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The Piano Concerto is unusual as for a concerto it would be expected that the piano soloist was accompanied by an orchestra whereas in this piece the soloist is quite alone. The concerto forms part of a much larger work, the huge set of studies titled “Douze Etudes dans les tons mineurs.” The concerto forms the eighth, ninth and tenth of these studies and effectively becomes the first, second and third movements of the concerto. It wasn’t until Alkan reached twelve that the Parisians were able to hear this extraordinary musician perform. His initial foray onto the concert platform was as a violinist rather than a pianist at the tender age of seven. Born in Paris in 1813 Alkan demonstrated formidable musical gifts from an early age. 39Īlkan composed almost exclusively for the Piano and has rather unfairly gained a reputation for being a composer whose output is mostly unplayable. 1856/7: Charles-Valentin Alkan: Concerto for Solo Piano Op. It should be remembered that Liszt himself would have performed this piece on one of his many tours, reminding us what a superb pianist he was.Ĥ. The key of G# minor would deter many pianists but actually, the dominance of black notes makes many of the passages slightly easier to execute at the speed indicated. The texture of the music is effortlessly airy and light but the technical demands substantial. “Grande Etude d’execition transcendante d’apres le Caprice de Paganini,” was no less modest a title but did result in a more charming and approachable piece of concert music.įinally, in 1851 the version of the work we are more familiar with today was completed. In 1838 Liszt reworked the music, this time using the theme from the Rondo of Paganini’s 2 nd Violin Concerto. The initial composition titled “Grande Fantasie de Bravoura sur la Clochette de Paganini.” The grand title, unfortunately, did not give rise to a piece that gained much popularity, often being described as unmusical and even unplayable by some. Liszt had heard the great Paganini perform many years before this piece reached the form we know it in today. It means the little bell and this quality features throughout the piece. This relatively short piece was composed by Liszt to celebrate and in many ways mimic the playing of the virtuoso violinist Paganini. 1851: Franz Liszt’s “La Campanella” from the Grandes Etudes de Paganini Chopin employs so many of the hallmarks of his compositional and pianistic style to this short composition is a miniature masterpiece and one that offers a challenge to even the best pianists today.ģ. That said it is a wonderfully joyful piece even though it’s key is minor. As such he devotes the entire study to demonstrating how astonishing he must have been to be able to perform this piece. Playing in thirds is quite a difficult technique to master and Chopin was well aware of this.

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It has also earned a nickname for the study in thirds as the piece is full of right hand fast moving semi-quavers, at the interval of a third. This particular study is the sixth of twelve in the set. This Etude (or study), was part of a set of studies Chopin composed between 18. With a tempo marking of Allegro and a metronome marking of minimum equals 69 beats per minute, as a pianist you already find yourself on the back foot. It is, however, a testament to Schumann’s own virtuosity and perhaps the early foretaste of the complexities of his later symphonic works.Ģ. It is unrelenting and makes strenuous demands on any piano player including extremely difficult stretches that open the work.

This is precisely what we hear in this seven-minute Schumann work. One of the characteristics of the toccata is fast flowing notes that thread through an entire piece. Toccata’s as a musical form were more common in the Baroque and lost popularity during the following musical periods. On a first hearing and by comparison with some of the pieces that follow in this article, you could be forgiven for imagining that this was a relatively simple piece to perform. Schumann believed that this was the most difficult piece he’d ever heard or composed. Most Difficult Piano Pieces (Hardest Piano Pieces)ġ.

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