Schubert Four Impromptus, D. 935 (Op. posth. 142) no 2 A flat

[visitor]

c 1827

another from my archives that I never really shared. this was the piece that preceded the Bartok I believe.  It actually ended up being most folks 'favorite' of the entire program. I surprised myself, of all the ones I worked up, this was the one I spent the least time with (ie started learning it last on the list). I didn't expect it to come as decent as it did. This was my first Schubert and ignited my love/appreciation for his music.

same like the other, decent mics, live performance in a small hall, Hamburg SS model D. one of only two Steinways I absolutely adored playing.

This is a sleeper Impromptu of sorts. I feel like it gets overshadowed by the other beasts.  Catchy little thing isn't it?

[chopinlover01]

Very nicely played!
How much stock do you put into the theory that the D935 impromptus were originally meant to be a sonata (but sold as 4 impromptus for more money)?

[visitor]

Very nicely played!
How much stock do you put into the theory that the D935 impromptus were originally meant to be a sonata (but sold as 4 impromptus for more money)?

thanks sor taking time to listen and comment as though i am a different pianist today, this was a formative experience and i draw upon it even to this day.

I wil definitely read more into it. I have done more resesrch into Schubert as a composer and read lengthy bios and accounts but didnt do a lot of individual background research on pieces.

Personally, my gut tells me you are probably right.  Common practice for publishers to do that sort of thing. Also that his music got popular more after his passig lends more credence to your hypothesis.
they did similar to the naming of wanderer fantasy, as i believe that was drawn up w thoughts towards a sonata as well.

and they messed w the impromptus too i think the popularity of drawing rooms and salon music had partly to do with this.  They even publised some impromptus in different keys versions thinking they would be easier for amateurs to read and play, so why not also rename and piece out a bigger work to make it seem more accessible.

ill read up and comment more when i come across more findings.

Thanks again
 

[kalospiano]

of Impromptus from Schubert, I was only familiar with Op.90, so I didn't know the piece that you played, but I loved it. You're very talented. Thank you for sharing.

[kawai_cs]

Hey Visitor, it was beautifully played!I enjoyed it yesterday right after you posted it and came back to listen to it now.
 I am not at all surprised it was audience's favorite. Great piece, I didn't know this impromptu and now I think I will need to listen to more Schubert.
In addition to your wonderful playing it is also such a pleasure to listen to this quality recording with beautifully sounding piano. Thank you for sharing and post more!

[briansaddleback]

Awww. Check that out. Kawai uses words 'beautiful' 'enjoyed' 'favorite' 'great' 'pleasure' and 'more!!' In a sentence to visitor.

Kawai and visitor sittin in a tree..


I guess you're not her senpai anymore !!



Oh well played sounds a bit giffy, if you know what I mean.

[ronde_des_sylphes]

I listened to this earlier today but didn't have time to comment. The middle section sounds a little under-prepared (or suffered from nerves) but the rest of it, and the general presentation in the context of phrasing and emotion, was very positive. It's always good to hear people playing music when you get a tangible sense that they have an affinity with what they are performing. Nice recorded piano sound as well.

[visitor]

of Impromptus from Schubert, I was only familiar with Op.90, so I didn't know the piece that you played, but I loved it. You're very talented. Thank you for sharing.

thanks for the kind remarks and taking time to listen. I'm glad you liked it and that I could bring a little bit of attention to this less often heard imprtomptu 

Hey Visitor, it was beautifully played!I enjoyed it yesterday right after you posted it and came back to listen to it now.
 I am not at all surprised it was audience's favorite. Great piece, I didn't know this impromptu and now I think I will need to listen to more Schubert.
In addition to your wonderful playing it is also such a pleasure to listen to this quality recording with beautifully sounding piano. Thank you for sharing and post more!

Arigatou gozaimasu kawai_cs !! 
I'm glad you liked it and it encouraged you to seek a bit more Schubert out, there are some real gems in his output that like I shared in the op are oftentimes overshadowed by his masterpieces.  I like this little piece, it's a bit on the repetitive side but it helped me with trying to make repeats vary just  a little so as not to produce carbon copies of the previous material. again was definitely a 'learning piece' as I did not pick it, I was 'voluntold' haha, but in the end I am glad I was able to work it up enough to pass my hearing and exam.
I really appreciate your compliment and I am also happy the sound quality was as good as it was 

Awww. Check that out. Kawai uses words 'beautiful' 'enjoyed' 'favorite' 'great' 'pleasure' and 'more!!' In a sentence to visitor.

