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Cracking the
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2• Pianist 103

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 Pianist 118 CONTENTS
February-March 2021
The next issue of Pianist goes on sale 19 March 2021

4
8
Editor’s Note
10 20 How to Play 1 Melanie
78
68 Steven Osborne Erica Worth
Spanswick guides us through talks to the down-to-earth pianist
4 Reader Competition Three Chopin’s popular A major as he approaches his 50th birthday
readers to receive Alexandre Prélude (Scores p27)
Kantorow’s latest album 70 Keys and their meanings
21 How to Play 2 Quality of sound Does a certain key produce a
6 Readers’ Letters Praise for is of the utmost importance in particular emotion? If so, how and
Buniatishvili, plus how our Chaminade’s Aubade, explains why? John Evans investigates
anatomy shapes our technique Nils Franke (Scores p33)
74 Burkard Schliessmann The
8 A tribute to Dame Fanny 22 How to Play 3 Less is more German pianist talks about his
Editor Erica Worth takes a look when it comes to pedalling in new ‘fantasy’ album and the
back at the extraordinary life of Schubert’s E flat Impromptu, influence of Bach on Chopin
the late Dame Fanny Waterman says Lucy Parham (Scores p54)
78 Silver screen pianists
10 Alexandre Kantorow The 24 Beginner Keyboard Class From romantic comedies to
Moscow Gold Medallist opens Lesson 45: Exercise for tense thrillers, Warwick
up about the life-changing wrist rotation Thompson explores the world of
influence of his teacher, and his fictional pianists in film
adoration for all things Brahms 25 The Scores A solemn work
from Reicha, a more joyful 81 Album Reviews Five stars for
14 How to Play Masterclass 1 Rondo from Diabelli, plus a Lara Melda, David Greilsammer
A kinder approach is needed divine Sarabande from Bach and and Stephen Hough – but Daniil
when building up our stamina at a catchy march from Merikanto Trifonov’s Silver Age triumphs
the piano, says Mark Tanner
67 Piano Teacher Help Desk 82 Sheet Music Reviews
16 How to Play Masterclass 2 How can we create a strong, Insect-inspired music from
Graham Fitch addresses the healthy working relationship Aleksey Igudesman, challenging
technical difficulties in three of with our students? Kathryn Page Strauss from Henle, and right
this issue’s Scores hands out some crucial advice hand fun from Mike Cornick
Cover image: © Olaf Heine. Top, centre: © Olaf Heine
Notice: Every effort has been made to secure permission for copyrighted material in this magazine, however, should
copyrighted material inadvertently have been used, copyright acknowledgement will be made in a later issue of the magazine.

Est 1910
C

CM

MY

CY

CMY

7 - 8 chester court. albany st. london. nw1 4bu

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p03 118 Contents-FINALish.indd 3 11/01/2021 16:29

 DON’T MISS OUR FREE
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4• Pianist 118 ISSN 1475 - 1348

p04-editorial118-FINAL.indd 4 18/01/2021 10:08

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 LETTERS
HAVE YOUR SAY
EMAIL: editor@pianistmagazine.com WRITE TO: The Editor, Pianist, Warners Group Publications, The Maltings, West St, Bourne, PE10 9PH.
Loving those rhythms
I really enjoyed John Geraghty’s Rum
& Samba piece in issue 117. As an ex-
drummer, strict-tempo Latin American
rhythms were always an enjoyable and
rewarding challenge. Applying these
rhythmic disciplines to the piano adds
another level of interest in helping you to
feel the movement – excellent practice for
keeping the tempo tight.
Pianist has been an invaluable
companion providing enjoyment,
inspiration and so much to focus and
concentrate on through these difficult
times. I am sure that many people, like
myself, have benefitted from the power of
music and from the contribution Pianist
has made to our mental well-being.
John Taylor, Leicestershire
Posture-perfect Buniatishvili
How right you are to compliment
Khatia Buniatishvili’s ‘incredible posture’
[Editor’s Note, issue 117], when she
played as an encore, in April 2020, the
Liszt arr. Horowitz Rhapsody No 2. It
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P06 letters.indd 6
Your chance to
Letters may be edited.
was so bewitching, watching and listening
to this recommended performance
on YouTube, that I stayed at my desk
to hear an earlier programme by this
pianist, Live at iTunes Festival 30/9/2014,
in which she plays pieces by Chopin,
Debussy, Liszt, Handel, Ravel and Bach.
There is something other-worldly about
this Georgian artist. Not only does she
give her rapt audience a masterclass in
elemental, fiery passion, she also enjoys
an uncanny ability to take us all on a
dreamlike journey to a musical fantasy
land, where the tenderest of notes can
be heard with the most perfect weight
afforded each one.
Khatia Buniatishvili ticks the two
essential boxes, which – for me, at least
– make a performance unforgettable.
Time stands still, and she brings tears
to one’s eyes. There are the three Cs –
total concentration, commitment and
conviction – plus consummate artistry,
persuading one to feel that this must be
the only way the piece should be played.
This lady has an almost hypnotic presence,
6• Pianist 118
Handel Classified.indd 1
and we are blessed to be able to witness
and enjoy her ravishing musicianship.
Gavin Littaur, London
The shape of things
Regarding the Perfect Curve article inside
issue 117, may I suggest that anatomical
differences determine whether you
can play curved or flat as well as to the
perception as to whether you actually
are playing curved or flat. With some
pianists, like Chenyin Li and Tiffany
Poon, the top joint of the fingers bends
up, and this may give the impression
of playing flatter than they actually are.
Other pianists have straight or even
downward curved top joints so even if
they tried to play flat they probably give
the impression of playing curved.
In the end, it’s about the technique, and
each of us has to develop that which is
best suited to our anatomy. This involves
not only the fingers, but the wrists, arms,
shoulders – indeed the whole of the upper
body and probably more even than that.
Colin Miles, Llannon, Carmarthenshire
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7• Pianist 118

