording for Chandos, and this new disc of the three piano concertos is a wonderful interlude to the project. Haydn’s concertos are a far cry from Mozart’s concertos – they are more fun, more robust and more boisterous. With his own cadenzas, Bavouzet gives us a truly playful Haydn, a composer who did not need to imitate Mozart in any case. From the sonorous sounds of the slow movement to his control of the flow of the outer movements, Bavouzet brings light, delicate joy and ‘Spielfreude’ to the concertos. Accolades to conductor Takács-Nagy, who makes the Manchester Camerata sound on top form.
PIANO MUSIC RARITIE S
Mendelssohn: Songs without Words (selection), Rondo capriccioso,Variations sérieuses, etc Harmonia Mundi HMC 902195
SI MON TRCESKI P ˇ
Tchaikovsky: Piano Concertos Nos 1 &2 Royal Liverpool PO/ Vasily Petrenko Onyx 4135
At Schloss vor Husum 2013.Works by Grieg, Korngold, Ornstein, Sibelius, Sinding & more Various pianists Danacord DACOCD 739
★★★★★
★★★★
★★★★★
With their constant fortes and fortissimos, Schumann’sNovelletten are not easy to play. e performer must be able to correctly judge the tempo, the phrasing and the overall sound, which Danny Driver does to perfection on this new disc. From the first massive chords, he plays with a beautiful tone, with each harmony clearly pedalled
It’s nice to come down from the lofty heights of the complete Mendelssohn works for piano and orchestra by Oleg Marshev that I reviewed in last issue to the drawing-room Mendelssohn on this new disc. Perianes has selected some of the Songs without Words and a few other works such as the Variations sérieuses,
e annual CD from the North Simon Trpčeski and Vasily Petrenko German festival of Rarities of Piano have recorded some hard-hitting Music is a collector’s item. Each of theRachmaninov concertos, and they 27-plus discs in the series features employ the same iron fist approach in leading pianists and always includes this new Tchaikovsky release. e music recorded for the first time. is First Concerto can take some heavy latest release begins with music from beating and fast tempos (think of how Norway played by Håvard Gimse and Argerich races through it), however, ends with enchanting early Korngold the Second is a more intricate work
and a rock-steady tempo throughout. e evening reflections ofNachtstücke are like a balmy afterthought at the end of a boisterous day. e final piece, the Romanze from opus 28, is one of the most tender of Schumann’s works and is a fitting end to a day that started out with so much festive bravura. An Olympian achievement from Driver.
all which he sparkle. plays with andofcrystalline In fine fact,tone the whol e recital is stri pped of superficiality and performed with a magical atmosphere. I would have preferred to hear all the Songs without Words and not only this limited selection, but maybe Perianes will get a chance to record the rest of them. I will surely be the first to listen!
played Pizarro. TwoOrnstein complete and could with Fast sometempos reflection pauses for do breath. canand be sonatasby byArtur Sibelius and Leo challenge the notion that this series exhilarating and can create a stir in a only presents short works. e live concert, but repeated listening can Friedman Passacaglia and the Sibelius be tiring. Disappointingly, the slow Belshazzar’s Feast, played with masterly movement of No 2 is performed in control by Soa Gülbadamova and the truncated Siloti version, and with Henri Sigfridsson, are also substantial. such fine playing from the orchestra, All lovers of piano music byways Trpčeski should have presented it as should invest in this adventurous series. Tchaikovsky intended.
86• Pianist 81
★★★
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REVIEW
SHEET MUSIC
Christmas classics, Autumnal jazz, Smetana and Dvoˇ rák duets, Beethoven’s Third Concerto, American greats and more feature in Michael McMillan’s round-up this issue CLASSICAL PIANO METHOD JAZZ IN THE AUTUMN
CHRISTMAS COLLECTION
ONE OF A KIND SOLOS: DUETS BOOKS 1-4
Nikki Iles Oxford University Press ISBN: 978-0-19339465-0
Wynn-Anne Rossi Alfred ISBN: 978-1-47061053-1 (Bk 1); -1054-8 (Bk 2); -1055-5 (Bk 3); -1056-2 (Bk 4)
Te Christmas Collectionis a welcome Tis volume contains nine jazzy pieces addition to Hans-Günter Heumann’s for Grades 5 to 8 (one of the pieces recent piano tutorial for older – September in the Rain – is on the beginners. Its range of difficulty new ABRSM Grade 8 syllabus). It is (Grades 0-2) provides supplementary Nikki Iles’s fourth book, which brings material for students learning from to completion her season-themed either of the two Method Books in the books, including Jazz on a Winter’s series. Te 35 pieces include well- Night, Jazz on a Summer’s Day , and known carols, traditional songs, pieces Jazz in Springtime. Te composer heard around Christmas time (e.g. admits she had to look beyond the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, obvious choices due to the difficulties Hallelujah Chorus), and several winter- of working with copyrighted material, themed pieces such as chaikovsky’s but everyone will surely be familiar ‘December’ (from Te Seasons), and with Danny Boy and Somewhere Over Schumann’s ‘Winter ime’ (from the Rainbow, both beautifully and Album for the Young). Te arrangements pianistically arranged here in Iles’s are straightforward, have no harmonic characteristically imaginative style. surprises or distortions, and mostly lie Te CD has performances of all the well under the hand. Te lyrics for all pieces and is particularly helpful the songs have been helpfully printed, for Iles’s three srcinals. As with her so that enthusiastic friends and family other volumes, Iles encourages the can sing along over your shoulder if performer to freely extemporise in they want to! order to make these pieces their own.
