VIDEO: Franz Liszt - Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 in C# minor

[ubermc721]

I recorded this on 5/18/14, on a Roland Hpi-6f piano. I played it with sufficient dynamics, but the recording kinda flattened it (It would have been better than acoustic for me because I do not have the proper equipment;my camera's audio is terrible).

Some things:
1. Major improvement of the staccato sections and the ending (https://www.pianostreet.com/smf/index.php?topic=53058.0)
2.Most of the notes were played correctly
3. In the e-major (right?) section of the friska, there was the one major mistake :/

If you want the mp3 file, I can provide it
Any suggestions or constructive criticism will be greatly appreciated!

[j_menz]

Most impressive.  Don't sweat the odd wrong note, no one will notice.

My only suggestion is to have more fun with it. Don't be scared to make the lassa a little schmaltzy, and the friska should be more playful - it's a show off piece, so don't be scared to toy with us more.

Tremendous work! 

[faulty_damper]

Musically, there are places where the pedal should not be applied so that the staccato articulation can be heard.  The beginning section's melody drags in many places, especially when there is more than one note the RH has to play.  Otherwise, there are some significant technical issues which make it much more difficult to play than it actually is.

1. Opening melody fingering is awkward.  Considering how loud it should be played, strong fingers should be used, not weak ones.  Thus, you're using a lot of energy when using strong fingers (1,2, and 3) would require significantly less.  I imagine Liszt would have fingered much of it using just 1.  I used 3 a lot.  Musically, this melody should be much more snappy, exclamatory.

2. Do you really play all octaves with 1-5?  1-5 on whites and 1-4 + 1-3 on the blacks requires much less movement and energy.

3. There are certain repeated note sections that do not require the changing of fingers because it is slow enough to use just one finger.  Changing fingers wastes energy as well as increases the risk of missing the note.

4. alternating hands repeated note section at 3:25 - the passive fingers are extended unnecessarily, wasting energy.  They can be curled in, relaxed.  The wrists can be used to to help supplement the motion but they are stiff, further wasting energy.  It's a door-knocking motion with the wrist that you can include.

5. acciaccatura's of the LH - if you changed the slant of the hand (by rotating the forearm and rise/fall of the wrist) so that the fingers naturally fit the topography of the whites and blacks, it would require less energy to play since you don't have to move the fingers as much.

6. fingers are hyperextended in many of the forceful sections, the knuckles collapsed.  This wastes energy and creates tension. A more relaxed hand makes changing its shape faster and easier, and uses less energy.

[faulty_damper]

7. Friska: vivace section - LF crosses over RH, the left hand is angled unnecessarily to play inline with the keys.  Use 5-2 with the 5 close to the fallboard and the 2 at the tip of the blacks.  This way, the hand is more inline with the forearm, reducing tension.

[ubermc721]

Thank you for all those great tips!