A tiny Alkan sketch late at night

[orangesodaking]

No. 34 "Odi profanum vulgus et arceo" (from Esquisses, Op. 63)

Can't sleep, so I might as well do something productive. Google Translate translates the title as "I hate the common crowd and keep my distance." Wikipedia translates it as "I hate the unholy rabble and keep them away," which it attributes to the Roman poet, Horace. Either way, this piece is one of Alkan's many inward-looking miniatures, and it almost peers right into Alkan's heart and soul during his reclusion.

We only have an electric piano in the apartment, but it made do. Also, airplanes fly over constantly, so you'll hear an airplane in the background. I'll redo this for November 30th, along with a slew of other Alkan works.

I hope you enjoy.

[vladimir_gouldowsky]

Nicely played.   

[j_menz]

I hope you enjoy.

  Yep. Nicely done!!

November. Yikes. Getting close!

[furtwaengler]

Beautiful. Even the plane added an interesting contrast.

As much as Lewenthal, Smith, Hamelin, and others have done to spread news of this unique composer, in my case, even as I was familiar to some degree with these, it is your enthusiasm, Orangesodaking, which is responsible for my current discovery and interest in Alkan. It's hard to fathom the breadth, variety, depth, and scope of this enigmatic figure. In many ways he so transcended his time there is no one to aptly compare with him. There are very few composers I'd say that about...Bach, Beethoven...and yet he's still not as widely known as you'd think (had he only explored the orchestra, songs and chamber music - though that funeral march for a parrot is so odd and addictive). But we're also in the generation in which that is changing. His work is coming quickly to light.

[avengeil]

Very nice,

  weirdly the plane not only didn't disturb but sounded fitting to the recording.

[orangesodaking]

Thank all of you for the comments!! I think it's interesting how the airplane added to atmosphere of the piece. I had another take before this one that had an ambulance siren in the background, but it was a little too loud and actually drowned out the piano, so I redid it and got this take.

As much as Lewenthal, Smith, Hamelin, and others have done to spread news of this unique composer, in my case, even as I was familiar to some degree with these, it is your enthusiasm, Orangesodaking, which is responsible for my current discovery and interest in Alkan.

Wow. That means so much to me, furtwaengler. Thank you very much for those kind words. I was exposed to his music when I was 13 at a local music camp; every year in piano literature class at that camp, students would ask the teacher which is the hardest piece for piano, and the teacher once mentioned that a guy named Alkan wrote some terrifyingly difficult music. I asked him afterward who Alkan was, because I didn't know him, and if his music was actually good and not just flashy hard stuff. He said he actually wrote some good music, though he didn't know a lot about him. I looked his name up on YouTube and found Jack Gibbons playing the Allegro Barbaro etude. I thought it was really cool (in some ways, modern sounding for being written in the 1840's), and looked to more and more of his music. That's how it all began for me

And yes, November 30 is getting closer by the day!!

[vladimir_gouldowsky]

btw, orangesodaking: I really admire your advocacy for Alkan's music on Youtube and elsewhere. I'm also obsessed with his work.

[orangesodaking]

btw, orangesodaking: I really admire your advocacy for Alkan's music on Youtube and elsewhere.

Thank you!! Somebody's gotta do it.

I'm also obsessed with his work.

You know what that means, right? That means YOU have to play it, record it, perform it, and share it with the world, too!

[ronde_des_sylphes]

This is lovely. Very atmospheric. Something tells me Alkan's wry sense of humour might have been amused by the airplane.

In many ways he so transcended his time there is no one to aptly compare with him.

Absolutely agreed; he's a totally unique figure amongst his contemporaries.