Rach first sonata 2nd Mvt.

[pianowolfi]

Here's the second Mvt. of Rach's op.28. Also not yet perfect, I still need to work on certain things like the trill section in the last part

[rachfan]

Hi Pianowolfi,

When I looked at today's offerings, I went immediately to your recording of Rach's 1st Sonata, 2nd movement.  As you know, the Second Sonata has all but eclipsed the Sonata No. 1 to the point where it is seldom heard.  By choosing a lesser known work, you do a wonderful service for both the composer and the listener.  Thanks for presenting this!

Some suggestions:  (I've played through this in the past, but never studied the piece.)

At the very beginning, have both the soft and damper pedals already depressed before you even play the first note.  This will make the pp opening more atmospheric and give the sense of the music "coming out of nowhere".  Try it and see.   

You have a good grasp of the notes, so that is a major victory!  I sense that you are currently focusing on a chain of short phrases, which is natural since you are still learning the piece.  You'll want to start shaping the long line of the melody though.  Once you accomplish that, you'll also attain better continuity and fluidity in your playing.
Right now, you're concentrating on rhythm, to the extent that it is sometimes very stark and square.  Don't be afraid of introducing more rubato in your playing. 

Next, I suggest you go through the score AWAY from the piano, highlighting the dynamic changes, accents and other performance instructions.  Right now, you could play more contrasts and shadings than you are currently providing.

The first movement of this piece is very restless in nature, while this middle movement provides a respite from that.  Instead, it is lyrical, slow (lento), and mostly calm.  Where it is in 3/4, and where much of the music can be lush and ultra-romantic, it sometimes strikes me as a very sensuous, romantic dance.

In this piece, it will be paramount for you to always distinguish foreground from background.  The foreground must be a cantabile or bel canto melodic line, while the background, of course, is most of the accompaniment, some of which occurs within the RH hand as well as the LH.  This calls for balancing of the hands to the extreme.  So, for example, at the "a tempo" in measure 9 and into 10, while the RH is mf, you need to ensure that the LH remains at pp as marked; or when you get to the f at 13, the LH cannot be any more than mf there, if not mp.  Because the LH tends to be so busy with figuration and fillagree, if you must err, always lean toward a soft LH unless it's clearly marked otherwise.  By doing so, you'll find it amazingly easy to allow the RH to soar high aloft.

At 14, be sure to play the diminuendo fully--otherwise, if your playing is already too loud at the crescendo in 16, you'll have less dynamic range available  to try to build that crescendo convincingly.

BUT, be on the lookout for scalar passages in the LH which are significant, and which the listener should hear--you play the one at 31 (dim.) very nicely.  At 34, the RH has its own scalar line, so the LH falls way in the background again. 
 
At 43 a decision must be made.   There's a quarter value RH chord which disappears with the rests, leaving the LH to solo.  Sometimes when this happens, a composer intends to create an interesting passage causing a shift of focus to the other hand.  In this case though, it's pure passagework.  So I'd play the LH at pp bringing it up to p in the crescendo at the end of the measure.  Then on the next page, drop the LH down to pp.

Beginning at 44, because the RH melody will be dolce, and the LH is rather busy, to the extent possible I would strive for a quiet "lake effect" (a lake surface with barely a ripple on it) in the LH in order to give the RH free reign in executing the dolce melody.  Right now, I feel the LH is too turbulent and interruptive.  By 55 it's way too loud.  Yes, there was a cresc. in 54, but only to mf!  That's an awkward spot because of the appogiatura preceding the quintuplets there.  Think of playing the appogiatura seamlessly, as if the C in the first quintuplet were part of the appogiatura itself, rather than thinking of the two as two independent figures.  In other words, meld one into the other.  That might enable you to produce a quieter, calmer effect there. 

Starting at 54, I feel the LH is forcing itself into the foreground there and needs to be subdued to give predominance to the RH melody.