p07_pianist118.indd 7 11/01/2021 10:01

 TRIBUTE
DAME FANNY
AT HOME AND OFF STAGE
Editor Erica Worth shares her memories of a piano legend
R
eaders of Pianist last heard from Dame Fanny
Waterman exactly a year ago, in issue 112. She
was about to turn 100 and I had the pleasure of
three hours in her company, at her home in the
suburbs of Leeds. She was full of high spirits and
good stories. The prospect of the day itself, on 22 March,
seemed to spur her on, and why not? The celebrations at the
University of Leeds were due to include a recital from Anna
Tsybuleva and Federico Colli, former winners of the Leeds
International Piano Competition which had become
synonymous with her. Pianists from far and wide would honour
her life and achievements at a gala dinner.
The pandemic put paid to these long-cherished plans. The
celebrations, alas, could not wait, for Dame Fanny died on 20
December 2020. A full obituary of her rich and rewarding life
– facts, figures, many of them astonishing – is available on the
Pianist website. However, I would like to pay a more personal
tribute to ‘Dame Fanny’ – as she was known to those dear to
her – with my own memories of this indomitable lady, who will
© SWPix (bottom picture, page 9)
always have a place in my heart.
Owning the stage
I first saw Dame Fanny in person at the finals of the 1981
Competition. She cut an impressive figure to this 17-year-old
8• Pianist 118
P8 Fanny-FINALish.indd 8
Sharing the stage in Oxford, 2018
piano student from Nottingham as she awarded First Prize to
Ian Hobson. How huge Leeds Town Hall seemed, and how tiny
she looked in the centre of the wide stage, and yet how
completely the stage seemed to belong to her. I soon left the UK
for studies abroad, but I always kept up with news from ‘The
Leeds’. Most of its award-winners – not only the first prizes –
went on to pursue careers that rewarded the confidence and
trust which success at The Leeds had placed in them. It is my
privilege that many of those prize-winners have, over the course
of time, become valued colleagues and friends: Noriko Ogawa,
Alessio Bax, Leon McCawley, Artur Pizarro, Kathryn Stott…
As editor of this magazine, I always kept Dame Fanny on my
radar. We produced a special supplement to announce the 2009
Competition (in Pianist 49), which gave me the opportunity to
visit her at home for the first time. A detailed meeting was
followed by lunch at a fancy restaurant (she enjoyed good food).
As we chatted, I was soon struck by her love of teaching: ‘A
huge part of my life,’ she told me. ‘I had a teacher that wasn’t
very good. She had no idea about all the great composers and
she used to cook her husband’s dinner during my piano lessons!’
Dame Fanny was delighted by my proposal that we reprint
some chapters from her book, On Piano Teaching and
Performance; and so, in issues 50-56, we ran Dame Fanny’s The
Craft of Playing series. It turned out to be a huge success with
11/01/2021 11:30
readers; in person she had been accustomed to tutoring the
child prodigies of this world, but her style of teaching
proved to be extremely attractive and sympathetic to the
adult amateur learners who are the beating heart of Pianist’s
readership. ‘Piano competitions are not perfect, but there is
no alternative,’ she once said, and her pragmatic philosophy,
never to let the perfect be the enemy of the good, made her
a teacher of great wisdom.
Every three years I’d receive my invitation from Dame
Fanny to attend the launch of the next Competition. One
such occasion took place at 10 Downing Street, in the
presence of Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife,
Sarah (2009 launch). As winner of the first Leeds
Competition in 1963, Michael Roll gave a mini-recital at
the reception, and I will always remember Dame Fanny’s
look of concentration and admiration while he played.

Laughter and grit In conversation with Dame Fanny at her home, 2019
Another event I recall with great fondness took place the
same year: a reception at the Faber Music offices in London,
to celebrate the sale of two million copies of her piano
teaching books: an unprecedented landmark which
recognised her unique and lasting impact on the culture of
piano playing and education around the globe. She was on
top form, surrounded by well-wishers and showered with
praise, but she still took the time to leaf through the latest
copy of Pianist: ‘What a wonderful magazine you have!’ We
giggled together like schoolgirls (there was always laughter
when Dame Fanny was in the room).
Dame Fanny was known for keeping in touch with Leeds
winners, and she took pains to attend their debut recitals. I
sat near her when Federico Colli appeared at the Queen
Elizabeth Hall recital and gave a phenomenal reading of
Schumann’s First Sonata, again rewarding the judgment of
those (including Dame Fanny) who had awarded him First
Prize in the 2012 Competition. The warmth of their
affection was plain to see when they met in the foyer
afterwards; Dame Fanny could make friends in every Leafing through the pages of Pianist at the Faber Music reception, 2009
age-group. She even established an unlikely rapport with
Lang Lang, who became Global Ambassador for the
Competition in 2012. ‘Lang Lang is a great pianist – and
every pianist in the world would like to have his ten fingers!’
she once told me, at a time when the whole world seemed
to be slinging mud in the direction of the Chinese pianist.
Dame Fanny and I last appeared on stage together – how
far away that initial, dazzling impression in Leeds seemed!
– in August 2018, when I hosted a ‘Dame Fanny Waterman
Q&A’ as part of the Oxford International Music Festival.
The hall was full. She was already rather frail by then, and it
took some time for her to reach the stage with the help of a
friend and her walking frame. Once there, however, there
was no stopping her, or her fund of memory and anecdote.
I could not resist asking the source of her astonishing
energy. ‘My philosophy is: “If you don’t use it, you lose it”
and “If you want to keep going, keep going”.’ Words she
lived by to the end. n

Read Dame Fanny Waterman’s final interview with

Erica Worth at www.bit.ly/damefannyinterview. Catching up after the Finals of the 2018 Leeds International Piano Competition

9• Pianist 118
 INTERVIEW

TAP TO WATCH
Alexandre Kantorow plays
Brahms Piano Concerto No 2

TAP TO WATCH
Alexandre Kantorow plays
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No 2

