Two contrasting improvisations

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Firstly, a chorale-like improvisation (maybe a hint of Bach-Busoni?) which moves towards Liszt and Chopin and gravitates back.
Secondly, a brief, lighthearted trifle.

[ted]

Always a treat to hear your playing, Andrew, although I didn't register much contrast between the two. To me, both afforded exquisite, astigmatic glimpses of the old world, like observing inaccessible conviviality through the bottle bottom windows of a nineteenth century tavern. That my imagination, albeit eccentric, is stimulated, is actually a compliment, receding as I am from conventional idiom.

[ronde_des_sylphes]

I feel the first is almost baroque at the start and fairly consistently melancholy. The second is in a much lighter frame of mind and reminds me of salon miniatures. Actually I'm quite pleased with the first one. It differs a bit from my norm until it veers towards a slightly quasivocal segment. They are definitely old world though; elements of nostalgia in both. Thanks for listening and commenting!

[furtwaengler]

Nostalgia in the very best and most enjoyable sense. Have you incorporated anything like this in recitals? The improvisatory intro to other programed selections could see a worthy resurrection.   

[ronde_des_sylphes]

Ah, a return to "preluding" perhaps! I've thought about it, but I'm more tempted to leave improvisation to the encore stage. I've played encores where the material hasn't been set in stone and thereby certain details have been improvised on the spur of the moment. I've always thought it would be fun to ask the audience to pick three notes and then use that as a motif to improvise on: I've done that at parties but my teacher once unexpectedly raised the ante by asking me to form a note row and improvise on that. That was too much; I couldn't keep the damn thing in my head!

[ronde_des_sylphes]

I collected some appropriate images / video yesterday and put them together with the audio for the first improvisation: