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Poll

Who's etudes were best?

Chopin's (op. 10 and op. 25): 4 (44.4%)
Liszt's (Paganini and Transcendental, including 1837/8 versions): 1 (11.1%)
Debussy's: 2 (22.2%)
Godowsky's (Studies on Chopin's etudes): 0 (0%)
Schumann's (Symphonic Etudes op. 13): 0 (0%)
Czerny's: 0 (0%)
Rachmaninoff's (Etudes Tableaux op. 33 and op. 39): 1 (11.1%)
Scriabin's (op. 12 and op. 42): 1 (11.1%)
Bartok's: 0 (0%)
Alkan's: 0 (0%)
Other (comment below): 0 (0%)

Total Members Voted: 9

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Topic: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes? (Read 1328 times)

liszt-and-the-galops

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Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

on: May 16, 2024, 05:26:10 PM

Who's etudes were best and who's etudes were hardest?

Personally,
Hardest: Liszt, followed very closely by Godowsky.
note: I personally find many of Ligeti's etudes to be overrated in terms of difficulty.

Best: Chopin.

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lelle

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #1 on: May 16, 2024, 08:03:07 PM

Best: Chopin

Hardest: Godowsky probably

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transitional

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #2 on: May 16, 2024, 09:54:25 PM

Best: Debussy

Hardest: Godowsky

Also, don't forget Rachmaninoff and Scriabin's Etudes for the poll.

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last 3 schubert sonatas and piano trios are something else

liszt-and-the-galops

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #3 on: May 16, 2024, 10:11:35 PM

Quote from: transitional on May 16, 2024, 09:54:25 PM

Best: Debussy

Hardest: Godowsky

Also, don't forget Rachmaninoff and Scriabin's Etudes for the poll.

I literally had just hopped on because I remembered Scriabin's etudes existed lol.

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mjames

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #4 on: May 16, 2024, 10:57:12 PM

Chopin's etudes were what broke the ground for technique and sound on the modern piano. Anything after that was just a case of re-inventing the wheel.

Hardest? Probably something weird by like Sorabji.

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liszt-and-the-galops

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #5 on: May 16, 2024, 11:07:08 PM

Quote from: mjames on May 16, 2024, 10:57:12 PM

Chopin's etudes were what broke the ground for technique and sound on the modern piano. Anything after that was just a case of re-inventing the wheel.

Hardest? Probably something weird by like Sorabji.

Searched up Sorabji etudes... Apparently the complete set of 100 is more than 7 hours long, and many of them have never been performed.
Let's ignore stuff from Sorabji and onwards.

lol

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #6 on: May 17, 2024, 01:43:55 AM

Maybe you could add Bartok's etudes? I've been listening to them, and it's not really my cup of tea, but people say it's pretty hard, and maybe you might enjoy them.

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thorn

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #7 on: May 17, 2024, 09:36:49 AM

Quote from: mjames on May 16, 2024, 10:57:12 PM

Chopin's etudes were what broke the ground for technique and sound on the modern piano. Anything after that was just a case of re-inventing the wheel.

I agree that objectively speaking Chopin's are the best. But on a personal taste level I just don't like them so went with Debussy which were influential in their own right on contemporary piano music and make you wonder what else he'd have written had he lived longer, moving away from the style everyone associates with him.

Hardest of the standard sets I'd say either Godowsky for traditional difficulty and Ligeti because they require mastery of things you don't find in standard piano repertoire (eg the multiple downbeats in Automne á Varsovie)

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pianistavt

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #8 on: May 17, 2024, 11:04:46 AM

I was just thinking about making a post about etudes - getting a comprehensive list, what people have played, etc

A few more:
Bartok - 3 etudes op 18
Clementi - Gradus ad Parnassum
Mendelssohn - 3 etudes op 104b
Messiaen - Quatre Études de Rythme
Moscheles - 24 etudes op 70
Moskowski - 15 Etudes de Virtuosité, Op.72
Moskowski - 20 Petites Etudes, Op.91
Moskowski - 12 Left Hand Etudes, Op.92
Prokofiev - 4 etudes op 2
Szymanowski - 4 etudes op 4
Szymanowski - 12 etudes op 33

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ronde_des_sylphes

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #9 on: May 17, 2024, 02:22:00 PM

Liapunov, eg

Henselt, eg

Also, Alkan.

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tenpasten

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #10 on: May 17, 2024, 03:55:05 PM

Scriabin for me. Mostly because of the musicality. I have found it hard to connect with a lot of Liszt etudes because I can't feel very much emotion (this is just me being naive, I'm sure with time I will come to appreciate them). But there is something special about Scriabin's. Especially op 42 4-8. These are some of the finest. Honourable mentions to Op 12 no 2 and no 12- the second version in particular (if you haven't heard it please go and find it on youtube, I think it edges out the original despite having a slightly worse coda)
Rachmaninoff as well, particularly Op 33 no 3, Op 39 no 5 and Op 39 no 8.
These are purely based on enjoyment whilst listening and playing, though I must say op 39 no 5 and op 42 no 5 have been quite a challenge that I haven't quite bested.
While never having played any chopin (if someone could give some recommendations that would be great), I am quite partial to listening to the Ocean etude. Something immensely satisfying about that onslaught of sound.
Just my take. Thanks.

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liszt-and-the-galops

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #11 on: May 17, 2024, 04:12:26 PM

Quote from: tenpasten on May 17, 2024, 03:55:05 PM

if someone could give some recommendations that would be great

Well, we're on the topic of etudes. 10/9 and 25/9 are pretty good. So is the black keys Etude, 10/5. The Trois Nouvelles Etudes are also pretty decent and much easier than any of the original 24.

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iamdopeuarenope

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #12 on: May 17, 2024, 04:17:12 PM

Best - Chopin

Hardest - Merceux maybe?

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liszt-and-the-galops

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #13 on: May 17, 2024, 11:23:27 PM

Quote from: iamdopeuarenope on May 17, 2024, 04:17:12 PM

Best - Chopin

Hardest - Merceux maybe?

Guessing you meant Mereaux. And yeah, his etudes are pretty insane.

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pianistavt

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Re: Who wrote the best/hardest etudes?

Reply #14 on: May 18, 2024, 02:24:20 PM

Quote from: tenpasten on May 17, 2024, 03:55:05 PM

While never having played any chopin (if someone could give some recommendations that would be great), I am quite partial to listening to the Ocean etude. Something immensely satisfying about that onslaught of sound.

Agreed about Chopin etude 25/12 - that was the first etude I worked on, probably for similar reasons. All the Chopin etudes are transcendental - conceiving of new sounds/sonorities of the piano that no one had conceived before.
If you like it, you should play it, it's certainly within your skill level, based on the other pieces you've mentioned.

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