TO BRAHMS
AND BEYOND
At the age of 23, with a gold
medal from Moscow and
five albums under his belt,
Alexandre Kantorow has the
world at his feet. However,
as he tells Peter Quantrill,
there is so much left to learn
 A
young man rises from the keyboard. Sallow, open-necked
and hollow-eyed, he nods from exhaustion as he turns
to acknowledge the storm of applause breaking over the
last chord of the music, his arms hanging limp by his
sides. No wonder. Alexandre Kantorow has just played
the second concertos of Tchaikovsky and then Brahms, one straight
after the other, in the final of the 2019 Moscow International
Tchaikovsky Competition.
It’s a performance that won him not only the gold medal in
the piano division, but also the coveted grand prix of the whole
competition, also covering its violin, cello and vocal sections,
awarded on a discretionary basis to artists of quite exceptional
gifts (Daniil Trifonov won it in 2011). Still available to view on
the online Medici TV platform, the occasion is remarkable not
only for Kantorow’s stamina – an hour and a half playing the most
physically demanding concertos in the repertoire – but also the
surge, the shape and passion infusing all those double-octaves and
lyrical lines. You can see him listening to himself, to the orchestra
as well: he is in the zone.
On a Zoom call from his home in Paris, Kantorow relives the
experience with me. All the Moscow finalists must play a pair of
concertos, one of them by Tchaikovsky: what made him choose
the Cinderella Second? ‘I started off with the First, because it felt
like the normal choice. But I began to get this weird sensation of
not managing to find my own path in it. I felt uncomfortable with

Alexandre
so many versions in my ear. I was a bit depressed one afternoon,
and since my dad has all these orchestral scores at home, I picked

Kantorow
out the Second and it felt like a breath of fresh air. It also felt very
natural under the fingers – there was an immediate response even
sight-reading it.’

Family values Up clos e

Dad is Jean-Jacques Kantorow, the violinist and now conductor
who has partnered his son and the Tapiola Sinfonietta on a
fast-multiplying pile of recordings for the Swedish label BIS.
For the first of them, way back in 2014, Kantorow played the
Liszt concertos – young man’s music, but already touched with
remarkable maturity by the 17-year-old. ‘The great thing about
Alexandre,’ remarked the Sinfonietta’s principal clarinet, Harri
Mäki, ‘is that he always listens and absorbs ideas while he retains
his own clear and logical inner voice. I have the feeling that I am
witnessing the beginning of something very remarkable.’
There is a lightness of being about Kantorow, now 23, that
offsets his natural affinity with music known for its density and
complexity, Brahms above all. His parents encouraged him to keep
up his academic studies, which tended by inclination towards the
sciences. Even so, by the age of 14 his talent at the piano could not
be ignored, and he became a student of Igor Laszko at the Schola
Cantorum in Paris. ‘He told me it could become a professional
choice for me – I could make a career from it – but I would have to
work. My parents said go for it, but they weren’t 100 per cent sure,
and neither was I. But I knew I needed more time for music.’
By the time he entered the Conservatoire National, studying with
Frank Braley and Haruko Ueda, Kantorow had already made his
concerto debut, with the Sinfonia Varsovia at a music festival in
Nantes. ‘I gobbled up all the music I could,’ he remembers. ‘Those
were nice times. It was like a bubble of music. That was when I
All photos © Olaf Heine
If you could play only one piece from now on,
what would it be?
It’s the only piece I have in my head right now,
so… Brahms’s Second Concerto! But that would
probably be the truth.
If you could play only one composer?
In a weird way, probably Beethoven, even though I
haven’t played much of his music yet.
One pianist you would travel a long way
to hear?
Dead, probably Sofronitsky. Alive, Pletnev.
One concert hall you’d love to play in?
I love the Concertgebouw – I was lucky enough to
play there during lockdown, and I found how the
acoustic changes extraordinary. And it feels cosy –
comfortable – it doesn’t feel like a big hall. As for a
hall I haven’t played in yet: Wigmore Hall.
One piece of advice to amateur pianists?
Listen to yourself.

decided to devote myself to music.’ The hard yards of theory had

not always come to Kantorow as naturally as messing around on If you weren’t a pianist, what would you be?
the piano, learning to play one piece as fast and loud as possible Something in science – maybe astrophysics.
and then looking for another. ‘When I was little I was so bad at
▲

