LTCL repertoire

[nadiferns331]

Hey there!

I've been teaching piano for about 16 years. I did my Trinity Grade 8 around 16 years ago, and then after a long gap, attempted the ATCL about 5 years ago, which I didn't clear by a very tiny margin. Since then, I've moved on in life, but I still teach piano, and I've gotten religiously into practicing everyday. I'm currently working towards the LTCL, and I'd like some guidance on my chosen repertoire. Any additional guidance on succeeding this exam would also be greatly appreciated!

1. Bach- Prelude and Fugue in B minor, BWV 893
2. Beethoven- Fantasia in G minor, op.77
3. Gottschalk- The Banjo, op.15
4. Rachmaninov- Prelude no.5 (from Preludes op.23)
5. Bartok- Allegro Barbaro
6. Prokofiev- Movements 2 and 6 from Romeo and Juliet, op.75
7. Gershwin- Rhapsody in Blue

I have tried picking pieces I enjoy, and I believe I've also got plenty of variety in there. In terms of them all being within my technical reach, in all the months that I have been working on them, I do not find any of them to be beyond me.
I am not married to this order of performance just yet, so any suggestions on a better order are most welcome. I'm also open to dropping the Bach or the Gottschalk- piece if I'm cutting too close to the maximum time limit.

Thanks!

[bryfarr]

Sounds exciting best of luck to you.

Your program strikes me as leaning toward the percussive / toccata / march style.  I wonder how the judges will react.

The Banjo - chordal toccata-like sections, especially the ending.
Rachmaninoff 23/5 - chord-based march, though a sonorous melodic middle section
Prokofiev - Montagues/Capulets - very march like
Prokofiev - Morning Scene - march like dance
Bartok - very toccata / percussive mode

You might want to throw a Chopin Nocturne or the Berceuse in there.
Or do Prokofiev Op 75 #9 (Girls w/ Lillies) instead of Morning Scene
Or swap in some Debussy (not the toccata-like pour le piano)

I guess they don't review the program for artistic variety but this very noticeable theme jumped out at me.  Personally I like this kind of piano music. 

[nadiferns331]

That is an excellent observation, and one I had not made before. I might consider one of the alternates you've recommended just to stay safe.

[thorn]

I personally find 7 items excessive, 4-5 is the standard. An easy way of balancing that out would be:
1. Bach
2. Beethoven
3. A set of pieces by a single composer would feel more coherent than Rachmaninoff AND Bartok AND Prokofiev. You could perhaps keep Rach 23/5 and find contrasting preludes to go with it since the syllabus does say "one or more" of op.23/32. Or Bartok Out of Doors, or Prokofiev Sarcasms. Or some Chopin or Debussy like bryfarr suggested.
4. Gershwin
5. Gottschalk (as a light encore sort of thing)

[liszt-and-the-galops]

I can't help but notice that you didn't include anything from the romantic era (with the exception of Gottschalk)...

[thorn]

I can't help but notice that you didn't include anything from the romantic era (with the exception of Gottschalk)...

You don't have to. It's standard to cover all periods at the first level (ATCL/DipABRSM) but for L you're fine with two distinct musical eras (my friend did Baroque and 20th c and passed with distinction) and obviously for F you can specialise.

[bryfarr]

I can't help but notice that you didn't include anything from the romantic era (with the exception of Gottschalk)...

Rachmaninoff is included among the romantic style composers, though he didn't live/work in the same years as the established Romantics - Chopin, Liszt, Schumann, Brahms, etc..

[liszt-and-the-galops]

To clarify my earlier response...
I was not saying that there should be some romantic-era repertoire in nadiferns331's program. In fact, looking at the list of accepted works, there are almost no pieces from the romantic era, compared to other major eras (I only saw two Liszt pieces, one of which being Liebestraum no. 3).

Also, didn't know that Rach was considered to be in the romantic era.

[symphonicdance]

Your programme will be considered a balanced one (at least five even if you finally dropped two). Definitely no need to fill up all the maximum playing time. More playing time can enable the candidate to show off more, but equally higher risk of exposing anything less good.

If it is a choice to drop either Bach or Gottschalk, many teachers will suggest keep Bach. Keeping Bach will make your programme looks more al-rounded, but I find the examiners enjoy cherry picking negative things from a candidate's Bach. My suggestion is just to keep whichever one you are more confident with.

On the other hand, if you have enough time to re-plan your programme and practice, then perhaps you can re-think about your Rachmaninoff, Gottschalk, Prokofiev and Bartok combo. If I were you, perhaps I'd pick movement #10 instead of #2 from Prokofiev Op 75, which is long enough to reduce the combo to two composers. Again, if you think these four works can showcase your best, then just keep them as is.

When I did my LTCL more than a decade ago, I didn't have any romantic period work in my programme (Bach, Mozart, Prokofiev and Ravel). When my daughter did her a few years ago (when she's still in primary school), she didn't have any classical period work in hers (Bach, Liszt, Rachmaninoff and Poulenc).
 
Some teachers suggest to play the most confident work as the first work, and end the programme with a work that has sonorous ending. But in general most teachers consent the safest playing order is by period: whether by year of birth of composer or by year of finish/publish of the work.

Good luck!