Kosenko, "Consolation", Op. 9, No. 1 (1921)

[rachfan]

“Consolation”, Op. 9, No. 1 composed in 1921. 

Viktor Kosenko (1896-1938) was a Ukrainian composer, but also a virtuoso pianist and piano pedagogue.  In his earlier years his principal influences were Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Scriabin and Lysenco.  A graduate of the Warsaw Conservatory, he studied piano with Aleksander Michalowski and Iryna Miklashovskaya, and composition and music theory with Mikhail Sokolovsky.  Kosenko composed about 250 works in all—about 100 of those for solo piano--and the other works being orchestral works, concertos, chamber music, chorus works, and songs.  During his short life, Kosenko also held important positions in academia, music circles, and was often a juror at important piano competitions.

I hope you’ll enjoy this recording.

David

Comments welcome.

Piano: Baldwin Model L Artist Grand (6’3”) with lid fully open
Recorder: Roland R-44
Mics: Matched pair of Earthworks TC-20 small diaphragm, omni-directional condenser mics in A-B configuration

[elconquistador]

Beautiful. Thank you for sharing!

[rachfan]

Hi Elconquistador,

I'm glad you enjoyed hearing this piece.  Thanks for listening!

David

[j_menz]

Nicely done David.

There are a few Kosenko fans around the forum (I being one) and one hopes this will add to their number.

[rachfan]

Hi j,

This was my first encounter with Kosenko.  As you know, his scores are more difficult to play than they first appear on paper.  Where I specialize in the late romantic era, Kosenko fits in very well, so I'll look into more of his piano solo literature.

David

[emill]

hello David,

As always, beautifully played and excellently recorded.
 
Please forgive me for being "distracted" at how well
you have been recording your pieces. It is likely my frustration of
not being able to record the natural timbre of the piano sound until
now, despite so many years of trying. Oh well..

Stephen

[rachfan]

Hi Stephen,

It's good to hear from you again.  I'm glad you enjoyed my recording.

The natural timbre of the piano is an interesting topic.  In the group of high performance pianos that are hand built, those pianos, say by Steinway, Bosendorfer, C. Bechstein, Grotrian, etc. generally each brand of piano has its own distinctive timbre; however, making it a bit more complicated. Within Steinway as an example, or others, there are subtle difference of each piano within the brand!  The reason is simple: These high performance pianos are hand made such that the craftsmen can bring out each piano's potential.  And when those pianos arrive at dealerships, the dealers also do additional "prep" work to bring out the best in the instrument.  Piano makers that rely instead on uniform manufacturing plans, like Yamaha, have a more consistent sound in all of their pianos--but that's not necessarily a good thing, as many pianists have their own notions and preferences on how a fine piano should sound. But the fact that you're starting to hear the differences in timbre is a very positive change.  I believe that it will enhance your listening and appreciation of the piano.  Stay with us!

David

[goldentone]

Beautiful playing, David, with much feeling.  It's always refreshing to hear someone new.  The piano sounds very good.

[rachfan]

Hi goldentone,

Thanks for that compliment!  Yes, this is the first piece by Kosenko I've played.  This is one of those scores that's more difficult than it sounds.  I'm sure that I'll be revisiting him in the future.

David

[cbreemer]

A beautiful piece with some unsettling harmonies. Certainly Scriabin influence but yet a distinctive voice. A beautiful performance too ! I don't remember the Baldwin sounding so good (it usually sounds a bit off-tune to me but not so here). The flourishes towards the end are not squeaky clean I think, but nonetheless they are convincing.
I noticed you uploaded this on Piano Society too, but as far as I can see you did not post a message !? Nobody else will be aware of it !

[rachfan]

Hi Chris,

Yes, I too found those dissonances to be a bit jarring at first, but by keeping them a bit subdued they kind of grew on me.  This consolation needs a lot of breathing space. 

I like the sound of the Baldwin a lot too.  I remember seven years ago when the Ronsen Wurzen hammers, shanks and flanges went on the action.  It was amazing because they sounded superb straight out of the box!  Now that I've been playing on them for 8 years or so, I sometimes wonder if I should do some voicing.  But a number of people remark on the really good sound.  So I'm kind of fearful of changing the voicing, and instead let it be. One thing this proves yet again is that what the pianist hears sitting at the keyboard might not be what someone sitting out in front of the piano hears.  The piano was tuned a few days before I made the recording. 

Arrrggg!  Those small-note short cadenzas nearing the coda--I think Kosenko had in mind there a flight of fancy.  I swear I could practice them a hundred more times without complete success.  But I was at least able to get them to meet my standard... but not surpass it.

Yesterday I had some difficulty uploading at Piano Society--left you a message on it.  I'll go back and try it again now.

