Liszt, "Paysage"

[rachfan]

This piece is the third of the Transcendental Etudes.  I believe I once read that Liszt got the inspiration for composing this piece from being on a train and watching the changing landscapes through his window.

[rachfan]

This etude is very lyrical and requires a sustained cantabile and tonal balance.  Comments welcome.

[mephisto]

First congraulations that you have learned this beautifull piece!

IMO, I don't like how you play the left hand in the begining. I don't feel like it is really legato, and this piece should be sempre legato. The phrasing of the left hand is really important IMO.

And I think there could be more rubato - more freedom. The left-hand and the right-hand doesn't have to go together all of the time. Mozart hatet it when Clementi's right and left hand were together all of the time.

Liszt said something in this direction of Chopin's rubato:
  "Look at these trees!" Liszt told one of his pupils, "the wind plays in the leaves, stirs up life among them, the tree remains the same.  That is Chopinesque rubato."

This piece is of course written by Liszt and not by Chopin but I think the concept should be the same.

Other than that I think you got the right caracther for the piece and the dynamics were very good.

[pianistimo]

agreed with mephisto's comments.  thanks for sharing the background info - because it helps the listener imagine it. 

[rachfan]

Hi Mephisto,

Thanks for taking the time to comment.

While Liszt clearly gives the general direction as "always legato and tranquil", I find it interesting that despite the multitude of slur markings thoughout the piece, there are none in the first three measures.  Maybe he thought it would be redundant.  Pedaling in that section has to be very clean because of the descending chromatic thirds, which all must be separately pedalled to avoid blurring within the line.  So the pedal is of limited help in creating legato there, even with half pedal releases.  That leaves mostly the option of finger legato, which is what I tried to use to close the gap.  Basically the thirds are done 1-3, 2-4, and 1-3.  It's quite similar to playing scales in thirds.  The primary focus there as well is voicing the tops of the thirds.  I should point out too that the piano is a Baldwin which has a slightly faster tone decay than does Steinway.  I just listened to Jorge Bolet playing the piece on a C. Bechstein.  Not surprisingly, he achieved a better legato than I do in the opening. 

On rubato: Again, Liszt was capturing the ever changing scenery while riding a train.  I've been on many trains (perhaps you have too), and once they're up to speed, none of them travel with momentary rubatos!  So while I gave a lot of attention to dynamic shadings and nuances, I intentionally did not include rubato in my rendition, as it doesn't really fit the the sense of images passing by at constant tempo.  It could be argued, of course, that use of rubato could more pertain to Liszt's inner thoughts in pondering some of those scenes.  But then again, they might have flitted by like an endless collage.  So this somewhat comes down to the pianist's interpretation.  I do believe that rubato would certainly be more prominent in some of the other etudes, however, such as Ricordanza, Harmonies du soir and Chasse-neige, for example.

I appreciate your input!       

[mephisto]

Wow, you have a very thought-out interpretation! If you do something because you really belive in it and have a good reason, than go for it

[counterpoint]

When we talk about travelling by train in Liszt's times, please don't think of todays trains 

The trains of Liszt's times had surely some inbuilt rubato 

[rachfan]

Hi counterpoint,

Hey, you do have a point there.   Also, looking at that neat picture you posted, it might be that Liszt spent most of the journey just brushing off coal engine soot and embers flying in through those open windows!    

[bach-liszt]

Congrats on your playing and for selecting a piece I have enjoyed playing.  I think it is a perfect "quiet piece" to be included in a program.   I agree with the comments about the left hand, I wish it sounded more legato, I have in mind the Bolet recording but, as you noted, different piano and great ambiance in his professional recording.   I use rubato in Liszt, but this piece has a more tranquil effect using a mostly steady beat throughout (it has been a long time since I heard the Bolet recording but I believe he was pretty steady). 

God bless you in you musical pursuits.

[rachfan]

Hi bach-liszt,

Thanks for your kind comments!  Yes Bolet was quite steady in his tempo in Paysage.  I miss him.  He was a great pianist, but underappreciated until relatively late in his career.  He was a bit cautious in his recordings--not much risk taking--probably due to the sad emphasis these days on absolute accuracy.  Even at that, his playing was still wonderful.

[teresa_b]

Hi Rachfan,

I listened and enjoyed your Liszt very much!  I like your idea of the steadiness being just what it might feel like as you sit on that train gazing out the window. 

I like reading your posts--you have a wonderful knowledge of the music and its history-- and I respect what you have to say about interpretation.  If you have 5 minutes, scroll down to my post of Beethoven's 4 second mvt (which got buried beneath the gazillion Schumann posts) and let me know what you think. 

All the best,
Teresa

[rachfan]

Hi Teresa,

Thanks for your nice compliments 

Yes, I just listened to your Beethoven 4th ensemble performance and posted there.  I loved it--great job!