11• Pianist 118

INTERVIEW
TAP TO WATCH
Alexandre Kantorow plays
Saint-Saëns Danse macabre
analysis! I didn’t grasp the connection between what I
heard and what I was doing. But for the conservatoire I
had to take a crash course over the summer beforehand,
and afterwards I was amazed at how easy and logical they
felt, these ideas of tension and resolution. And then these
ideas connected organically with my playing. Now it’s
one of the joys I have, to take the score of a symphony
and read through it.’
The path to Moscow
In 2015 he first met the teacher of virtuosos, and
virtuoso teacher, Rena Shereshevskaya. The story goes
that she asked him, ‘What do you want from me?’ His
reply: ‘The Tchaikovsky!’ That year Shereshevskaya had
coached and guided Lucas Debargue to a fourth prize
at the competition, and the stirrings of a career which
would soon outstrip his higher-placed rivals.
‘I am really attracted to the
Brahms who defies how we
often think of him… so fiery
and ambitious and even
avant-garde’
Kantorow began to work with her, dreaming of
Moscow. ‘I had no idea what preparing for it would
involve,’ he says. ‘Competitions aren’t a big cultural
thing for us in France. A year beforehand I started to
prepare with her, having several lessons a week and
going into a level of detail on each piece that I never
imagined before. I am lucky never to have to do another
competition again!’
12• Pianist 118
How does Shereshevskaya work her magic? According
to Kantorow: ‘Her special quality is to make a lot of
abstract observations but to put them in concrete terms.’
There is an absorbing documentary (To Music, on
Naxos) showing her at work with Debargue in just this
fashion. For Kantorow, too, the experience – of both the
coaching and the competition – was transformative.
‘It was like being in a dark room when the light goes on.
You blink, then suddenly you understand more. I learnt
a lot of new stuff, especially about timing, and length of
sound. What I did before is quite lacking in those terms:
I was unaware of things that are now painfully audible
to me.’
Such as? In reply, Kantorow uses both brass tacks and
big ideas: it’s a French thing. ‘When you hit a note on
the piano, it dies. You cannot give it new life. So much
of what we do is to let it die in a certain way so that we
feel a line, and a singing voice. A big part of that comes
simply from awareness. It’s very striking that if you
listen to the sound to the end, you will hear it and most
of your listeners will too. If this awareness is combined
with a nice amount of timing between the notes, it can
really feel like you are singing at the piano. My teacher
is also obsessed with the idea of playing with your hands
not exactly together, making each note clear, so that
the melodic line is also clear to the listener, it isn’t just
vertical chords.’
From early on in his preparation, Kantorow had
determined to submit himself to scrutiny in Moscow
with the Second Concerto by Brahms, a marathon in
itself. ‘It’s still the concerto that I feel keeps the piano
at the perfect spot,’ he says. ‘You have to assume the
leading voice, but also be the accompaniment, to make
chamber music and a symphony. We realised it was a
pretty long programme; that endurance would be an
issue. But it was easier than I expected. Having played
previous rounds in the hall I felt a lot more comfortable,
and the orchestra gives you so much energy and electricity.
After the Tchaikovsky Concerto, I felt exhausted. On the
other hand, there was no way to be tense in the arms.
Something that stresses me out about the Brahms is that
if you don’t have a relaxed arm from the first entry, it’s so
audible. So in one way it was a lot easier to perform after
the Tchaikovsky!’
Moscow changed everything, including his latest BIS
album, of more Brahms (the Second Sonata), coupled
with Bartók and Liszt, which he had recorded before
the competition. ‘After one year, listening to it again felt
terrible. So I did it again, in Paris, and then re-did half of it
again in Finland. Maybe it was just a stupid ego thing, not
accepting what you’ve done and letting it go. This was the
first time I have been a pain for my record company!’

Defying expectations
Now embarking on an international career, Kantorow
retains a certain diffidence – an air of sanity, perhaps –
about where the next few years will take him, although
Brahms will certainly keep him company. BIS will
record the First and Third Sonatas with similarly original
couplings; scheduled concerts include a trip back to Russia
in March, to the Siberian wilds of Perm for a festival
curated by Denis Matsuev. ‘I am really attracted to the
Brahms who defies how we often think of him,’ he says,
‘so fiery and ambitious and even avant-garde; he could be
compared to Liszt. I am pretty sure that Liszt would have
been amazed by these youthful sonatas. They are so bold,
harmonically intense and structurally original.’
One unanticipated benefit of being in demand is the
opportunity to play on different instruments. ‘You often
unlock a lot of problems by playing a piece on a different
piano,’ he says. ‘Then, when you play at home, you sound
different to how you did before. This often happens when
I go back home after playing concerts, and it lasts for a few
days before I settle back into the sound of the instruments
I’m used to.’
Kantorow recalls seeing Mikhail Pletnev in recital in
Paris a while ago. ‘He takes his own Kawai piano with him.
I had the chance to play it after the concert, and it’s one
of the weirdest pianos I’ve ever put my fingers on! He’s a
fanatic for pianos that have length: he hates percussion
on a piano, and will go to great lengths to have the most
singing tone possible. So, for example, the bass is very
muted compared to the upper voices. Everything feels
like butter. After hearing it and playing on it for a couple
of days there were things about his style that I grasped, a
mimetic instinct kicked in – I even found myself wanting
to imitate the way he puts his hands on the piano. Maybe
it’s a sign that I am not fully formed yet, but for now it
feels as though watching someone else play can change
the whole balance of how I play.’ Not unlike Brahms,
Kantorow has an old head on young shoulders. n