Wynn-Anne Rossi is a contemporary American composer with over 70 titles to her name. Te four volumes here each contain around ten typically creative pieces, with techniques such as pedalling, crossed hands and glissando appearing from the very first book. With titles such as ‘Banana Popsicle’, ‘Dragon Dreams’ and ‘Labradoodle’, and with only a couple of chords larger than a sixth, the first two books (at about Grade 0 to 2) are clearly aimed at pre-teens. Te difficulty level reaches around Grade 4 by the last volume of the four, and no piece in the series is longer than three pages. Although I wasn’t overwhelmed by the musical content, teachers will be satisfied with the technical nutrients provided by the music here, and students will enjoy the wide variety of musical styles on offer.
BRAZILIAN PIANO COLLECTION
STYLE COLLECTION: JAZZBOOSEY & HAWKES: & AFRO-CARIBBEAN AMERICAN GREATS
Hans-Günter Heumann Schott ISBN: 978-1-84761331-8
Edited by John Crawford de Cominges and Tim Richards Schott ISMN: 979-0-22013472-2
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No 3 in C minor Bärenreiter ISMN: 979-0-00652301-6
Mike Cornick Schott ISBN: 978-3-70247219-1 (Jazz); -72573 (Afro-Caribbean)
im Richards and John Crawford de Cominges recently co-wrote a large (250+ pages), well-received Latin tutorial called Exploring Latin Piano. Tis new Brazilian collection contains six of their srcinal compositions from that volume, three additional new pieces from the pair, and 10 further works by three other composers – Francisca Gonzaga, Ernesto Nazareth and Marcelo Andrade. A couple of the easiest pieces are about Grade 4,
Bärenreiter’s edition of Beethoven’s Tird Piano Concerto exudes quality and has been prepared by Jonathan Del Mar, whose scholarly editions of Beethoven’s nine symphonies are championed by leading conductors. Te edition is comprised of two books. One book presents the music in familiar piano concerto format, with a piano reduction of the orchestral score underneath the solo part. In this edition, however, the soloist’s part is
Readers familiar with Cornick’s output will know that all his material is wellwritten for developing pianists, and these new books are no exception. For teachers who are asked by their pupils for Afro-Caribbean music or for Grade 3 to 5 pianists interested in popular music from this region, Cornick’s Afro-Caribbean volume has his arrangements of 13 pieces, such as Sloop John B (Bahamas), Cordelia Brown (Antigua), andLinstead Market
but the6);majority arebeyond slightlyGrade harder (Grade none goes 8. I enjoyed two of the Nazareth pieces, Apanhei-te, Cavaquinho (which includes slight modifications) and Odeon. I found the remainder of the pieces less interesting, though perfectly serviceable. Te book comes with a CD with performances of the pieces by the editors.
printed in smaller the accompaniment. Tewriting reasonthan for this oddity is explained by the presence of the other book, which serves as the pianist’s working copy: it contains the solo part, with all orchestral interludes outlined in small print. No fingering suggestions are given, and Beethoven’s own cadenza to the first movement is included at the end of the volume.
(Jamaica). expect to find modern jazzDon’t standards in the Jazz volume, because Cornick has chosen to arrange mostly traditional numbers (e.g. When the Saints Go Marching In, Li’l Liza Jane), presumably to avoid issues of copyright. Each book comes with a CD that includes both a demo track as well as a backing track for all the pieces.
88 81 Pianist #13 88•• Pianist
Smetana: Vltava Dvoˇrák: Slavonic Dances op 46 Bärenreiter ISMN: 979-0-26010590-4 (Smetana); -0576-8 (Dvoˇrák)
Vltava is the most popular of Smetana’s six symphonic poems known collectively asMá vlast (‘My Country’). Tis piano duet version by the composer, printed here with the parts facing each other, was not intended for public performance, but rather as a means for the public to familiarise themselves with the work. Smetana’s writing reflects his mastery of the instrument, and only pianists above Grade 8 will be able to successfully negotiate its 36 pages. Around the time Smetana was composingVltava, Dvořák wrote his first set of eight Slavonic Dances opus 46, now often heard in orchestral form, but srcinally for piano duet. Both parts are printed on the same pages in this desirable edition, which boasts a fresh typesetting of the edition published in 1955 as part of theComplete Edition of the Works of Antonín Dvořák.
Boosey & Hawkes ISBN: 978-0-8562-657-4
Tis is the sixth volume in Boosey & Hawkes’ attractive Solo Piano Collection series, which draws together Grade 4-7 material from a variety of sources. Tese include solo piano arrangements of music for other instruments, simplified versions of difficult piano music, and solo piano music in its srcinal form. wenty-six of the 33 pieces here are arrangements by composers such as Bernstein, Sondheim, Ellington, Gershwin and Joplin, whichDavies. have been arrangedmost by ofHywel Te remaining seven pieces are solos in their srcinal form by Copland, Bernstein, MacDowell, and others, plus Rachmaninov’s setting ofTe Star Spangled Banner. Te repertoire is wide-ranging, and provides an excellent introduction to American music to explore at the piano.
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11• Pianist 81
