Part 8 (2/2)
Schu”
”Excelsior”
”Why?”
”Whi”
Chopin, Nocturne in B major, opus 32, No 1
Ballad in A-flat, opus 47
PROGRAM III
Bach, Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp, Clavier, No 3
Beethoven, Sonata in A-flat, opus 26
Schumann, Fantasy Pieces, Nos 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8
Chopin, Nocturne in B major, opus 32, No 1
Ballad in A-flat, opus 47
PROGRAM IV (Regardless of difficulty)
Bach, Chroue
Beethoven, Sonata, opus III C minor
Schumann, etudes Symphoniques, opus 13
Chopin, Nocturne in D-flat major, opus 27, No 2
Polonaise in A-flat, opus 53
To discuss these selections in detail would take us too far, for which reason only those observations will be hout, the intention is to alternate the thematic work of Bach and Schu of Beethoven and Chopin
While Beethoven was also at tienerally well balanced as to its structure, and soof Schu a few distinctly lyric pieces) or of Bach, that it seerareeable succession of keys The first three prograht bethere are few seminaries or private circles where these nuh to afford pleasure and instruction
Of the various Bach nu distinctions enerally contrasted in respect of the qualities of lyric and the respectively The prelude in Cwithout clearly expressed est a ue, on the other hand, opens with a very sprightly idea, which is carried out delightfully, quite in the ain, is very light and graceful, yet having a character somewhat between a fancy piece of tone-poetry and an exercise, being capable of receiving either construction, according to the ability and skill of the player The fugue, on the contrary, is rather firm, resolute, and marked, yet with distinct touches of sentiht for in the playing, but without resorting to rubato It is not enough to present these selections, they must be made to display the best effect of which they are capable It is not a question of composers merely, but e should love and reverence them The prelude in C-sharp is one of the loveliest in the entire ”Clavier” It is lyric in its principalwork between the two hands upon the dominant, just before the return of the principal theue also is very melodious, yet at the saood player who is able to produce this fugue successfully in anything short of about a rarade of difficulty, especially in the er work the last Bach piece is not so ue in C-sharp ue” is a very curious illustration of Bach's genius No one knows the circumstances under which it ritten nor the ti else in his works which is at all like it, taken as a whole, although each one of its peculiarities may perhaps be found elsewhere in his works It opens with a bravura run in scale work,--the two hands co-operating interchangeably,--which must have the character of a bold flourish, such as a virtuosohis piece This is folloith a delicate harested; a very delicate and e it is Then the bravura run returns, and then the hario motive as before, but always carried out in different keys and chords Upon these two elements the first part of the fantasia is constructed
In the forty-ninth ins another chapter, in which we have a series of recitative-like phrases, the est enharmonic modulations of extreme modern type The recitatives are very expressive, and their proper delivery necessitates a high degree ofAfter the recitatives, at s the fantasia to an end The coda is perhaps the otten to inning in measure 27 These Bach wroteti up the time would be nearest his intention Mendelssohn, in one of his letters, says he wishes that he knehat Bach ht that the carrying out of the arpeggios in Hans von Bulow's edition of this piece is very near the solution suggested by Mendelssohn At any rate, I advise using the Bulow edition, particularly as the figures are written out in full and the fingering is carefully marked--a very iue
The fugue also is interesting, and is elaborated to two quite i in measure 60 and the other in measure 140, where the bass has the principal theue as quite up to Bach's standard, inases in different keys withoutwhich he rarely does, his fertility of fancy being such that he always or nearly always avoids exactly repeating hi back the principal theme The composition as a whole is by far the most modern of Bach, and it is a veritable tone-poem In order to realize this it will be necessary to hear it several tireat and the difficulty of playing so considerable that only very good players will have enough sentiment and surplus of technic to interpret it with sufficiently musical quality
But when so played it is one of the surest masterpieces in the entire repertory of the piano-forte And in consequence of its elevated and poetic sentiram-like character, it affords one of the best possible studies in Bach's style at its best
The sonatas by Beethoven narams are of quite dissi work indeed, and, if we have et that after all it is not very often played in any one place Moreover, new players are all the tiinal work is new The introduction carries out the emotional spirit of the Bach fantasia, as also does the work itself The headlong allegro, the slow, sustained, and beautiful adagio, and the easy-going finale all have their own beauties, and continue the story, which, as Beethoven thought it, was one story fro to end The least satisfactory part of this work is the rondo, the teether easy to determine; I prefer it at rather a slow tempo
There is a unity of moveeneral way the eighth note in the introduction, the whole note in the allegro, and the eighth note in the adagio, and the half note in the rondo go at about the same rate--approximately, from sixty to seventy-two by the metronome If any hty-four
A very important technical point of the work is the treatro All hest tones, since the lect of this imparts a brutal and unmusical quality to the tones of chords struck so forcibly Throughout the work strong contrasts continually occur between the i idea These two eleio is one of those slow movements for which Beethoven was noted; the cantilena is lovely and the sentiment deep and tender
In soraht and pleasing, and neither in length nor in dramatic contrast is it to be compared with most of the ”Pathetique” Especially is this the case e confine our attention to the light and pleasing first movement and the finale