Alexandre Kantorow plays Brahms, Bartók and Liszt on BIS

2380. Scheduled concerts include the Fifth Piano Concerto of
Saint-Saëns at the Royal Festival Hall on 7 April. For updates,
see intermusica.co.uk/artist/Alexandre-Kantorow.
Alexandre Kantorow plays Balakirev’s Islamey on this issue’s
covermount. Full details on back of album.
 HOW TO PLAY
STAYING POWER
THE RIGHT WAY TO
BUILD STAMINA
The capacity to sustain stamina at the piano doesn’t mean
building muscles. Far from, says Mark Tanner, who
suggests a kinder, more mentally-engaged approach
W
hen we take
up the piano,
perhaps the
last thing on
our minds
is how to sustain the mental and
physical energy we’ll need to play
longer, more challenging pieces.
Stamina will mean something
subtly different for each of us:
For a conservatoire student it
could mean honing an hour or
more’s music so that it is ready to
gush out as a single convincing
event. For the amateur learner,
stamina may well function to
a lesser degree at first, though
adult players in particular need to
know how to build stamina while
preventing tension. Just as is the
case with someone preparing for
an athletic event, stamina is hard
won and needs to be nurtured
gradually. Unlike the athlete, a
pianist’s level of physical stamina
won’t necessarily be visible to
others (though it will probably be
audible), except of course for signs
of exhaustion or tension.
Physical stamina
I’ve read that in a 15-minute
period a pianist will typically
burn off twice as many calories
as a slow walker on a flat surface.
It would be interesting to
compare the energy spent when
practising a piece – particularly
when tackling its more taxing
passages – with performing that
same piece. A parallel might
be a golfer, who at the driving
range will hit as many balls in
30 minutes as when playing an
entire round lasting three to four
hours. For the pianist, there is
potentially a trade off between
the physical effort expended (an
indispensable component when
developing stamina) and the
detrimental physical symptoms
of tension. Ironically, the harder
we try to build up stamina – and
power – the more tension we may
inadvertently store up for ourselves
further down the line.
How we practise is more
important than how long we
practise. With this in mind, here
are several things that we can do to
improve our physical stamina:
5
TOP
TIPS
Power play
1 Physical stamina takes time and patience to
develop. Practise in short, focused sections,
continually varying dynamics and speed, then
progress to passages more ambitious in length.
Mental stamina needs constant, thoughtful
2 cultivation. The better you understand the music
you are playing, the better equipped you will be
to think ahead, and hence stave off nerves,
tension and fatigue.
3 Tension and discomfort can be unfortunate
byproducts when developing stamina. Harness
the power that awaits inside you.
Stamina and power are less dependent on
4 muscularity than timing, fluidity and suppleness.
5 Allow the piano to do what it does best – you
shouldn’t need to work too hard; use gravity to
help achieve a sonorous fortissimo effect.
14• Pianist 118
• Be kind to yourself and remain
vigilant for signs of pain, tension
or fatigue.
• Add patiently and progressively
to your expectations – short,
concentrated practice sessions
often work better than gritting
your teeth for extended periods.
• Don’t leap straight into practising
the most strenuous sections
of a piece. Start with its more
approachable corners, having
limbered up with preparatory
exercises or scales etc.
• Interweave less strenuous
sectional practice with passages
calling for greater power, speed
and energy.
• Loud, fast, potentially tiring
passages can usually be practised
effectively at a slower pace, and
more quietly too, though caution
against inadvertently introducing
technical workarounds that could
prove irksome to unlearn later.
• Guard against overworking one
hand or one particular technical
challenge, such as an awkward
stretch or leap.
• Repetition, though invaluable
when done purposefully in short
bursts, can become a breeding
ground for tension and harmful
muscle/joint strain. Factor in
frequent rests, with opportunities
to pause and take stock.
• Remember to breathe – in and
out – especially when practising
lengthier bravura passages.
Practising while holding your
breath, as though poised for a
bungee jump, will likely trigger
physical as well as mental
 negativity. We’ll unwittingly
get faster and faster, louder and
louder, more and more tense.
Mental stamina
In my previous article I looked
more in terms of calibrated control
than muscularity. You don’t need Energy boost
bulging biceps to play with power Mark Tanner’s advice for maintaining your
and authority; it’s more a matter drive in three of this issue’s scores
of optimising your physical and
mental resources. I’ve always felt TRACK 9
Merikanto March (p44): This march
Ever since we featured Merikanto’s Valse
Oskar MERIKANTO (1868-1924)

lente inside issue 78, we’ve heard

March Op 16 No 2

the ‘um-pah-pah’ gruff-sounding accompanying

takes care of the melody. Enjoy the peasant-dance
chords while the RH
swing and don’t rush.
INTERMEDIATE

at posture and its relationship to

Finnish composer. We are

that the brain should be doing the

nothing but admiration for this underrated if you take note of the changes of
(other pieces have appeared There’s a fair amount of repetition, but
always glad to feature more of his music – you’ll never be bored!

will give your LH a solid workout.

dynamics – especially the subito pianos
inside issue 107 and 114). Pedal tips: See markings on the score.
throughout: The LH takes care of
Playing tips: Things are pretty simple

. f #f. f. f f ‰ . . f . .
. f. f f f f f f f.

our physical wellbeing as pianists. bulk of the practising, and this is ™™ f f f f. f f f. f. f. f f

Moderato h = 46 1

J
2

∑
1

&c

{ Luckily, at the moderato pace,

mf
f.
? c f f ff f
f. .
f.
1
.

f.
™™ ff f ff
. .
ff.
f
f.
ff.
.
f. sim. ff f ff
ff f ff f

° °
1 /2

° °
2
5

I also looked at how an ideal, key to making our playing feel and
sim.

you’ve time to move between the

& f. f f f. f. f f ‰
2 1
f
j ™™ ™™ #f f f f f f f f f f f f f
F #f f f f f f f f f
2 3 2 3

{
p
ff ff f ff ff
ff ff f f
? f ff f ff ™™ ™™ f ff f
f f f

relaxed hand position increases our sound effortless. Ironically, power 9

&
f

f fff f
F
f

bass and tenor registers and still . . f . .

f. f f f f f f f.
. . . .
f. f f #f f. f fJ ‰ f. f f f. f f f f f.

{ ff f

chances of sounding and feeling and speed often seem to work in

mf
f ff f f f
ff f
ff f
ff
ff f ff f ff

give your wrist a welcome breather

? f ff ff f
f
5

>
3 2

. . #f.
1 1

>. #ff f f f f f ff f ‰
4 2

j ™™ ™™ ff ff ff ff. ff ff f ff f J
2 1

∑
13

& f. f f f. f. f f ‰

tension-free. Mental stamina opposition to each other – and { in between chords. The B major
? f
f
ff f
f f
f
>f
™™ ff f ff
> >
>ff
f

™™ ff

44• Pianist 118

ff
ff
ff
sf

f
>f
ff
f
f
f f

is another aspect altogether, excessive attempts to develop fortissimo climax at bar 23 will
06/01/2021 09:44

yet many of the strategies we
might adopt to improve physical
stamina can also underpin our
ability to stay mentally focused.
In both cases, patience is the
these simultaneously can lead to
tension – so it’s a good idea to
build up each component of our
playing separately and then learn
to combine them. Loud chordal
benefit from extra freedom of the arm/wrist.
Bridge Columbine (p49): Most hazards as regards
fatigue arguably linger in the LH, where a bold
TRACK 11
navigation of registers depends Frank BRIDGE (1879-1941)
Columbine, No 1 from Three Pieces H108
INTERMEDIATE/
ADVANCED

watchword, since our bodies and playing and octaves, along with
We suggest practising hands
there as a basic guide (hence, the ‘approx’).

