Show off piece

[shoenberg3]

how about prokofiev's op4 no4.(diabolical suggestion)
Quite difficult but not diabolically difficult
It's short and shows all aspects of pianistic virtuosity.
Repetive notes, running sixteen notes, booming octaves, and scintillating glissandos in prestissimo speed.
It sure sounds crazy and diabolical.

[amee]

How about a Rachmaninoff Prelude?
Op 32 no 5 and 12 go well together.

[meileng]

i suggest another piece, prokofiev toccata no.11

[eddie92099]

This was the opening post on this thread:

I wanted to learn, for a change, a show off piece (we need them too), with technical brilliance, exuberant mood, but not overwhelming difficulty (so refrain yourself from suggesting horrible things such as Prokovieff toccata or things like that, Idon'e want to spend 2 years learning it).

And this was Meileng's helpful suggestion:

i suggest another piece, prokofiev toccata no.11

Clap clap clap  ,
Ed

[thracozaag]

I wanted to learn, for a change, a show off piece (we need them too), with technical brilliance, exuberant mood, but not overwhelming difficulty (so refrain yourself from suggesting horrible things such as Prokovieff toccata or things like that, Idon'e want to spend 2 years learning it).

I was hesitating between Liszt transcription of Gounod waltz from the Faust opera, and his Spanish rhapsody. Which one is easier ? Any other idea ? How about Debussy L'Isle Joyeuse ? How hard is it ?

 The Spanish rhapsody is quite difficult.  Try the York Bowen Toccata.

[JohnOgdon]

Sorabji's pastiche on Chopin's Waltz op.64 no.1 is rather good. Also, the Bizet/horowitz carmen variations are not difficult, but very impresive.

[eddie92099]

Alkan's Op.39 no.1 - I have just acquired (thanks to comme_le_vent) the sheet music too!
Ed

[Prodigy]

I reckon Rachmaninoff's Prelude in G Minor sounds amazing and is a good show off piece.

But I'm easily pleased.

[guven]

a four octaves C Major would be a good one .. (2 hands of course)

[shatteringpulse]

Rachmaninoff's Prelude in D-Flat Major (32/13) is grand...thick textures, accelerating sections, titanic finale...it's all there!

Pairing it with his notorious C# be interesting...

[A-Flat]

a lot of duets sound really showy.
Khachaturian's waltz from masquerade sounds really good, very show-offy and fun to play. But if the origional version is too hard there is another arrangement i have seen which is only about 3 pages long and but stilll sounds a lot harder than it is.

[bernhard]

Hi, everyone. This is my first post. I’ve discovered this incredible forum a few weeks ago and have been busy reading through it all. (Haven’t finished yet!).

Here are a few suggestions for show off pieces that are far easier than the ones suggested so far, but sound very impressive to the uninitiated:

Mendelssohn’s Spinning song (Songs Without words op.67 no.4 - This was one of Rubinstein’s favorites encores. There is a clip of him playing it on the Art of the Piano video).

Bach’s Giga from Partita no. 1 in Bb. (Rosalyn Tureck used to play this as an encore – very flashy, with lots of crossing hands but not very difficult).

Scarlatti – There are hundreds of sonatas out there (about 600) with lots of fast runs, crossing hands, etc. Three that sound much more difficult than they are (Pletnev has recorded them at breakneck speed, and if I recall correctly Ivo Pogorelich also has recorded them) are K1 (in D minor – a two voice invention), K27 (in C# minor - very lyrical with lots of crossing hands – Michelangelo plays it on the Art of the Piano video) and K24 (in A major – far more difficult than the previous two)

Prokofiev – Prelude Op. 12 no. 7 (nice melody on the left hand, with a fast broken chord figuration on the right, plus some glissandi).

These are all ABRSM grade 8 or below, so they should not take two years to learn!

And if you want to go up a notch you may try:

Chabrier - Bourée Fantasque.

