Riddle #5

[xvimbi]

I had to edit my question before Bernhard wakes up:
Could it be that the "purest love" arrived at a time when the composer was troubled by illness, debt, and scandal?

[liszmaninopin]

Bernhard, I hope this doesn't count as my cryptic question, but how exactly do you define the modern era?  Anything in the twentieth century?  Anything post 1950?  Different people define "modern" piano music differently.

[ayahav]

Is the composer (was he/she) Jewish?

[bernhard]

I had to edit my question before Bernhard wakes up:
Could it be that the "purest love" arrived at a time when the composer was troubled by illness, debt, and scandal?

No, quite the opposite. The piece was composed at a time when the composer's life was reasonably happy.

(2/8 )

[bernhard]

Bernhard, I hope this doesn't count as my cryptic question, but how exactly do you define the modern era?  Anything in the twentieth century?  Anything post 1950?  Different people define "modern" piano music differently.

I am happy to give you a cryptic statement, but otherwise it would have to be a yes/no question (but I sympathise with what you are saying).

[bernhard]

Is the composer (was he/she) Jewish?

No. (At least not to my knowledge).

(2/9)

[ayahav]

Was he a minimalist?

[bernhard]

Was he a minimalist?

Not at all. But he was definitely a ----------ist!

(2/10)

[xvimbi]

No, quite the opposite. The piece was composed at a time when the composer's life was reasonably happy.

No, what I meant was, did the person who the composer developed his "purest love" for "appear" when he had rough times? I wasn't talking about when the piece was composed (but I will soon...)

[ayahav]

Was he a composer of the second Viennese school?

[bernhard]

No, what I meant was, did the person who the composer developed his "purest love" for "appear" when he had rough times? I wasn't talking about when the piece was composed (but I will soon...)

I went back to your original question, since "rough times" may be too comprehensive. You mentioned debt , scandal and illness.

I am unaware of any serious illness at the time the "purest love" I refer to entered the composer's life.

Debt? Maybe he may have been short of money (I doubt if any composere apart form Handel was ever comfortable in that area), but I don;t believe he was in debt.

Scandal? Yes, there was quite a scandal (given the society morals of the day) related to this "purest love".

So I would give a very qualified yes to your question about "rough" times.

(3/11)

[bernhard]

Was he a composer of the second Viennese school?

No, he was not.

( I can see that my use of "modern" may land me in trouble, but I cannot really classify this composer any other way: he is not Baroque, he is not classical, he is not romantic, and he is not contemporary, ergo, he must be modern )

(3/12)

[xvimbi]

So I would give a very qualified yes to your question about "rough" times.

Fair enough!

So, now cut to the chase:

Does the second piece of the work in question end with a single B in the bass?

[ayahav]

Would the composer be classified in the same way a Van Gogh and Monet?

[bernhard]

Fair enough!

So, now cut to the chase:

Does the second piece of the work in question end with a single B in the bass?

Are you sure you mean a "B"? If you mean a "B", then the answer is no.

But the second piece in the work does end up with a single note in the bass...

(3/13)

[bernhard]

Would the composer be classified in the same way a Van Gogh and Monet?

Yes, he would.

(4/14)

[xvimbi]

Darn. I didn't check the key signature. I got to run now, so I'll throw it out:

The composer is the modern impressionist Claude Debussy.
His "purest love" is for his daughter "Chouchou"
The work in question is "Children's Corner".

[bernhard]

Darn. I didn't check the key signature. I got to run now, so I'll throw it out:

The composer is the modern impressionist Claude Debussy.
His "purest love" is for his daughter "Chouchou"
The work in question is "Children's Corner".

:DWell done xvimbi! Right on every count! (I am impressed).

The thread is yours...

[xvimbi]

:DWell done xvimbi! Right on every count! (I am impressed)

"Purest love" and "modern" gave it away for me. There are not that many forms of "purest" love. I doubted that there is any modern composer that had the kind of "purest love" that JSB had. And I remembered something about Debussy and his daughter. Finally, there is only one piece I could find that he dedicated to her and that consisted of several parts...