At the piu mosso thing get more hectic.  Be sure to bring out Rachmaninoff's directions on voice leading there so it's clear to the listener.  There appears to be some accompaniment within the RH.  You'll probably need to voice the top voices of the chords, while deemphasizing  in 71 the latter two notes of the two RH triplets in beats two and three.   

Nice job on the veloce passage--great dexterity.  You might want to tarry longer on the fermatas though.  The audience will wait for you.

On the second to last page, poco a poco cresc., at 117 (I think), 118, and 120, you bring out the dissonant 2nds in the LH, which I believe is certainly appropriate.  Rach marks the first one tenuto, and I see no problem in bringing them all out that way.  It adds a piquant quality to the harmony there which is--so Rachmaninoff.  Nice!

125: Here Rach begins a "chain of trills" in the Chopinesque manner.  They need evenness of execution, of course.  But you might want to experiment with the speed of the trills.  Recall that the tempo is lento, and the character of this piece is lyrical, and even dreamy at times.  For that reason, I'm not sure that Rach intended rapid, brilliant and crisp Mozartian trills in this section.  Similar to his piece "Daisies", more leisurely trills might be effectively employeed here, not so much for the traditional function of extending the duration of sound, but rather to create a thicker background connective texture. 

Finally, on the little appogiatura in the last measure of the coda, think about pedaling there.  The good news is that you're at dynamic pp, which gives you some leeway in pedaling; but now the bad news: you're also in the tenor register, which is not nearly as forgiving as the treble.  Also the appogiatura is chromatic, so you've got consecutive passing tones to contend with.  Execution to some extent will also depend on the quirks of the particular piano.  Perhaps you could try one pedal catching the first two notes of the appogiatura, then lift it, leaving the third notes without pedal, then pedal the final chord.  If you still sense a lack of clarity, then try playing the appogiature without pedal, and only pedaling the chord.  Right now as it stands, you've got a noticeable smudge between the second and third notes of the figure.  So one way or another, you'll need to clean that up.  Beauty is clarity.

The best recording I've heard of this is the one by John Ogden.  But if I were you, I would not yet listen to any recordings.  Keep ironing out wrinkles, develop your approach independently, and put your own interpretative stamp on the piece.  Only then listen to someone else's performance--which at that point you might like or not like compared to your own.  You might find a few good ideas that you had not considered.  Or, you might hear a wrong note--but look carefully at the score and another edition before correcting it.  Once in awhile it's the professional artist playing the wrong note!   

Keep up the good work!

[pianowolfi]

rachfan, thank you very much, that is really really helpful!! When i play this sonata, especially in the cumulations, I get in an excessive excitement, what you may not hear in the recording. In this piece more than in any other, I feel everything very intensively. The background idea of the second movement is the character of Gretchen from Goethes Faust. and during the piu mosso part i always feel that mood of "Meine Ruh' ist hin, mein Herz ist schwer" ("my calmness is gone, my heart feels down" sorry, I'm sure that translation is not very good. Edit: found a translation:
"My peace is gone,
-My heart is sore-
I'll find it, ah, never,
No, nevermore!") That person has fallen in love and is going to drive crazy about it. She looses all the ground under her feet. And then in the last mvt. the tragedy comes in and there is no happy ending at all. I'm not yet ready to post last mvt. but perhaps in two weeks or so.

Again thank you for carefully listening and detailed advice!

Pianowolfi

[rachfan]

Hi Pianowolfi,

Yes, I do understand about "excessive excitement" in the playing.  I believe we all have experienced that at one time or another.  It usually happens in a piece that we intensely love to play.  The danger with that, of course, is that it can lead to mono-playing, certain exaggerations, and even idiosynchosies.  So you'll want to consciously achieve mental relaxation--but alertness too--to bring out all the wonderful contrasts in the music that really heighten interest.  So be attuned to differentiation as you analyze details in the score.  By toning down your own excitement in general, you'll hold yourself in reserve so that when extra energy is truly required for a surge, it will become obvious in your playing.  Often the key will be to make less important aspects more subdued.  Doing this will raise your playing to another level entirely.    Good luck with this!