Franz Liszt

[bachapprentice]

I am starting to listen more to Liszt and want to play his music.  I am a beginner to intermediate player.  Were should I start?  Maybe his Consolations. 

Also who is the best performer to play Liszt?  I have been listening to Marc-Andre Hamelin and I listen to him when he plays Alkan.

[bench warmer]

Consolations are a pretty good place to start playing Liszt.
 From the Years of Pilgrimage --Italy (Sonetto 47 del Petrarca, Sonetto 104 del Petrarca) might not be too bad to try.

There was  Cziffra who some say was Liszt-incarnate. Check out his playing on YouTube; you decide for yourself whom you like best though. For unbridled fun, check his Grand Galop Chromatique.  This is "If you got it, Flaunt it" music.

Happy Discovering

[Alde]

Most of Liszt's piano music as you already know is highly virtuosic.  Be patient and work on your technique.  IMO the Macdowell etudes are wonderful in preparing one to play Liszt.

[chopinfan_22]

I agree that the Consolations would be the best. Nauges Gris would be another basic piece from his compositions (but to me, this piece is incredibly easy, and I can play it just by sight reading). To be honest, you can't expect to just learn pieces by Liszt and go through them without learning pieces by other composers first. His pieces, as Aide said, are highly virtuosic. It depends on your level of playing and your repertoire.

The Macdowell Etudes are good, and I'd also recommend the etudes of Chopin, and the sonatas of Beethoven too. What pieces are in your repertoire?

As far as pianists who play Liszt well.... I like Cziffra, as well as Maksim Mrvica, but many don't like him. Hamelin is also good, and I'm a fan of Horowitz too. I avoid Lang Lang like the plague. I hope this helps.

[bachapprentice]

I agree that the Consolations would be the best. Nauges Gris would be another basic piece from his compositions (but to me, this piece is incredibly easy, and I can play it just by sight reading). To be honest, you can't expect to just learn pieces by Liszt and go through them without learning pieces by other composers first. His pieces, as Aide said, are highly virtuosic. It depends on your level of playing and your repertoire.

The Macdowell Etudes are good, and I'd also recommend the etudes of Chopin, and the sonatas of Beethoven too. What pieces are in your repertoire?

As far as pianists who play Liszt well.... I like Cziffra, as well as Maksim Mrvica, but many don't like him. Hamelin is also good, and I'm a fan of Horowitz too. I avoid Lang Lang like the plague. I hope this helps.

I have mostly been playing Bach but I want to get more into Beethoven, Chopin and Liszt but I am still a beginner.  I have played classical guitar for years and I am now playing Piano I just love this instrument but it is very frustrating.  I can read all the notes and I know all the theory from guitar but its still all new for me.  If you know any peices that would help me please let me know.

Thanks

[stringoverstrung]

For me the definitive liszt interpreter is without the slightest doubt LAZAR BERMAN.


(Check out his sonority in high chords for example.)

[chopinfan_22]

If you're just a beginner, you're going to have a long way to go to get to Liszt's more technical stuff. What Bach have you learned? It may not be a bad idea to get a teacher (if you haven't gotten one already). The piano and guitar are fairly different. But for basic repertoire by Chopin, Beethoven, and Bach, these are my suggestions:

Bach
15 Two-Part Inventions
A sinfonia or two

Chopin
Preludes Op. 28, Namely Nos. 4, 6, 7, 9, 13, 15, and 20

Beethoven
The 32 Sonatas. Op. 49 Nos. 1 and 2 are the easiest, followed by Op. 79
Though overplayed, Fur Elise is essential to the repertoire.


What I've learned, or always thought, is that playing the piano is like a food pyramid. The composers at the bottom of the pyramid are what you need the most of for a foundation of learning how to play, musicality, finger and hand strength, etc. In truth, you have to learn a fair amount of compositions by other composers before you can tackle all the advanced stuff, and Liszt wrote more technically demanding pieces than any composer that I know. The top of the pyramid, synonymous with sugars and fats on the regular food pyramid, are the pieces that everybody loves to hear and play. The "sweet" stuff.

Foundation (Bread): Bach, Mozart, the basics of Chopin and Beethoven, Bergmuller, Heller
2nd Level (Fruits/Veggies): More Bach, the Sonatas of Haydn/Beethoven/Mozart
3rd Level (Meat/Dairy): Intermediate works of Chopin (waltzes, nocturnes, etc), Always more Bach, Schubert, Schumann, etc.
Top (Sugar): Chopin/Rachmaninoff/Liszt Etudes, Scriabin, Ravel, and so forth.

These are just my thoughts.

[bachapprentice]

If you're just a beginner, you're going to have a long way to go to get to Liszt's more technical stuff. What Bach have you learned? It may not be a bad idea to get a teacher (if you haven't gotten one already). The piano and guitar are fairly different. But for basic repertoire by Chopin, Beethoven, and Bach, these are my suggestions:

Bach
15 Two-Part Inventions
A sinfonia or two

Chopin
Preludes Op. 28, Namely Nos. 4, 6, 7, 9, 13, 15, and 20

Beethoven
The 32 Sonatas. Op. 49 Nos. 1 and 2 are the easiest, followed by Op. 79
Though overplayed, Fur Elise is essential to the repertoire.


What I've learned, or always thought, is that playing the piano is like a food pyramid. The composers at the bottom of the pyramid are what you need the most of for a foundation of learning how to play, musicality, finger and hand strength, etc. In truth, you have to learn a fair amount of compositions by other composers before you can tackle all the advanced stuff, and Liszt wrote more technically demanding pieces than any composer that I know. The top of the pyramid, synonymous with sugars and fats on the regular food pyramid, are the pieces that everybody loves to hear and play. The "sweet" stuff.

Foundation (Bread): Bach, Mozart, the basics of Chopin and Beethoven, Bergmuller, Heller
2nd Level (Fruits/Veggies): More Bach, the Sonatas of Haydn/Beethoven/Mozart
3rd Level (Meat/Dairy): Intermediate works of Chopin (waltzes, nocturnes, etc), Always more Bach, Schubert, Schumann, etc.
Top (Sugar): Chopin/Rachmaninoff/Liszt Etudes, Scriabin, Ravel, and so forth.

These are just my thoughts.

Hi, Thanks for the info this should help a lot.  I had a teacher for Classical guitar and some piano but since I was able to pick up some stuff on my own I have just been teaching myself.  I have been playing Bach's Little Preludes and Fugues.  I am going to try the Inventions next.

[chopinfan_22]

Not a bad idea at all. I'm going to be diving into my share of Bach Inventions too. Of the 15, the first six are the easiest (according to the rankings here on Pianostreet). I'm currently working on polishing up the first movement of Mozart's Sonata K.545, and I'll then work on the second movement, and then the third. I'm also polishing up two Chopin Preludes. So after the Preludes are learned well, I'll be right where you're at with the Inventions (more or less).