Villa Lobos – O cravo brigou com a rosa (The clove quarrelled with the rose) from “Cirandas” (no. 4) – very virtuosistic beginning and end with a lyrical middle bit – based on a Brazilian Nursery rhyme, another of Rubinstein’s encores (he was a great champion of Villa Lobos’ piano music). Easier than “A prole do bebe” that someone mentioned. There are 15 “Cirandas” (a ciranda is a nursery rhyme that children sig while holding hands and moving in a circle). You may want to listen to the others (There is a Naxos CD of them, played by Sonia Rubinsky – and Brazilian pianist Cristina Ortiz who lives in London frequently performs them).

Best wishes,
Bernhard

[thracozaag]

K27 (in C# minor - very lyrical with lots of crossing hands – Michelangelo plays it on the Art of the Piano video)

 It's in B minor

[bernhard]

Sorry, Scarlatti' K 27 is B minor, not C# minor.

Bernhard.

[eddie92099]

K27 (in C# minor - very lyrical with lots of crossing hands – Michelangelo plays it on the Art of the Piano video)

 It's in B minor

I was going to say exactly the same thing. Glad to see we are all alert,
Ed

[Noah]

Quite,

Noah  

[eddie92099]

Quite,

Quite! Glad to see my "Quite"s are infectious,
Ed

[ballade]

how about Chopin Scherzo number 4? The runs can be very impressive but it takes a while to learn if you're not post recital cert level.

[steinway88]

What about Scraibin's etude no12 op8, a Mozart fantasia, or chopin's no12 op10 etude.

[Rach3]

I hope I'm not repeating anything, but...

Various Chopin etudes I think are esp. suitable: 10:1-5, 25:1,5,6 (and 10/12)

Gottshalk - "The Banjo"

Misc. Liszt, including some nice transcriptions

Rachmaninoff - among other things, the b minor etude is cool and not too horrible

Any Chopin Scherzo, depending on desired effect/difficulty (avoid #1)

Chopin Rondos? Not too familiar, highly extroverted

And back to better Chopin, like Grand Valses Brilliante (I like #2)

There are some very fast (prestissimo-class) Scarlatti sonatas, a good performance of which might be extremely effective.

And of course the Glamdring toccata in A-flat minor...

[eddie92099]

And of course the Glamdring toccata in A-flat minor...

Please elaborate,
Ed

[comme_le_vent]

alkan's le preux would be a good suggestion, but you have to be extremely good at quick jumps in both hands, and it has one of the most insanely heroic endings ive ever heard.

[comme_le_vent]

also- alkan's 'le vent' , not comme le vent - which is wayyy to difficult to get to speed(16nps), but le vent, if you finger it efficiently should be much easier - in the right hand are non-stop 32nd note chromatic scales, so if you know your chromatics it should be a cheech and chong masterpiece.

[zhiliang]

May i suggest Horowitz-Liszt-Mendelssohn's Wedding March?

Or Horowitz's Carmen Variations?

Maybe Feinberg's transcription of Tchaikovsky's 6th Symphony (Scherzo)?

Think Liszt's transcription of Wagner's OVerture To Tannhauser is a very nice piece. (Listen to Bolet's recording) But very very difficult....

[liszmaninopin]

Try Liebestraum no. 3!  It can be suprisingly showy, has a melody that alot of people will like and recognize, and shows both lyrical talent and an ability to play fast.  It isn't that hard, either.

[mbajin]

chopin etude op.12 no.1
chopin etude op.12 no.12
chopin etude op.25 no.12

you play those well and see who's not shown off.

[ilovemusic]

chopin etude op.12 no.1
chopin etude op.12 no.12
chopin etude op.25 no.12

you play those well and see who's not shown off.

You mean etude op.10.... ?

[liszmaninopin]

Alot of showing off depends on who you want to impress.  If it's just normal people, almost any piece played well can be impressive.  I think alot of pianists might not find the Chopin etudes that impressive, simply because everybody with some experience can at least play a couple, and we hear them all the time.  But just about any one of them will impress a normal person if done well-and I would rather hear a thoroughly perfect Chopin Etude than a thoroughly mangled Islamey.