upon instinctive keyboard

the Royal College of Music under must, so that the RH can float and
Brighton-born Frank Bridge studied at separately: a firm grasp of the LH is a
He was a concertising violist, and rotating the LH’s wrist/elbow very
Charles Villiers Stanford among others. dance over it. From bar 5, get used to
devote his musical life to cover the wide stretches without
conductor, but ultimately decided to slightly from left to right, in order to
he is most frequently that is, take a bar, then add
composing. Underappreciated even today, tensing up. Practise the RH in short sections:
Benjamin Britten. Bridge wrote
recognised as the teacher of the young another bar and so on, until you have
managed a phrase.
is the first piece in the set.
his Three Pieces H108 in 1912: Columbine Pedal tips: Ample use of pedal is required.
fluid, so the tempo marking is
Playing tips: The pulse should be quite

minds take time to absorb each lengthy streams of semiquavers, geography. The spread 10ths (bar 5
b b 3 f. . f. f. f. f f f f f
&b b 8 f
4 2

J
f. f. f f f f. f. f U
Poco lento q. = 48 approx.
. f. . 1
rall.

J
f™ f f™
f™ f f f
Tempo di valse
1

{
U pp
j
ffj bf nf
ff b fff ff f
p
ff ‰
f j nf j j j f
? bb b 38 f f f f f
f

newly introduced challenge. How easily become pressure points, not b J J f

6
bb
on) need a fluid upward motion to
&b b f f f f
f f f f f f f f f™
2
con Ped.

2
3 5

f f f
f™
4

f f f f f
f f nf f
1

{
f

effectively we combine our mental just for inaccuracy and unevenness, f f

f f ‰ f f ‰

avoid tightening up. Target the

? bb b f f
b f

>
poco rit.
‰ f
f ‰ ff

a tempo
1
‰ f

f nf. bf. bf. f. f. f™

5

b b f™ f f f f™
ten.
f f f™
f bf f n f f nf
11

and physical resources will dictate but also for fatigue and lost &b b
1
f

{ climax points early on, especially bf f

pp
mf
f f f ‰
‰ f ‰ f
? bb b f f ‰ f f ‰ nf
f bf f
b

f f f. f. . .

a) how long we can play without musical control.

f f f. f. . . .
1

f ffff f fff
1

from bars 93-107, where the risk of

2 1
16
bb ff f
&b b f ff ff
f. b f. n f. bf. nf.

{
f
f ff
f ∑ ?
f f ‰ f ‰ ff ‰ ‰
? bb b f ‰

∏∏∏∏∏∏
f &
b f f J

feeling discomfort, and b) how losing control rises considerably.

49• Pianist 118

06/01/2021 09:48

consistend and impactful our Here are a few thoughts on

playing sounds.
Here are a few things you can do
to maximise your mental stamina
at the piano:
marrying power with speed:
• In Romantic repertoire especially,
whenever possible, summon
power from a tension-free upper
body – not by jabbing from
Schubert Impromptu Op 90 No 2 (p54): Fluidity
and consistency are watchwords here. Hold off from
attempting a faster pace at first – the RH’s leggiero
triplets may scurry away unless checked against a
TRACK 12

metronome occasionally, and

DON’T MISS
LUCY PARHAM’S
LESSON
ONTHIS PIECE
PAGE
22

WATCH CHENYIN LI PLAY THIS

In 1827, Schubert wrote two sets of four

Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828)

impromptus: Opus 90 (D899)

Impromptu in E flat Op 90 No 2
AT WWW.PIANISTMAGAZINE.C
OM

on the Pianist YouTube channel.There’s

a plethora of interpretations out
there on YouTube from the likes of Brendel,
Uchida and Sokolov.
ADVANCED

the second in the first

• Spend time away from the piano,
too close above the keys, but by
and Opus posth 142 (D899). This Impromptu, on this piece on page 16.
challenging, and if executed Graham Fitch offers up practising tips
set, is one of his most florid and technically on page 22.
Read Lucy Parham’s step-by-step lesson

check regularly for signs of the

pianist Chenyin Li perform it
well, it can be spellbinding. Watch house

Alleg ro 4 1 2
f ff f ffff
f f #f #f f f f f f f f
1

b 3
4 4 1 3
4 1
ff
2 1 4 4

&b b 4 f f f f f f f nf #f f f
1 1 4
fffff

score in hand, listening internally raising the wrists and/or arms to { wrist bearing down to compensate
b
°
Œ
? bb 34 Œ F™
p legato
3

F
3 3
ΠF
F™
ø
Œ
F™ F

ø
Œ
F™
F

to what you are learning. draw in dynamic power as the f f fff ffff
ff f ffffff 2

fff ffffffff

for tiring fingers. The ben marcato

5 1

fff f f fffff
1

b
5 1 4 1 4 1 4 1 2 1
1

&b b f f f f f f
1

{
ΠF
f
FF
Œ F FF FFF f F F™
? bb F™ f
b f

• When practising, link together hands fall downwards towards

ø Ped. sim.

sections will sound all the more

10
b
& b b f ff ff f f f f f ff nf #f ff ff #f #f ffff
f ff ff ffff ff
ff
f f f ff ff f

{ ΠΠΠF FF
Œ F F™ F
F F™
? bb F ™ F™ f

sections thoughtfully so that the keys aided by gravity. 15

b

dramatic if you can hold firm in

b fffff ff
&b b
2
1 3 f f ff ff f f
5
2 1
1 fff f
fffff
1
f f f f fff
fffff fff nf #f ffff

simpler bars lead into and away • Practise switching between slow { Œ
f
ΠF ΠF
FF

tempo and avoid any sense of panic!

