Medtner Forgotten Melodies Op. 39 No. 3, Primavera

[williamhu]

Here’s a recording of one of my favourite pieces - it’s not perfect but I’m still pretty proud of it for the week or so I’ve worked on the piece!

Here’s a little spiel I wrote about it:

At the heart of Medtner's second set of Forgotten Melodies is 'Primavera', a jubilant celebration of springtime and all the joy it brings.

Once again in an embellished ABA form, the outer sections of this piece feature some of Medtner's most flamboyant writing, featuring non-stop runs of dazzling scales and arpeggios. Medtner was generally opposed to the over-use of theatrics and excitement, but the Primavera follows two rather abstract and brooding pieces in the cycle, and this outburst is equally shocking and uplifting - a rebirth, a surge of new life.

The opening of the piece is so wrapped up in its own happiness that it takes until the transitional section (after the repeat, at 1:10) before we get any glimpses of minor tonality at all! The transition continues to build a darker sound, blending distorted fragments of both the A (see the left hand figures at 1:25-1:30) and B melodies.

The B section is more relaxed and luscious - the texture makes me think of honey. The melody here is a rather unusual one - it has 6 repeated notes followed by 3 repeated notes! Medtner's melodies can occasionally be somewhat uncharacteristic of romantic writing, and the use of repeated notes (typically avoided in general melody writing) appears in many of his works. This is just one example of many, and perhaps one of the most gorgeous - it is as if we are holding onto each note for as long as we can, like an embrace that we don't want to leave.

We emerge rather suddenly back into the exuberant sounds of the A section - was all that nostalgia just a distraction from the festivities? Not at all - at 3:30, we burst into a triumphant rendition of the B melody, which in turn leads us up into a fast-forwarded A melody that whisks us away to the final chords.

My favourite moment is the 'hidden voice' at 2:08-2:10, in the thumb of the right hand. I found it almost by accident, and it's such a lovely little melodic line that comes and goes before you can work out if you were just dreaming it.

[thirtytwo2020]

Such a beautiful piece! And amazingly well played after a week's practice! Also interesting to read your comments, even if I wasn't sure I could hear that hidden voice you mentioned.

And I hope you will be able to get that piano tuned...

[ahinton]

These wonderful pieces should NEVER be forgotten!

Best,

Alistair

[quantum]

Bravo!  Very well played, even more so considering how long you have spent on it.  I like what you did to bring out the melodies.

The first four pieces of Op 39 tend to be overshadowed by the Sontata and are not played as much. 

[williamhu]

Thank you all for the feedback! Yeah, the Sonata Tragica tends to take the spotlight, but I really do love the entire set. The Romanza (no. 2) in particular I find a very intriguing piece... a little mysterious and seductive and elusive. Worlds apart from this piece!