La mort de Thaïs

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Concert paraphrase by Camille Saint-Saens on Massenet's Thais.

I'm working on this just now - here's a test run..

https://soundcloud.com/andrew-wright-35/la-mort-de-thais-paraphrase-by-saint-saens

[liszt1022]

This test run still sounds very good - I'll watch for the finished one too. In the agitato, I can't quite get the downbeat - I'm hearing something more Dante-sonata-style like, uh...



I'd probably put slightly more emphasis on 1 and 4 and push it into being more agitated tempo-wise.
Are you making a new opera CD? Any other pieces coming up?

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Yes, you're 100% right about the agitato section. I played it in a masterclass this week and got told off for the rhythmic dislocation - I hadn't realised that I was doing it, plus it's also a little unstable. I'm working on fixing it, plus I think I need to give some more thought to how I pedal that section - I'm now inclining towards less pedal and less muddy.

I'm in the process of testing out material for another transcriptions CD - in a few weeks I think I'll know where I stand and how prepared I am. Submitting the material to the scrutiny of a masterclass/intensive teaching session format is the acid test as far as I'm concerned. I don't think all the material is completely ready yet. I'm fairly happy with the my preparation of Thalberg's Moses Fantasy, the Liszt Rienzi Fantasy and Alfred Jaell's Reminiscences de Norma, but the first of those two are pieces which have flitted in and out of my performing repertoire over the years and I have significant experience (good and bad!) with them - it's newer material such as this which I'm less sure about.

[liszt1022]

the Liszt Rienzi Fantasy

ROW
ROW
ROW YOUR BOAT
ANGRY DOWN THE STREAM

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Haha, good spot. Never thought of it like that before!

[liszt1022]

Don't let it dissuade you, I like that fantasy.

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Yes, it's good fun, and a fine example of Liszt being able to create a lot of virtuosic effect without it actually being insanely difficult.