Own composition/operatic fantasy - live performance with sheet music

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Pastiche operatic paraphrase, homage to Thalberg. Thematic material as inspired by his op.67 fantasy on Don Pasquale, recorded memorably by Earl Wild. I didn't have video footage of the live performance so uploaded it to YT with sheet music. Taken from a recital devoted to paraphrases (mostly) by Liszt and Thalberg.

[rachfan]

ronde --

Bravo!  My hat is off to you.  This requires a solid technique which you flawlessly employ as needed. 

In his time Liszt loved arranging and playing operatic transcriptions.  And you continue the tradition.  Stay with it!

David

 

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Thank you. I'm very fond of writing and arranging such pieces. I think I've arrived at quite a good template for the process: improvise on the thematic material until I have a multitude of different variations on it, then selectively edit and choose from these variations, and link them with mini-cadenzas, finally add improvisational introduction! It occurred to me today that I wrote this piece over a decade ago - despite feeling that my compositional technique has advanced considerably in the meantime, I'm still quite happy with much of the writing within it.

[toughbo]

I love it!

[ajlongspiano]

Great work!

[daniele1234]

This is tremendously good. Has wonderful moments of virtuosity in it but also of an operatic, grand melody. This is perhaps the best 'own composition' I have heard on piano street yet: far better in quality and musicality than all these preludes and etudes I keep hearing all over the place.

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Thanks, these comments are appreciated. I must say, re:

This is tremendously good. Has wonderful moments of virtuosity in it but also of an operatic, grand melody. This is perhaps the best 'own composition' I have heard on piano street yet: far better in quality and musicality than all these preludes and etudes I keep hearing all over the place.

It's only fair for me to show a little humility and point out that it's a bit easier when you have someone's ready-made theme to play around with! That's the great thing about writing paraphrases, ultimately it's down to ability to manipulate the theme effectively. Though the linking passages, introduction and final gesture are completely mine.

[ted]

Breathtakingly beautiful, Andrew. Yes, the melodic lines are captivating in themselves, as you say, but there is also your expressive, highly individual playing mechanism, which I have remarked on several times and continue to fail to understand let alone absorb.

This also demonstrates a very important musical point, namely that acceptance of the modern and original is broadmindedness in just one direction. To be truly broadminded we should be free to create in idioms of the past, not just with a view to imitation or scholarship, the clever and vicarious enjoyment of a well constructed period piece, but to actually embed our own creative personality in those historical ways and means and say something new and vital of our own through them.

I think this is what you are doing, just as David Thomas Roberts did with ragtime. The difference is subtle but very important.

      

[dcstudio]

That is really cool!    love it!!!

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Thanks to both of you.

This also demonstrates a very important musical point, namely that acceptance of the modern and original is broadmindedness in just one direction. To be truly broadminded we should be free to create in idioms of the past, not just with a view to imitation or scholarship, the clever and vicarious enjoyment of a well constructed period piece, but to actually embed our own creative personality in those historical ways and means and say something new and vital of our own through them. 

This is an interesting observation. The piece is to a large degree pastiche, but it is pastiche on my terms. I think, in this genre at least, the improvisational genesis of the compositional process renders it far more convincing, personalised and natural than something which has been thought out and planned analytically. I don't think I would approach writing a sonata in the same way.

[pencilart3]

I left a comment on youtube. Wow. Wow! WOW! WOW!!

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Thanks appreciated!

[dcstudio]

. I think, in this genre at least, the improvisational genesis of the compositional process renders it far more convincing, personalised and natural than something which has been thought out and planned analytically.

once again Ronde... you and I are in complete agreement. 


are you a closet jazzer?     that is our entire philosophy in a nutshell.

[visitor]

yes. bravo indeed. thanks for sharring and congrats on a fine accomplishment in both putting this down on paper and it's realization at the instrument. as might be gleamed from previous posts and replies i have made, i particularly like pieces composed as an homage, dedicated to, or in the 'style of' type. well done!


sorry if i missed the mention somewhere, i love the title, very 'Doucet'  

[ronde_des_sylphes]

are you a closet jazzer?     that is our entire philosophy in a nutshell.

Not really - some jazz is very cool but I don't think I have the swing aspects to perform it - but more of a throwback to the 19th century Improvisation has rather disappeared from the classical scene since then (with a few honourable exceptions) and moved into jazz: I don't believe that this state of affairs within classical music is either necessary or healthy.

yes. bravo indeed. thanks for sharring and congrats on a fine accomplishment in both putting this down on paper and it's realization at the instrument. as might be gleamed from previous posts and replies i have made, i particularly like pieces composed as an homage, dedicated to, or in the 'style of' type. well done!

sorry if i missed the mention somewhere, i love the title, very 'Doucet' 

Thanks visitor, and I get the Doucet reference 

[emill]

B R A V O  !! . . .  I can sense one fine, mature pianist with solid confidence playing the piece to the highest level .  For a non-pianist the piece strikes me as inspiring and spirit-lifting. Thank you for expanding my music horizon!

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Thanks emill. You are right: I'm totally at ease during this performance. It doesn't always happen that way and it's nice when it does.

[dcstudio]

I don't believe that this state of affairs within classical music is either necessary or healthy.

well you are preachin to the choir on that one...   a skill that meant nothing at music school--to the performance dept anyway- now allows me to work in many more areas than just traditional lessons and performance.

[ronde_des_sylphes]

I know it is the convention within many teaching establishments, but I still find it hard to believe. If I were a teacher I would absolutely encourage pupils to explore their musical psyche via improvisation and composition - I'm convinced that a knowledge of the techniques involved is beneficial when it comes to performance of repertoire pieces, because you have acquired a compositional insight that tends not to come through focussing on performance alone. Of course, this view is probably an off-shoot of my stance on the debate as to whether performance is a creative or a re-creative art. Within the sort of pieces I play I'm absolutely convinced it's a creative art: dogmatic regurgitation of exactly what's on the score, no more, no less, doesn't seem the way forward!

[georgey]

Ronde:  I received your CD “The Operatic Pianist” a few days ago and I listened to it 5 times so far.  Fantastic!   I have limited interest in opera but I listened to Wagner’s Ring Cycle (4 operas) many times as a teenager (Solti on London label) and continue to listen to this.  I am familiar with all of Wagner's overtures/preludes and several excerpts from his other operas.   The only work on your album that I was familiar with is Wagner’s Mild und leise (Isolde’s Liebestod).  I have the Solti/Nilsson version of this. I can say that you and Liszt nailed this one!  Your compositions all sounded 100% authentic to the style and period to me (except for maybe 1 very small spot in Thalbergiana to my untrained ear-I'm sure it's just me).  My ear was fresh from listening to Berman’s 1963 recording of the Liszt transcendental etudes before I started listening to your recording.  Perhaps you might be just shy of his super virtuosity in spots, but I was left feeling 100% satisfied with your performance.  Also, great liner notes.  I hope you don’t mind that I gave it 5 stars on Amazon.  I look forward to your next CD.

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Thanks, much appreciated - getting mentioned in the same breath as Berman is high praise indeed! I felt that the Liebestod was definitely one of the high points of the disc. It's a piece I've really "lived with" and I like to think it shows. I spent an eternity on the liner notes: I really thought about them! Hopefully not too long until next CD emerges.

[odhot]

CLASSY Performance .. Hats off sir .. Bravo bravo
love your dynamic too ..

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Thanks! It was a very nice piano to play on 

[emill]

sorry wrong post,,