Liszt Consolation no. 3

[wzkit]

My version of it. Recorded on an Ibach 7-footer, on an off day

[frederik]

I have great admiration for people who can make the piano sing. Wonderful!

[kelly_kelly]

Wow.. I'm listening to it now, and I love it. So peaceful and dreamy. The melody floats well over the accompaniment. Your recording makes me want to play this piece.

[wzkit]

Thanks everyone. This is indeed one of the best pieces for bringing out a simple "cantabile" line over a floating pianissimo accompaniment. To get the blurred left hand accompaniment, I had to use lots of una-corda pedal.

Are there any opinions on the general approach/phrasing/tone? Too romantic, too many liberties, too bright?

Here is a another recording of the same piece on the same piano, recorded using different mikes, on a different day. The interepretation is based around the same ideas, but its probably bolder in approach. Do tell me which version you prefer.

[kelly_kelly]

Well, I honestly like both, both, but if I had to choose, I would choose the second recording that you posted, because the dynamics were more varied (in the first recording I thought that you were never actually loud, which takes away some of the expression).

[wzkit]

Thanks Kelly. It was deliberate of me not to get too loud in the first recording, even in the climax. The idea was for a smaller scaled rendition, keeping things in proportion. I guess the overall impression is one of dreaminess and tranquility, which could be appropriate for a piece like this.

This is as opposed to the second recording, where the brighter sound and larger dynamic range gives the impression of more underlying emotional tension in the music. I suppose this makes it more interesting overall, though to some, this approach might be too exaggerated and bombastic

[rafant]

Really poetic. Thanks a lot.

[Aniam]

I think you sometimes hesistate before the notes too much, especially at the end of phrases, making them too drawn out. Occasionally a little hesitation is good, but I thought you went too far sometimes. Really like the dreamy quality though; the recordings had a lot of atmosphere.

[wzkit]

I think you sometimes hesistate before the notes too much, especially at the end of phrases, making them too drawn out. Occasionally a little hesitation is good, but I thought you went too far sometimes. Really like the dreamy quality though; the recordings had a lot of atmosphere.

Point taken. I guess this is where taste differs. Especially when it comes to matters such as rubato. My own preferences can be for rather extensive rubato, hesitation and agogic effects, but this may not be everyone's cup of tea - hence I wondered in another thread if the interpretations are over-romanticized. Thanks for the comments though.

[instromp]

I enjoyed the way you played it with alot emotion  and expression dispite what others may say. Bravo to you.

[wzkit]

I enjoyed the way you played it with alot emotion  and expression dispite what others may say. Bravo to you.

Thanks!

[sissco]

This goes on my "want to play" list  Thx for sharing...its wonderfull 

Edit: it was allready on my list 

[erak]

Always love to hear an Ibach, one of the best pianos to sing on. Very enjoyable rec, congrats!


I know it's a late reply, but you do tend to hold back a bit too much. You play it VERY beautifully, but sometimes you loose the tention by waiting just a tad too long, you have to want to hear the next note, you make it sound as if it's not coming anymore, and then you play it. Other than that, it's just a great rec to listen to and relax, especially in a stressy moment like I'm having now .

[wzkit]

Always love to hear an Ibach, one of the best pianos to sing on. Very enjoyable rec, congrats!


I know it's a late reply, but you do tend to hold back a bit too much. You play it VERY beautifully, but sometimes you loose the tention by waiting just a tad too long, you have to want to hear the next note, you make it sound as if it's not coming anymore, and then you play it. Other than that, it's just a great rec to listen to and relax, especially in a stressy moment like I'm having now .

Good to know you enjoyed it on the whole. Will certainly take into account the issue about holding it too much. It sounds fine to me, but as you know, matters of rubato are often highly subjective. Maybe I just have a weird sense of tempo and phrasing?

[donjuan]

I hear a bit of Horowitz's recording in yours.     However, it is very difficult to get away with everything he does because he has a magical way of making everyone stop breathing in places where it would sound boring if it were anyone else playing. 

I think it sounds very nice right now.. I like the marked bass notes (I like to do that too), but the accompanying left hand can be phrased a little more I think..  Just imagine that if this were a quartet playing it, the guy playing the accompanyment -that is all he would do, play the accompanyment-, show that he isnt a monotone just because hes in the background.  Sure, he is in the background, but he has his own life too.  Do you know what I'm saying?

However, this is very very subjective of me to even think about mentioning... I think you played it very well indeed and your interpretation stands up by itself and you shouldn't have to listen to me or anyone else.  I look forward ot hearing more of your recordings!

[wzkit]

I hear a bit of Horowitz's recording in yours.     However, it is very difficult to get away with everything he does because he has a magical way of making everyone stop breathing in places where it would sound boring if it were anyone else playing. 

I think it sounds very nice right now.. I like the marked bass notes (I like to do that too), but the accompanying left hand can be phrased a little more I think..  Just imagine that if this were a quartet playing it, the guy playing the accompanyment -that is all he would do, play the accompanyment-, show that he isnt a monotone just because hes in the background.  Sure, he is in the background, but he has his own life too.  Do you know what I'm saying?

However, this is very very subjective of me to even think about mentioning... I think you played it very well indeed and your interpretation stands up by itself and you shouldn't have to listen to me or anyone else.  I look forward ot hearing more of your recordings!

You're quite right that Horowitz's way of phrasing the melodic line certainly influenced my approach, though of course I can't do it as well as he does. You're not the only one to have commented on the "imitation" of Horowitz's phrasing by the way - Gary has told me that too. The marked bass notes are also an unconscious influence from Horowitz, though sometimes, I think it gets overdone. In this case, the accented low C was not really deliberate, but still came out quite okay nonehtheles. As for your point about phrasing a little more in the left hand, that's a valid point and something I can work on. I think sometimes I get too concerned with keeping the left hand pianissimo, that the phrasing is sometimes ignored!

If you want to hear my other recordings, then let me be a little thick skinned and do a little bit of self advertising to elicit comments for my other recordings I've put up here . These include Rachmaninoff's Preludes, and Romance from the Suite no.2 for 2 pianos, Albeniz's Evocacion, the Ravel Pavane, Tchaikovksy's October, Bortkiewicz's Consolation in D flat, and Barber's 2 piano works. I think you should be able to find them quite easily if you were to look at past threads

[troglodyte]

Really beautiful. Excellent control of voicing and dynamics and with a deep emotional content.

I'd probably choose the first recording but the difference is not all that great.

About the critique to the "hesitations" I have to agree they sometimes break the line and that they happen so often they seem like a mannerism and takes away from the music. I think your interpretation is beautiful despite them, not because of them. One thing you could try is to sing the melody out loud as you play and check where you want to breathe. For example, breathing (=hesitating) right before the downbeat in a melodic line gives that downbeat an extreme emphasis, often working against your serene touch.

[wzkit]

Really beautiful. Excellent control of voicing and dynamics and with a deep emotional content.

I'd probably choose the first recording but the difference is not all that great.

About the critique to the "hesitations" I have to agree they sometimes break the line and that they happen so often they seem like a mannerism and takes away from the music. I think your interpretation is beautiful despite them, not because of them. One thing you could try is to sing the melody out loud as you play and check where you want to breathe. For example, breathing (=hesitating) right before the downbeat in a melodic line gives that downbeat an extreme emphasis, often working against your serene touch.

Thank you for the useful comments. I get the point about the hesitations after listening to the recording again. The problem is that it is used so often that it begins to sound like a mannerism and loses its intended effect. Probably the solution would be to use it ocassionally, only at climatic moments, but not every time. Certainly something worth experimenting with!