Liszt Consolations

[redbaron]

I'm looking for some information on the Liszt Consolations in general and No 4 in particular. A trawl through the internet has proved relatively fruitless and the nice shiny Schirmer edition I've just purchased doesn't contain any information on them either. When I say information I mean date of composition, any related stories, meanings behind the music inspiration, that  kind of thing.

Thanks

[chopinfan_22]

If you go onto the pianostreet sheetmusic area and search for them, you can find the years that they were written. The only thing I know about the Consolations is that they were written to "console". At least, that's my guess.

[gerry]

Try searching Amazon for a definitive biography of Lizst - many times these tomes contain details about when, where, why, and for whom pieces were written.

[stringoverstrung]

I'm looking for some information on the Liszt Consolations in general and No 4 in particular. A trawl through the internet has proved relatively fruitless and the nice shiny Schirmer edition I've just purchased doesn't contain any information on them either. When I say information I mean date of composition, any related stories, meanings behind the music inspiration, that  kind of thing.

Thanks

They were composed during the period 1849-1850.
their self reflective, self communicatice character reveals a much more thoughtful liszt: this is music tinged with a secret sorrow. It first stirred to life under Liszt's fingers in the Altenburg, (-> Weimar, Germany) where the tragedy of his liaison with Carolyne had begun to penetrate his soul.

source: Alan Walker biopgraphy of liszt part 2: great book you should read it.
PS: you can still visit Liszt museum in Weimar and Bayreuth (where is also buried).

PS: the author also links these consolations to a style that is chopineske this to a (maybe conscious) tribute to Chopin and names compositions from liszt that are in the same class:

Two polonaises (1851)
Berceuse (1854)
Mazurka Brillante (1850)
Two Ballades (1845-48, 1853)

so if you listen to these recordings you might catch the right spirit / mood.

[gerry]

I also see a stylistic resemblence between them (especially #3) to Chopin Nocturnes.

[liszt1022]

My Dover edition, which reprints the "Franz Liszt-Stiftung" edition, says "The star over No. 4 signifies that in this piece Liszt used the melody of a song composed by the Grand Duchess Maria Paulovna."
-Jose Vianna da Motta, 1924