Kawai and visitor sittin in a tree..


I guess you're not her senpai anymore !!



Oh well played sounds a bit giffy, if you know what I mean.

glad you liked it and  I appreciate the time you took to listen and weigh in.
 

 

I listened to this earlier today but didn't have time to comment. The middle section sounds a little under-prepared (or suffered from nerves) but the rest of it, and the general presentation in the context of phrasing and emotion, was very positive. It's always good to hear people playing music when you get a tangible sense that they have an affinity with what they are performing. Nice recorded piano sound as well.

Ronde I am a great admirer of your playing, and taste in music. your remarks and critique mean a great deal to me and I wholeheartedly agree w the middle section.
I struggled somewhat in the memory dept on the middle section, this piece has so much repetition and material that varies only slightly from a previous section at times. Under the nerves and performance pressure, I struggled a little bit to keep it going and together, this was one of my first 'big' solo deals so had a lot going on up there.   I feel in that middle, it was a bit of both, struggle w memory queues due to some wishy washy memory stations and nerves. I learned a lot from learning the piece and the performance of it as well.

I didn't like the piece all that much at first but it took such intense practice to bring it up in a short amount of time it grew on me, it's charm lies in its simplicity, almost hymn like in the main material.

I like Schubert a lot more than is probably apparent in terms of what I spend time learning, I think it's because I feel so 'unworthy' of it at times. Gotta work on that, as I think under the right conditions , w the right piece, I can have a little bit of knack for it

Thanks again for listening and commenting

[josh93248]

Hi Visitor, I'd like to add my voice to the chorus of approval though it is a shame about the middle section, you were going so well too! However the feeling is strong throughout and the passion is tangible.

I love the Schubert Impromptus to death, especially opus 90 but 142 is growing on me too.

I also really like the first from the Drei Klavierstucke, the "sort-of Impromptus" How do you feel about them?

[visitor]

Hi Visitor, I'd like to add my voice to the chorus of approval though it is a shame about the middle section, you were going so well too! However the feeling is strong throughout and the passion is tangible.

I love the Schubert Impromptus to death, especially opus 90 but 142 is growing on me too.

I also really like the first from the Drei Klavierstucke, the "sort-of Impromptus" How do you feel about them?

many thanks for listening and your compliments and remarks!
yes I do like the D946 a lot.
I have a pretty rare score of 'lost Schubert works' containing some fragments and some other small pieces  not published or recorded often, so I am currently putting this uncommon set of pieces in consideration as soon as a few pieces i'm on right now get completed. hope to post those when they're done late this year (planned end of 16 or early 2017)

[josh93248]

many thanks for listening and your compliments and remarks!
yes I do like the D946 a lot.
I have a pretty rare score of 'lost Schubert works' containing some fragments and some other small pieces  not published or recorded often, so I am currently putting this uncommon set of pieces in consideration as soon as a few pieces i'm on right now get completed. hope to post those when they're done late this year (planned end of 16 or early 2017)

Oh that sounds very cool Visitor, I wouldn't even mind if you PMed me when they're done so I don't miss them in case I'm away from the forum again. I love Schubert 

[rachfan]

Hi visitor,

Just a note to say I really enjoyed hearing your Schubert Op. 142.  I believe from your playing that you have a passion for his music.  There was that momentary slip in the middle, however you successfully maintained continuity and did just a bit of "glossing over" while getting back on track. Very well handled in my opinion. I enjoyed hearing you play.

I played Schubert's Op. 90 and 142 but left the other two.  They are in the archive here under -- Index to Audition Room.  There the composers are conveniently arranged in alphabetic order, with the pianists within also in alphabetic order. Mine is rachfan. I've been here at PianoStreet since 2006.

I no longer play standard repertoire.  I focus only on the Late Romantic Era now, playing mostly works that are obscure, neglected, and/or forgotten, mostly in Russia.

Again, welcome to Piano Street!

David

[visitor]

Hi visitor,
...!

David

David, really appreciate the time you took to listen , consider, and weigh in. 
I 'm glad you caught my salvage attempt, it was a skill i tried to learn ASAP once i started playing more on stage to keep the performance of a piece going should memory or hands fail me.  This piece as I mentioned before has a difficulty built in as far as memorizing goes due to how similar multiple parts are, it is so easy to get 'turned around' and not remmeber where you are or what repeat you are on since in a few places only the final couple of bars or cadence differentiate it from previous section(s). It was a long time ago but I think something may have momentarily taken my attention like noise or something from audience, just enough to rattle me but that's part of learning to perform vs. practicing a piece in private.