Anyway, I think, the new rules made this game a lot more entertaining and educational.

Here is the new one: "The title of the piece is misleading".

[Antnee]

Is the piece one in a smaller form??

[xvimbi]

Is the piece one in a smaller form??

No (0/1)

[bernhard]

I think, the new rules made this game a lot more entertaining and educational.

I agree.

Is the piece for piano solo?

[xvimbi]

Is the piece for piano solo?

No (0/2)

[bernhard]

Is it a piano concerto?

[xvimbi]

Is it a piano concerto?

Yes (1/3)

[ayahav]

Is it a Romantic work?

[xvimbi]

Is it a piano concerto?

Revised answer: That term characterizes the piece best

Is it a Romantic work?

Tough one! Not really, some my say so, perhaps.

[liszmaninopin]

is the composer russian?

[xvimbi]

is the composer russian?

No

[liszmaninopin]

I am going to ask a "cryptic" question.

You said that this piece is not really Romantic, but some might call it that.  What do you think is the most accurate period/style to classify it under?

[Rob47]

Is the concerto in E flat?

[xvimbi]

I am going to ask a "cryptic" question.

You said that this piece is not really Romantic, but some might call it that.  What do you think is the most accurate period/style to classify it under?

You are not really asking for a cryptic statement, you are asking for a hard fact. I'll answer it this way: The composer lived mostly during one era, but the piece has the character of the Romantic era.

Is the concerto in E flat?

Darn, you got me there. I knew I should not have picked a piece for which I don't have the score. If I find the answer to this, I'll let you know. In the meantime: the key signature does not appear in the title and is also not necessary to uniquely identify the piece.

[bernhard]

I am going to ask a "cryptic" question.

You said that this piece is not really Romantic, but some might call it that.  What do you think is the most accurate period/style to classify it under?

Actually the idea of a cryptic statement is that you ask for one, but the contents of the same are pretty much up to the riddler. (It may be about the piece, or about the composer - if s/he has not yet been correctly named). It is not really a specific question.

Anyway. Is the composer pre-romantic (before the romantic era)?

[Max]

I think Beethovens Emporer Concerto.

[xvimbi]

Anyway. Is the composer pre-romantic (before the romantic era)?

No

I think Beethovens Emporer Concerto.

No

[ayahav]

Did the composer have a deathwish?

[xvimbi]

Did the composer have a deathwish?

Not to my knowledge. If he had, it's not widely known (or I just don't know it).

[xvimbi]

Is the concerto in E flat?

At this point, I got to say: It doesn't look like it.

[Rob47]

So by the statement "That term characterizes the piece best"[referring to the term CONCERTO] does that mean its a solo piano piece with orchestra but called something like "Hungarian Fantasy" or "Variations on a Theme by Paganini", and not "Piano Concerto 34 in L-Sharp: The Final Conerto", or something like that?

To summarize my question is the word concerto in the title?

(and yes I realize i wrote L-Sharp)

[xvimbi]

To summarize my question is the word concerto in the title?

No, it is not.

[benji]

Is the second letter of the composer's name "A"?

[xvimbi]

Is the second letter of the composer's name "A"?

No

[bernhard]

Is the piece for more than one piano (e.g. 2 pianos and orchestra)?

[xvimbi]

Is the piece for more than one piano (e.g. 2 pianos and orchestra)?

No

[bernhard]

Is the composer still alive?

[xvimbi]

Is the composer still alive?

No

I think, I'll be throwing in a "cryptic statement" that will hopefully clarify the era conundrum, without giving it away:

Everybody else around him was "going Modern", but the composer did not want to.

[liszmaninopin]

Was this composer German?

[xvimbi]

Was this composer German?

No

[bernhard]

Was the composer European?

[xvimbi]

Was the composer European?

Funny, the questions are getting more general. I hope I haven't thoroughly confused everyone.

Yes, the composer was European.