Chopin Recital Program?

[gapoc459]

I have been learning Chopin's 4 scherzos, and I really want to perform them all at some point, but I have been told that putting 4 scherzos on a program like that is not exactly terrific programming, as it would outweigh the rest of the program (unless it were like 80+ minutes; I'm hoping for around 60). I'm a bit inclined to agree.

However, I still really want to do it!

So I was thinking if I put only Chopin pieces in the rest of the program, could I get away with this imbalance? Here's what I'm thinking:

Scherzo 1
Scherzo 2
Nocturne Op. 27 no. 1
Nocturne Op. 27 no. 2
-brief intermission-
Etudes Op. 10 Nos. 1-4
Scherzo 3
Scherzo 4

Is this a crappy program? I think it works, but I might very well be wrong... Maybe some people can't stand all Chopin.  


I'm hoping to perform by around December, or early 2014 if necessary. Other pieces I have (or soon will have) in my repertoire are Brahms Op. 118, Prokofiev Sonata 3, Chopin c minor nocturne. I might also do Schumann Carnaval, but I don't know if that would fit (and I haven't even started working on it seriously, so I think it would be too large a project to complete in my desired time frame...).

Please help me build a nice program! I'm really excited about all this music!!!

[onwan]

I think that it's better to play all scherzos together than separately. If you want to play some another pieces on the same concert I would put to the first half of concert some smaller pieces and to the second half 4 scherzos. The first half could be the etudes, nocturnes and maybe something else you have in repertoire by Chopin. Or you could play something really different from earlier period like some Bach, Mozart, Beethoven or Schubert...

[le_poete_mourant]

I like the concept. I think the only thing I might do differently is to put the etudes at the end of the second half and open with the two scherzos.

[maitea]

In line with Le Poet, why not being with the Nocturnes, then the first two scherzi, interval, next two scherzi and etudes to finish? I personally wouldn´t begin a recital with the first Scherzo, I feel the audience needs a different type of piece to "warm up", but of course this is so personal....

[danhuyle]

Simple, play 4 Scherzi, 4 Ballades in 1 recital. If you've played all the etudes, play the entire set. you could do 4 Scherzi and either 12 Etudes from op10 or op25.

Alternatively, you can do what Yundi Li did in his "Yundi Li Live in concert" DVD, playing 4 Chopin Scherzi and Liszt B minor Sonata.

[pianoman53]

Simple, play 4 Scherzi, 4 Ballades in 1 recital. If you've played all the etudes, play the entire set. you could do 4 Scherzi and either 12 Etudes from op10 or op25.

Alternatively, you can do what Yundi Li did in his "Yundi Li Live in concert" DVD, playing 4 Chopin Scherzi and Liszt B minor Sonata.

And then, as encores, you could play the complete Godowsky studies!.. in all keys!.. Blindfolded, upside-down!

GENIUS PLAN!!!

[andreslr6]

Is this a crappy program? I think it works, but I might very well be wrong... Maybe some people can't stand all Chopin.  

Those persons that can't stand an "all Chopin" recital will simply not go, so... don't worry about it. Play what you want wherever you want, you can't please everybody so don't you ever bother on even thinking what might or might not work for the audience, instead focus on learning the pieces. There are consumers for everything, if people want to hear Beethoven they'll go to a Beethoven recital or buy a CD, if people are curious or like, enjoy and want to hear an "all Chopin" recital then they'll go to one, most people just want to go to a recital no matter the program.

[gapoc459]

Well I'm not Kissin (or a professional pianist in any case) so it's not like people will just "go" to hear me play. I think everybody whom I invite will come, but people who don't know me personally probably have not heard of me...

In that case it doesn't really matter what I am playing; nonetheless, I think it is important to construct a program that works well; I don't think you can simply "play what you want wherever you want," and expect it to have a bit of the effect that a nicely constructed program would.



Above posters: why do you think it is better to play the scherzos together rather than separately? That's what I was trying to avoid; otherwise it seems like a 40 minute hunk of scherzos, supplement with a few small pieces. I think if I play them all together, than they will not shine individually... Idk, any other opinions?

[onwan]

Above posters: why do you think it is better to play the scherzos together rather than separately? That's what I was trying to avoid; otherwise it seems like a 40 minute hunk of scherzos, supplement with a few small pieces. I think if I play them all together, than they will not shine individually... Idk, any other opinions?

