As many of you know, the Beethoven-Liszt Symphonies stand as arguably the greatest work of transcription ever completed.Horowitz said that they were "the greatest piano pieces ever written." Now, if you were to play one, and only one- which one would it be?Things to consider:1. Length - How long will it take to perform/learn?2. Difficulty - How much work & for how long would you need to work?3. Suitability- How effectively is the music conveyed through the keyboard?I look forward to hearing your responses.
arguably the greatest work of transcription ever completed.
I would suggest that that title belongs to Karl Klindworth's transcription of Wagner's 'Ring'.
I would contest that the quality of Klindworth's transcriptions does not approach that of Liszt's transcriptions.
It's just my opinion that the Liszt-Beethoven Symphonies are very unpianistic...easily the most unpianistic thing he realized.
I know that the Beethoven-Liszt symphonies are difficult, but I think it's going too far to call them 'unpianistic'. In fact, I think his solutions are incredibly idiomatic for the piano. Of course, due to the sheer range of an orchestra, some of the leaps and stretches are very wide - but either a large hand or proper use of the pedal can remedy this small problem.
They are unpianistic in the same way that Schumann's music is unpianistic. They are technically clumsy, dense and chord patterns do not lie easily beneath the hands.Either way No. 6 is my favorite.
Pastoral.