Difficulty of Hungarian Rhapsody no. 2

[illusionary]

Considering playing this for an audition. How much of a jump would it be from the pieces I'm currently playing to attempting at HR2? (see below)

Thanks

[stravinskylover]

I wouldn't do such an overplayed piece for an audition, but if you really want to, I'd say go for it. I don't think it is that much harder than the Ballade 3 or Scherzo 2 (I've played all of them), but of course, difficulty is subjective.

[illusionary]

I wouldn't do such an overplayed piece for an audition, but if you really want to, I'd say go for it. I don't think it is that much harder than the Ballade 3 or Scherzo 2 (I've played all of them), but of course, difficulty is subjective.

do you think if I have at least 1 more 'unknown' piece (out of 3) that it should be fine?

[stravinskylover]

do you think if I have at least 1 more 'unknown' piece (out of 3) that it should be fine?

It would be better, yes (especially if this piece isn't also from the Romantic period), but I think the main problem with playing a piece as overplayed as the HR 2 is that people have heard it so many times, that they all already have an interpretation in mind when they hear it (and not many people have the same style/interpretation). A good judge won't judge you based on his/her own style, but trust me, there are a lot of bad judges out there (reflected in the comments they gave me). There is also the fact that many other people will probably play the same thing, so the judges will be comparing you to many others, and if the others' style is closer to the judges, you're kind of screwed.

If you play a piece that is a little well-known and not too overplayed, you still would have to play it very convincingly. There will be less people to compare you to, and the judges may be more open to your interpretation.

The benefit of "unknown" pieces is that you're probably one of the few people playing it if not the only one, and the judge is very likely to be open to interpretation.

That is not to say that you should only play unknown pieces, you would probably lose to someone who has a good balance of the well-known and the unknown who plays it all convincingly. I can tell you from experience (I enter SO many competitions).

If you haven't learned the HR 2 yet, I would suggest learning something else like a different Hungarian Rhapsody like #6 (if you have good octave technique), #12 (maybe this one is a little too hard), #15, etc. If it only needs to be in the Romantic era, then how about Chopin Ballade 1 or 3 (if you don't feel like learning something new)? These suggestions may also be a bit overplayed, but definitely less overplayed than HR2.

BTW, what is this unknown piece you speak of?

[illusionary]

It would be better, yes (especially if this piece isn't also from the Romantic period), but I think the main problem with playing a piece as overplayed as the HR 2 is that people have heard it so many times, that they all already have an interpretation in mind when they hear it (and not many people have the same style/interpretation). A good judge won't judge you based on his/her own style, but trust me, there are a lot of bad judges out there (reflected in the comments they gave me). There is also the fact that many other people will probably play the same thing, so the judges will be comparing you to many others, and if the others' style is closer to the judges, you're kind of screwed.

If you play a piece that is a little well-known and not too overplayed, you still would have to play it very convincingly. There will be less people to compare you to, and the judges may be more open to your interpretation.

The benefit of "unknown" pieces is that you're probably one of the few people playing it if not the only one, and the judge is very likely to be open to interpretation.

That is not to say that you should only play unknown pieces, you would probably lose to someone who has a good balance of the well-known and the unknown who plays it all convincingly. I can tell you from experience (I enter SO many competitions).

If you haven't learned the HR 2 yet, I would suggest learning something else like a different Hungarian Rhapsody like #6 (if you have good octave technique), #12 (maybe this one is a little too hard), #15, etc. If it only needs to be in the Romantic era, then how about Chopin Ballade 1 or 3 (if you don't feel like learning something new)? These suggestions may also be a bit overplayed, but definitely less overplayed than HR2.

BTW, what is this unknown piece you speak of?

I see, thanks for the advice. I'll have a listen to those other pieces you mentioned, because to be honest, although I absolutely adore Liszt, I haven't had much experience playing his music, and it'll be hard to find a piece that hasn't been overplayed (any suggestions?)

The audition's under a year away so I've got some time, so I haven't really decided on my 'unknown' piece yet! I'm sort of leaning towards a more impressionistic piece at the moment e.g. Ravel, Debussy. I have played Jeux D'eau and Sonatine by Ravel in the past, but I quite fancy learning something new! I also quite like the sound of Poulenc's Napoli Suite, thoughts? Another piece a friend suggested was Kabalevsky's Sonata no. 3

Thanks again

[stravinskylover]

I see, thanks for the advice. I'll have a listen to those other pieces you mentioned, because to be honest, although I absolutely adore Liszt, I haven't had much experience playing his music, and it'll be hard to find a piece that hasn't been overplayed (any suggestions?)

The audition's under a year away so I've got some time, so I haven't really decided on my 'unknown' piece yet! I'm sort of leaning towards a more impressionistic piece at the moment e.g. Ravel, Debussy. I have played Jeux D'eau and Sonatine by Ravel in the past, but I quite fancy learning something new! I also quite like the sound of Poulenc's Napoli Suite, thoughts? Another piece a friend suggested was Kabalevsky's Sonata no. 3

Thanks again

Another Liszt piece you could do that isn't really overplayed is Rhapsody Espagnole. It is really long though (~13 minutes), and it will take a lot of dedication and time. I'm currently learning it, and it doesn't seem to be too much harder than Chopin Ballade 1. I think Chopin Ballade 4 is much harder. You just have to know the right motions so that your arms don't die when you finish playing it .  I highly recommend this piece if you prefer Liszt.

If you want suggestions for "unknown" pieces, I would recommend something by Tausig (like Das Geisterschiff or Ungarische Zigeunerweisen) or Medtner (like a couple of fairy tales or Improvisation opus 31 #1). If you do fairy tales, I would learn one complete set in an opus # (like all of opus 20 or all of opus .

I am not familiar with the Poulenc suite or the Kabelevsky sonata, so I cannot really tell you anything about that.

I know a few people who would say I am suggesting a little too advanced repertoire because of the Rhapsody Espagnole. My teacher normally lets me play anything I want because he knows I have the technique for it. He even recommended Stravinsky's Trois Mouvements de Petroushka if you could believe that!

Good luck!

[illusionary]

Another Liszt piece you could do that isn't really overplayed is Rhapsody Espagnole. It is really long though (~13 minutes), and it will take a lot of dedication and time. I'm currently learning it, and it doesn't seem to be too much harder than Chopin Ballade 1. I think Chopin Ballade 4 is much harder. You just have to know the right motions so that your arms don't die when you finish playing it .  I highly recommend this piece if you prefer Liszt.

If you want suggestions for "unknown" pieces, I would recommend something by Tausig (like Das Geisterschiff or Ungarische Zigeunerweisen) or Medtner (like a couple of fairy tales or Improvisation opus 31 #1). If you do fairy tales, I would learn one complete set in an opus # (like all of opus 20 or all of opus .

I am not familiar with the Poulenc suite or the Kabelevsky sonata, so I cannot really tell you anything about that.

I know a few people who would say I am suggesting a little too advanced repertoire because of the Rhapsody Espagnole. My teacher normally lets me play anything I want because he knows I have the technique for it. He even recommended Stravinsky's Trois Mouvements de Petroushka if you could believe that!

Good luck!

Rhapsodie Espagnole is actually my favourite Liszt piece, but I always figured it was way outside of my ability! I'll look for a score and see what my teacher thinks...

Thank you for those recommendations, never heard of any of them tbh but will have a listen! Thanks for all the advice