Thanks for stopping by, listening and commenting.  I appreciate it!

David

[cbreemer]

Arrrggg!  Those small-note short cadenzas nearing the coda--I think Kosenko had in mind there a flight of fancy.  I swear I could practice them a hundred more times without complete success. 

I know what you mean. Being an amateur, sometimes at the end of the day you just need to
leave well enough alone in the end, realizing you'll not attain perfection. And hope that nobody
will notice the little imperfections ;-)

The other thing I was going to say is that *any* piece is harder than it seems. Paradoxically,
this seems to become more apparent the better you get at it. Unless you have an infallible
technique, recording is a frustrating business....

[rachfan]

Hi Chris,

I second all of that!  Today though I had something different happen.  Probably a year or so ago I had been working on a Glazunov piece to a point where I was frustrated by some of the difficulties.  Then this afternoon I happened to pick it up again, and it no longer seemed all that difficult. It was as if I were seeing it through other eyes. It bordered on sight reading.  It's been suggested that during the time one disengages from a piece and later resumes it, it seems more manageable. It's believed that the subconscious mind in such a case had been busy analyzing it during the lull. Then when the pianist resumes studying it, he wonders why it does not seem as formidable as before.  This is one of the mysteries of pianism.

David

[ronde_des_sylphes]

That's a beautiful piece, played affectionately.

The flourishes towards the end are not squeaky clean I think, but nonetheless they are convincing
...
at the end of the day you just need to leave well enough alone in the end, realizing you'll not attain perfection.

Only a small detail in the second flourish of the four made itself apparent to me - going by listening alone. I'm not sure perfect recordings exist anyway; amazing the faults you can find in even the best if you look hard enough.

[rachfan]

Hi ronde,

Thanks for listening and commenting!  Ah, those pesky flourishes....  I think what Kosenko was after was a flight of fancy ahead of the coda.  I worked out logical fingerings and practiced using different techniques.  Yet, had I practiced those runs a hundred more times, I doubt the outcome would have changed. Nervousness while approaching a difficult figuration like that can cause its own havoc. Anyway, on that detail in the second run, it wasn't real clean, but I think I succeeded in putting the passage as a whole across to the listener.  That's crucial to successful performance.

You're right when you speak of perfection.  In performance we all strive for perfection, but being mortals, we never get quite close enough to reach out and touch it.  

David

[enrique2point0]

David, this is superb.  I am a die hard lover of Ukrainian composer's music, and Viktor's work is always at the top of my list, dare I say he is my most favorite (almost beat by Scriabin, except that his late period stuff doesn't always jive with me, vs  Kosenko's whole output appeals to me).

Your playing of the piece seems to convey a bit of nostalgia, at least that is what I get (even if not a direct goal or feeling you wished to convey). It does not fall into the trap of being overly sentimental though. You let it flow, it lingers where it needs to and you let the complex harmonies and sound fully develop before moving on.  Not much gets said about pedaling, but I think careful execution of pedaling is key for this piece (and you have the right approach for your instrument and room, since as you know, pedaling is both instrument specific and venue specific).

Again, cannot critique much, lovely playing.  It warms my heart to see this piece uploaded, as Kosenko deserves much more attention in these parts of the world.

can't wait to see what else you bring us soon.

Best,
'2.0'  

[rachfan]

Hi enrique2point0,

Thanks so much for your compliments on my playing and your other thoughts too! 

Yes, I too believe that the sound of this work is nostalgic passion, not passion in the moment.  There is a discernible difference between the two.

It would certainly be tempting and easy to get sidetracked into sentimentality while playing this gorgeous piece.  I kept in mind that it's marked adagio con moto which, of course, means with motion or quicker.  But I made sure there were a few lush turns of phrase.  So yes, I believe I struck the right balance there.

As you would guess, there were plenty of half and quarter pedal releases to allow some opulence in the sound without losing sight of the clean line of the music.

I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Best,

David

[pianoslav]

Hey Kosenko fans, and fans of classical music in general. Perhaps you would be interested in this:
A professional pianist who wants to record the works of Kosenko.

[rachfan]

Hi pianoslav,

It's been a pleasure and honor for me to record works of composers who are obscure, neglected or forgotten.  Over the last several years, with some other pianists who share this propensity, I've been able to draw attention especially to Bortkiewicz and Catoire, but I have also recorded some pieces by Dohnanyi, Glazunov, Godowsky, Liadoff, Medtner, and most recently, Kosenko. Listeners often have the same question: Where has this wonderful "new music" been all this time?  

I wish you the very best in your project and artistry to focus on the piano music of Viktor Kosenko. Recognition of this extraordinary composer is long overdue.

David