[FaureBallade]

I think that prokoviev toccata is much easier than loads of the stuff that has been suggested, it falls really well under the fingers. I found it far less of a challenge than the black keys chopin etude for instance. It must depend on one's hands!
If your looking for something much easier to learn really fast, debussy's "jardins sous la pluie" has a really good ratio of showiness per difficulty!

[Noah]

If your looking for something much easier to learn really fast, debussy's "jardins sous la pluie" has a really good ratio of showiness per difficulty!

Be careful with Jardins sous la pluie. It's much harder than it seems.

[piglet]

Bach’s Giga from Partita no. 1 in Bb

Good suggestion. The piece is easy to learn and very uplifting once you've got the spirit! Absolutely enjoyable.

[xtopher]

Finale is OK..

[anda]

try cage, silence, without the clock around

no, really - khatchaturian toccata isn't difficult at all, it's just a show off that couldn't impress anyone but amateurs. i played it within a week without even touching the piano - i was just practicing it with a student... also jardins sous la pluie - it's a thing to learn in a rainy afternoon. try debussy - poissons d'or (from images II) or some of the pictures (mussorgski) - especially limoges, or chopin fantaisie op. 49, or liszt - some of the transcendental studies - mazzepa, or feux folles, or liszt-paganini no. 6.

[eddie92099]

some of the pictures (mussorgski)

And while you're at it you could play half a Rachmaninov prelude ,
Ed

[nad]

no, really - khatchaturian toccata isn't difficult at all, it's just a show off that couldn't impress anyone but amateurs.

Oh really? I heard a quite impressive performance of it. Does that make me an amateur? And only really difficult pieces would impress a professional? It is not so much the difficulty that makes a piece. A piece that is technically not hard can still be impressive, depending on the performing pianist of course.

Why people always tend to think this, i wonder.

[eddie92099]

Oh really? I heard a quite impressive performance of it. Does that make me an amateur? And only really difficult pieces would impress a professional? It is not so much the difficulty that makes a piece. A piece that is technically not hard can still be impressive, depending on the performing pianist of course.

Well said! Who was playing in the performance you heard? ,
Ed

[nad]

Well said! Who was playing the performance you heard? ,
Ed

A good looking pianist (yes, those exist too   ) maybe i should put his name on the 'goodlooking pianist topic'
lol  

[eddie92099]

I am intrigued to know who this could possibly be!
Ed

[nad]

I am intrigued to know who this could possibly be!
Ed

i bet you are  

[anda]

you were talking about show-off piexe, right? of course i would be much more impressed by a well-played scarlatti sonata (or by a mozart sonata, or by - hardly ever- even fur elise) then by khatchaturian's toccata. but if you're talking about show-off pieces, i don't think the toccata qualifies. yes, i do think that if you want to impress professionists with your technique (for that's all about show-off - in case my english is good enough to understand you correctly), the work has to be difficult.

no word about my suggestions? try and we talk again.

one more thing. i heard yesterday in a talk show: they were talking about "technical pianists", and they said the best 3 ever would be horowitz, cziffra and volodos, and that horowitz and cziffra were "technical oriented" (bad translation, i mean they consider the technical part as the most important thing). i don't agree - not even in cziffra's case, little less about horowitz - i guess they never heard him playing mozart or chopin or brahms. i guess it's a common confusion, because he can play the bumblebee or his own carmen fantasy the way he does

[anda]

And while you're at it you could play half a Rachmaninov prelude ,
Ed

try at least reading the pictures (i suppose you never played the work, since you make this kind of compares)- you'll see for yourself why most of them aren't at all like "half a Rachmaninov prelude...

[eddie92099]

try at least reading the pictures (i suppose you never played the work, since you make this kind of compares)- you'll see for yourself why most of them aren't at all like "half a Rachmaninov prelude...

