Snozzage is clearly not a piece to be performed when the pianist is suffering from a bad cold.
As for Fists of Fury, very little of the use of fists was either "furious" or indeed impossible of execution by other means such as the more convention fingers that pianists usually use.
That said, they're attractive pieces so I appreciate your having posted these recordings; many thanks.
Best,
Alistair
You are most welcome, the with a cycle of 100 'exercises'-pieces, it is hard not find something attractive to one's own tastes

. I do agree some are more inventive than others, and fists of fury is one of the more begin (hence I guess it's inclusion as a young artist competition piece, maybe was one of the more approachable ones for the uninitiated/underexposed pianist).
this one has quite the ...."name".... it makes you read it twice to make sure you read it properly ha ha. I happen to absolutely love it (pun intended)
, i like the jazzy - stravinsky ish ala Ginastera quality of it.
I believe they're an important body of work for the instrument.
Definitely reccommend further reading, here's an DMA dissertation/academic paper on them
https://etd.ohiolink.edu/!etd.send_file?accession=bgsu1288402170&disposition=inline Abstract
Since the early history of piano music the etude has played an important role in the instrument’s repertoire. The genre has grown from technical exercises to virtuosic concert pieces. During the twentieth century, new movements in music were reflected in the etudes of Debussy, Stravinsky and Messiaen, to mention a few. In the past fifty years,
Bolcom and Ligeti have continued this trend, taking the piano etude to yet another level. Their etudes reflect the aesthetics and process of modernist and postmodernist
composition, featuring complex rhythms, new techniques in pitch and harmonic organization, a variety of new extended techniques, and an often-unprecedented level of difficulty.
David Rakowski is a prolific composer of contemporary piano etudes, having completed a cycle of one hundred piano etudes during the past twenty-two years. By mixing his own modernist aesthetic with jazz, rock, and pop-culture influences,Rakowski has created a set of etudes that are both challenging to the pianist and approachable for the audience. The etudes have drawn the attention of several leading pianists in the contemporary field, most notably Marilyn Nonken and Amy Briggs, who are currently recording the entire set. Because of pianistic difficulty, approachability for the listener, and interest of noted pianists, Rakowski’s etudes seem destined for recognition in the contemporary standard repertoire. This doctoral document is the first to focus on the completed set of etudes and also provides the first method of categorization for the etudes.
In his etudes, Rakowski explored both traditional pianistic problems as well as the challenges of new music. The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between
Rakowski’s piano etudes, other contemporary etudes, and the traditional etude of past historical periods. The first chapter of this document consists of a historical and musical
overview of the most important piano etudes in the standard repertory. The rest of the document consists of a more focused look at Rakowski’s etudes, providing an overview
of styles, techniques, influences, and difficulties in the music. I have described the aesthetic and technical challenge of each etude and have placed them into categories
based on their technical challenges. While the categories were my own invention, my decisions concerning the categorical placement of specific etudes were based on
information gathered through secondary sources, interviews with Dr. Rakowski, and personal analysis and performances of the etudes.
as for pianists with colds playing, yes probably best to lay off that piece when sinuses are 'acting up'. More reason for us to be armed with

folks that might want a different performance of fists should look to pianist Lillie Garnder (she's a doctoral student at a CT uni, really fantastic knack for modern pieces, this was a while back as a student but she nails it, her smirk at the end of the piece attests to it. This is the video that introduced me to Rakowski)
better side view shows the 'fists' better
https://www.lilliegardner.com/
her yt has nice recordings of Copeland and Barber, and she holds her own w Chopin and Brahms r