FF F F™ F™
? bb f F f F F™
b

54• Pianist 118

from more challenging ones. This and faster versions of the same
06/01/2021 09:53

p54 Schubert-FINALish.indd 54

builds in mental breathing spaces passage; then practise moving

– chances to refocus momentarily
on what’s coming up next.
• Gradually extend sections, but
always start and end from a
musically logical place.
• Slow-moving music still needs an
active, fully engaged brain.
• Don’t become hypnotised or
flustered by the busy visual
appearance of a score.
• If you prefer to memorise as
you learn, test this from every
conceivable angle and take
advantage of opportunities to
check that your hands are supple
and relaxed.
Power and speed
Though power unquestionably
plays an important part when
learning dramatic or virtuosic
pieces, it may help you to think
between loud and quieter lightly as you dare, and wherever
versions. Combine all possible possible, let your instrument do
permutations. the work for you!
• Pianists rarely take full advantage
of the ‘resting places’ that occur Finally, don’t let the glorious
naturally between phrases – and climax of a piece become its bête
especially between the chords/ noire. Building stamina and power,
harmonies/accompanimental especially at speed, needn’t feel
notes that on paper may appear like a gruelling gym workout.
continuous. It will often be Tension is the arch enemy of
possible, as well as musically power, stamina, speed and overall
valuable, to find time to allow control. Aim to keep your heart
the wrist to come up a little rate as calm as possible, especially
after a fortissimo chord (or short when practising difficult passages.
group of chords); doing this feels Your body works best when it is in
almost the equivalent to taking a balance with itself, with minimum
power nap. energy squandered and maximum
• Tremolo octaves can be value gained from each tiny
particularly fatiguing to sustain. movement. n
The desired impact can be
achieved using less energy than You can find out more about Mark
one might imagine; play as Tanner at www.marktanner.info.

15• Pianist 118

HOW TO PLAY
PROBLEM SOLVING
PRACTICE IDEAS
FOR OUR PIECES
In the second part of a topic addressing tricky technical
issues in some of Pianist’s Scores, Graham Fitch turns to
three very different works – each with their own hurdles
Diabelli Rondo from Sonatina Op 151 No 1 (p36)
I would like to offer two main practice suggestions that will keep
you feeling coordinated in this sparkling Rondo. Using a very
small wrist hinge in the LH’s broken chord pattern will help
you keep this light and characterful. From a wrist that is level
with the forearm, gently drop the arm into the fifth finger notes,
from the key surface. As you play each repeat chord, allow the
wrist to hinge up over the course of the bar – but only a couple
of millimetres per chord. This very small range of motion will
be enough to keep you free and mobile. It’s most important to
check that you are not key-bedding (pushing into the fifth finger
as you hold the key).
ff ff ff ff ff ff
?# F F
My other practice suggestion involves using the chaining
technique to incorporate several notes into one physical gesture,
the down-up (or drop-roll) slur. Working with the RH alone,
drop into the first note. Keeping the wrist free and the hand
loose and supple, allow the second note to release upwards. Go
back, this time adding another note while ensuring that you’re
making one down-up motion that embraces the three notes.
Continue the chaining process in the same way until you reach
the end of the group, always one gesture per group of notes.
#2
etc.
f f ™ ™ f f f f #f ™
& 4 f f ™™ ™™ f f R ™™ ™™ f f
f Firstly, propel the arm gently from the bass note – an upward
™ ™ ™
# f f #f f ™ ™ f f f f #f f f
& ™™ f f
J
™ ™ ™™
This technique will also work very well for the LH scale passages
from bar 18 onwards. Taking the chaining idea a step further,
when you are ready to move from a slow practice speed to the
required allegretto, play hands together (at full speed) one bar
plus one note and then stop (stopping is the hard part, as you’ll
find you want to go on!). Replay until you’re happy with your
result before starting on the note you stopped on and playing
16• Pianist 118
until you reach the next down beat. Once you have a few one-
bar chains, you can join them together by following the same
process – this time in two-bar units. From two bars, we find we
can make four- then eight-bar chains, and we’re well on the road
to a fluent performance.
Burgmein Romance Poudrée (p46)
Under the pen name of Jules Burgmein, Giulio Ricordi made
several contributions to the family publishing house, Casa
Ricordi. Romance Poudrée (Powdered Romance) is a charming
confection that is guaranteed to bring a smile, provided it is
played with the necessary freedom. Treat the RH as a bel canto
singer who pays scant regard to the metrics of the bar line and
adheres to a steady pulse for barely a beat or two. Instead, allow
yourself to linger indulgently on certain notes and pass swiftly
through others; rhythmical correctness and good taste have little
place in this piece, which can be milked for all its expressive and
dramatic possibilities and will come out sounding all the better
for it.
The LH is the subservient accompanist, whose job it is to aid
and abet the RH’s flights of fancy. The LH will need to be on
the ball, though, since there are quite a few jumps to negotiate.
Making the chord progressions smooth and yet flexible at the
required soft dynamic takes a certain amount of skill. Therefore,
I recommend starting the practice with the LH alone, taking
the time to organise a fingering that enables as many smooth
connections as possible from one chord to the next.
Let’s look at one or two spots from the LH: the fingering
is designed to make the chord shapes fit the hand beautifully.
motion that takes the hand quickly and directly to the
first chord. In the chord progressions, aim to make legato
connections within the hand wherever possible and convenient.
For example, in bar 1, I can control my sound far better when I
make a physical join from the fifth finger F# to the second chord
(releasing the upper fingers as I move), and likewise at the end
of the bar from the thumb. In bar 6, I find I stay closer to the
keys when I use all the points of legato this bar offers. I practise
releasing the unconnectable fingers precisely in order not to have
to think about this as I play – joins and releases happen easily
and naturally. Once you have mastered this skill you will feel
your LH gliding smoothly from one chord shape to the next,
as if by magic.
 TAP HERE TO WATCH GRAHAM’S ONLINE LESSONS

2 1
1
2 1
jo in
by stopping on each beat of the bar in turn (see my video
3 5
Bar 1 r 2
ff demonstration for this).
? ## ‰ ff ≈ ff f ff
2 ff It can also be very helpful to practise the triplets in a variety of
f f J f
R ≈ 3 f
F™ joi n 3 2
5 different rhythmical patterns from time to time. However, don’t
5 3
fall into the trap of doing this mechanically – always listen, and
2
≈ 2
3
2 always stay in touch with the physical sensations in your body
ffr ≈ r
3