You obviously didn't understand me. I have played Pictures at an Exhibition - my comment was referring to the fact that you would play a picture on its own. To me this would be about as ridiculous as playing half a Rachmaninov prelude,
Ed

[nad]

you were talking about show-off piexe, right? of course i would be much more impressed by a well-played scarlatti sonata (or by a mozart sonata, or by - hardly ever- even fur elise) then by khatchaturian's toccata. but if you're talking about show-off pieces, i don't think the toccata qualifies. yes, i do think that if you want to impress professionists with your technique (for that's all about show-off - in case my english is good enough to understand you correctly), the work has to be difficult.

eh i dont quite understand your comparison with fur elise and the toccata? You would be more impressed by a good performance of fur elise or a sonata by scarlatti then the khatchaturian toccata? This topic is about a show off piece meaning that the piece should not be too hard but it should sound impressive. The toccata being excellent performed, i find it quite impressive for a piece that isn't technically very hard. And for the rest, with what quality do you want to impress a professional pianist? With musicality or technique? Or a combination? Because then we're talking about different types of pieces here.

[anda]

You obviously didn't understand me. I have played Pictures at an Exhibition - my comment was referring to the fact that you would play a picture on its own. To me this would be about as ridiculous as playing half a Rachmaninov prelude,
Ed

ok, i admit i never played one picture alone (only the whole work), and indeed you couldn't include "some pictures" in a recital - that's obviously stupid. but i have heard played as encores (i hope that's the word - after the concert, upon public's request) some of the pictures on various occasions - it seems that the genereal preference goes to samuel goldberg und schmuyle. next week i'll tell you also how it feels to play "some pictures" - that's what i have to do (not my idea!!!)

anda

[eddie92099]

it seems that the genereal preference goes to samuel goldberg und schmuyle

A nice happy and light one to end the evening ,
Ed

[Rob47]

There are a million great "show off" pieces.  I recommened any Hungarian rhapsody (some more showy than others), possibly the horowitz arrangements of numbers 2,15 and 19 (19 especially has a terrific ending)  Any horowitz arrangement is going to definetly bring the house down (carmen variations comes to mind) . danse macarbe arranged by horowitz has some great showy passages.....ya i guess liszt in general. Obviously rachamninovs 3rd piano concerto is pretty showy in places (the cadenza in the third movement, or wait, the entire concerto in general).

A nice piece that sounds "showier" and a lot harder than it actually is, (if you have big hands) is Scriabin's Op. 8 no. 12 d sharp minor etude.

Hmm i can only think of liszt. look for "Grande Fantaisie de Bravoure sur La Clochette de Paganini" (Grand Fantasy on Paganini's La Campanella).  This is a 30? page work which is MUCH much more complex than the etude version.

And maybe take a look at list'z (yes more liszt) Beethoven symphony transcriptions.  Particularily number 9...wow. just looking at the score is mind boggling.

To sum up my rambling...rach/liszt/horowitz.

But there's a milion showy songs. Just listen to recordings and you'll find something.

I recommend Spanish rhapsody because of its catchy melodies.  It's really not a complicated piece but sounds showy as hell.

I hope i do not sound to arrogant.

Best musical regards
Rob.

[Shagdac]

There are many depending on one's taste, but here are mine......

La Campanella by Liszt (jaws will drop)
Rach's Prelude in C# minor (haunting)
Mozart's Ah,Vous Dirai-je, Maman (Gets the most smiles)
...and can be tricky if played all the way thru up to speed. This is one of my all time faves!....Campanella sounds pretty impressive as well...and played fast. Always reminds of of a Tom and Jerry cartoon music you can almost see them scamper across the tv screen as you play!

[L.K.]

How about Schredin's humoreske? It seems like a fun piece and not too hard.

There are also lots of Liszt pieces that definitely aren't as hard as they look. Valse impromptu would be one of them.

[Shagdac]

How bout "Heroic Polonaise"....it' fun to play and sounds really hard? Almost any song to a "non" player will be impressive, but I have found many pianists impessed with a good rendition of Heroic Polonaise.

[scriabinsmyman]

Chopin's Fantasie-Impromptu is a show-off piece, and pretty intermediate-level...or Poulenc tocatta...Scriabin etude in D # minor is fun too!