I admire your playing and insights and will seek out your recordings you mentioned above. I too as most know, am far more interested lately in off the beaten path works though I still love to listen to some standards and do have plans to not abandon them completely, even if they are not an area of focus for me (at least for now and foreseeable future, my sensibilities are firmly rooted for the time being  ).

Thanks again for your kind remarks on this recording. Made my day 

[kclee6337]

really awesome performance. i was shocked at the end to hear you did this as a performance not just a recording at home, very cool. and awesome job.

At times its almost like you do a ritenuto which is not always the best to do. I can tell you are trying to phrase the music and make it lyrical which is awesome but if you suddenly slow the tempo to much it becomes a real strain on the listener to pay attention after a while, and with a piece like this its quite easy to make them go to sleep.

In the forte section your 8th notes were a little fast to start out with. I'm going to assume that was just because of nerves playing it live. but a little time with a metronome would straighten that out.

I hope that you will go on to learn more of schubert he is really quite an awesome composer, one of my personal favorites. One thing to keep in mind is that the piano back in his day was not quite like our modern concert grand. His bass notes weren't as loud and certainly didn't sustain quite as long as ours do today. So as a general rule when I play Schubert I try to play the bass a tad softer than i normally would so it will be a little more "historically correct". The FFz>P like in measure 25 is impossible to do on todays concert grands. A little trick I use which I'm sure some will say in non-sence (I even question it sometimes) is to flutter the pedal. Push it up and down really quickly. it will actually help kill some of the noise so it will help you go down to piano easier.

Sorry if I'm rambling now, I just really love schubert. I was watching a master class on youtube (i'll try to post the link) with andras schiff on op.90 no 2 in e-flat major. The bass is quite similar to the trio section, and I love how he talks about it being like a cello and a horn in the back ground. might be something to try in the trio of this impromptu.

Again, really good job!!!

[adodd81802]

.

[visitor]

I enjoyed it. Hearing the mistakes at the time was not nice, but on the whole it was good and by the end I had forgotten the mistakes and thought it was a good performance.

Almost makes me want to have a stab at this piece!

Too many pieces, not enough time.

sorry, just now saw there were some comments here i did not see or address.
thanks so much, glad it's been well received, it my first schubert and first 'long' program so nerves were def at play, but mostly impacted by how much trouble i had w memory on this, it was the piece (as i told ronde up there) the 'newest' n the program, and was a last minute addition to the program so i was happy for how it came out give all things at play at the time.

it's a neat piece, the A material  always reminded me of the little bits of the fast section of the Mendelssohn rondo cappriciosso 

really awesome performance. i was shocked at the end to hear you did this as a performance not just a recording at home, very cool. and awesome job.

At times its almost like you do a ritenuto which is not always the best to do. I can tell you are trying to phrase the music and make it lyrical which is awesome but if you suddenly slow the tempo to much it becomes a real strain on the listener to pay attention after a while, and with a piece like this its quite easy to make them go to sleep.

In the forte section your 8th notes were a little fast to start out with. I'm going to assume that was just because of nerves playing it live. but a little time with a metronome would straighten that out.

I hope that you will go on to learn more of schubert he is really quite an awesome composer, one of my personal favorites. One thing to keep in mind is that the piano back in his day was not quite like our modern concert grand. His bass notes weren't as loud and certainly didn't sustain quite as long as ours do today. So as a general rule when I play Schubert I try to play the bass a tad softer than i normally would so it will be a little more "historically correct". The FFz>P like in measure 25 is impossible to do on todays concert grands. A little trick I use which I'm sure some will say in non-sence (I even question it sometimes) is to flutter the pedal. Push it up and down really quickly. it will actually help kill some of the noise so it will help you go down to piano easier.

Sorry if I'm rambling now, I just really love schubert. I was watching a master class on youtube (i'll try to post the link) with andras schiff on op.90 no 2 in e-flat major. The bass is quite similar to the trio section, and I love how he talks about it being like a cello and a horn in the back ground. might be something to try in the trio of this impromptu.

Again, really good job!!!

thanks so much, all great points! will keep in mind as i work similar works of the period and other schubert in the future!