It's big difference if you want to play the full set of scherzos or just the individual ones. If you want to play it like a set I would suggest to play it together.
It's like to play set of 12 etudes op.10, but play it like nos.1-3, then some nocturne, after that nos.4-8, maybe some polonaise and than finish the set of etudes nos.9-12. It doesn't work. But the thnik which would work is if You played the nocturne then the etudes and then the polonaise.
On the other hand you would like to play just some individual etudes and something else. So it will look like-2 nocturnes, then etudes op.10 nos.1,3,9,12 and then a polonaise.
Do you see the difference?
And the same thing is if you'd like to play the scherzos. You just can't cut it in a half, it's liek to play the first movment of sonata then something else and then finish it.

[gapoc459]

But unlike the etudes or a sonata, the scherzos are not a set. It's just that I want to play all of them.

I could alternatively play 2 of them, the etudes, Prokofiev, and Brahms. But which two? I love them all, that's why I want to play them all!!!!

[le_poete_mourant]

It's big difference if you want to play the full set of scherzos or just the individual ones. If you want to play it like a set I would suggest to play it together.
It's like to play set of 12 etudes op.10, but play it like nos.1-3, then some nocturne, after that nos.4-8, maybe some polonaise and than finish the set of etudes nos.9-12. It doesn't work. But the thnik which would work is if You played the nocturne then the etudes and then the polonaise.
On the other hand you would like to play just some individual etudes and something else. So it will look like-2 nocturnes, then etudes op.10 nos.1,3,9,12 and then a polonaise.
Do you see the difference?
And the same thing is if you'd like to play the scherzos. You just can't cut it in a half, it's liek to play the first movment of sonata then something else and then finish it.

On top of that, all the scherzos are.... all scherzos!  All in 3 (or, rather, big 4) -- much less diversity than the Etudes. Much less. I think gapoc is on the right track with splitting them up. Otherwise people may get bored. I think I would. The Scherzos are all individual works, with separate Opus numbers, so it is completely different than Op. 10, which is in reality a set. 

Furthermore, onwan, the idea that we must play all movements of a work in succession is a rather new one. It used to be that a concert with a symphony might program the first movement, then something else, then the second movement, and so on... I'm not suggesting that we should return to that. But your case for playing all the scherzos in a row is quite weak, I think.

[andreslr6]

Well I'm not Kissin (or a professional pianist in any case) so it's not like people will just "go" to hear me play. I think everybody whom I invite will come, but people who don't know me personally probably have not heard of me...

In that case it doesn't really matter what I am playing; nonetheless, I think it is important to construct a program that works well; I don't think you can simply "play what you want wherever you want," and expect it to have a bit of the effect that a nicely constructed program would.

Ok.... sorry....

[onwan]

Furthermore, onwan, the idea that we must play all movements of a work in succession is a rather new one. It used to be that a concert with a symphony might program the first movement, then something else, then the second movement, and so on... I'm not suggesting that we should return to that. But your case for playing all the scherzos in a row is quite weak, I think.

That's only my idea, my feeling, how I would play it. If gapoc459 don't feel it the same way I can't judge or force  him, it's my and his opinion.

[gapoc459]

@andresir: Sorry if my response came off as vitriolic; it was certainly not intentionally so.

@onwan: I can see where you are coming from, and so far I've never seen a performance of all 4 scherzos without them being played as a set (Yundi Li, Pletnev on YouTube), but I agree with lepoete that it could be potentially boring to hear 4 scherzos in a row.

@lepoete: You mentioned earlier that I should put the Etudes at the end. I can see the logic behind that; Op. 10 no. 4 is a great way to end, certainly more so than the E major scale of the scherzo (which isn't a bad ending per se), but I'm also preparing an encore or two, the last of which will definitely be the Ocean. And I think that's a perfect ending -- in a way you are concluding two sets of pieces: the recital proper begins and ends with a scherzo, while the second half begins with the first etude (C major) and ends completely with the last etude (coming full circle back into C major).

Or could I split up the scherzos another way? But the consensus I'm getting from this thread is that the piece selection per se isn't too bad?


Thanks for all your input so far. You guys are great!

[steinway43]

Why all Chopin? Nothing wrong with it, per se, but The four Scherzi as first half and Pictures at an Exhibition as the second half would be great.

But as all Chopin, another option is to play the third Sonata as the second half.

[avengeil]

In my opinion Maitea's suggestion of splitting the scherzo's but only having the intermission in between them would give the audience the ability to hear the scherzo's as a whole and yet have a needed break to think about the first two and then (possibly?) compare the next two.