Bar 6
r 1
≈ 1
4

ffr ≈ f
2
4
5 for good sound and to keep free of tension.
? ## ‰ fff f fff f ff
F™ °
5 3
5
/ f f f f f f f f f

Later in the piece we find scary-looking groups of fast notes

in small note values (e.g. bar 38). Rather than think of these ¢/ f f f f f f f f f
as fast, think of them as free – in the style of a vocal cadenza.
Linger over these caressingly as you suspend the pulse.
The climax appears from bar 34, a juicy ff phrase. I always
°
remember the advice of my teachers and the famous concert / f™ f f f™ f f f™ f f
pianists I took classes with, which is to practise loud passages
softly most of the time. We don’t need to practise loudly to play
loudly; it’s much more beneficial to play softly during practice.
Why? When we practise loudly, we tend to overemphasise (and
¢ / f™ f f f f f f f f f
often overdo) the vertical element of putting the keys down – to
the detriment of tone quality and the long line. In addition to Many players are so intent on the (more difficult) RH that they
being able concentrate on the quality of our sound, we’ll also forget to listen to the supporting LH. It’s a good plan to find the
avoid overexerting our muscles and tendons (which can easily character for the LH first before adding the RH, ensuring you
lead to injury problems when overdone). Who doesn’t revel in create a line from the long notes (dotted minims) while keeping
opening up the piano’s sound and letting it ring out? There’s a the thumb notes on the second beat very light (from bar 1,
visceral enjoyment in it and it sounds very impressive, but save etc.). When the pattern changes in bar 6 enjoy the sensation
it for special occasions. One final word about loud playing: just of jumping off the crotchet bass notes, landing in the minim
because we find ff in the score it doesn’t mean that each note is chords (there is a change of rhythmical emphasis here).
equally loud – the dynamic applies to the overall sound. In this In the middle section, placing the accented second beats
context the chords in between the beat (harmonic and rhythmic slightly late and playing the triplet figure on the fast side will
padding) need only be played mf, and we would want to voice help to bring out the Hungarian flavour we find in the music
the octaves beautifully, favouring the top RH and lightening at this point. This type of rhythmic articulation would be
the thumb somewhat. In the LH, do we want to project a clear ironed out by too much metronome practice, so reduce this to a
line in the octaves by bringing out the thumb, or are we after minimum and question whether you need it at all. n
the booming resonance the fifth finger offers? Experiment with
the voicing and the balances until you find your ideal sound Check out Graham’s study edition of the Schubert Impromptu here:
– there’s a bit of alchemy involved here, and every player will www.bit.ly/GrahamSchubert, and his walkthroughs of the piece
come up with a different result. here: www.bit.ly/Grahamwalkthrough. For the Online Academy’s
Q-Spot Series, visit: www.bit.ly/q-spotseries.
Schubert Impromptu in E flat Op 90 No 2 (p54)
At first glance, the A section looks like an etude for the RH –
fast, relentless triplets spanning the upper registers. However,
don’t play the figuration mechanically, but contour it like a @ GET IN TOUCH
melodic line with rises and falls. The opening, marked p, lends
itself to a delicate leggiero, played by the fingertips from the key
surfaces supported by a light arm that floats behind the hand as
it guides it across the keyboard. When working slowly, I suggest
practising the RH using a light finger staccato at the required
dynamic level, and then working fast in short groups of three
notes, RH alone and hands together.

bbb fJÆ ‰ f f fJÆ ‰ f f fÆ ‰ j

f ‰ f f fj ‰ f j ‰
& J ff

{
' ' f f
'
ΠF ΠF
? b F™ F™ Graham Fitch would like to hear from readers who have piano-playing
bb questions, whether about a cer tain technique or a passage in a piece of
music. Please write to the editor at editor@pianistmagazine.com.
Due to the large number of requests, Graham may not be able to answer
After you have made some progress, use the principle of
every question that is submitted.
controlled stops to encourage accuracy and technical control

17• Pianist 118

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we’ve covered has inspired a lot of
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66• Pianist 116

Operated by Pro Corda Trust, a registered charity No.116213
 THE SCORES
Pianist 118 • Read the lessons • Play the scores

LESSONS FROM THE EXPERTS SCORES

24 KEYBOARD CLASS
MELANIE SPANSWICK is a pianist, writer, teacher
Exercise for wrist rotation
and composer. As an author, she is published by
leading publishing houses, and has written a
three-book piano course for those returning to 25 DUNCOMBE
piano playing; Play It Again: PIANO (Schott Music). Fanfare Minuet
Melanie teaches the piano at Junior Guildhall
School of Music & Drama and Eton College. As a 26 KÖHLER
composer, her music is published in the renowned Easiest Practice Pieces
Edition Schott Composer Series. Op 190 No 17
Read Melanie Spanswick’s lesson on page 20
27 CHOPIN
Prélude Op 28 No 7
NILS FRANKE is Dean of Higher Education at the
University Centre Colchester, UK, having previously 28 BENDA
held posts at the London Academy of Music and Allegro in G
Dramatic Art (LAMDA) and the University of
Reading. He has recorded for Warner and Brilliant 30 REICHA
Classics. Nils specialises in historical performance Etude dans le genre fugué
pedagogy, with a particular focus on 19th-century Op 97 No 6
pianist-composers. His editions are published by
Wiener Urtext and Schott Music International.
33 CHAMINADE
Read Nils Franke’s lesson on page 21
Aubade Op 140

36 DIABELLI
LUCY PARHAM is a concert pianist, writer, teacher Rondo from Sonatina Op 151 No 1
and broadcaster. She has performed with all the
major British orchestras and is a regular presenter 41 JS BACH
and contributor on Radio 3 and 4. Her Composer
Sarabande from English Suite
Portraits series – featuring the lives of Chopin,
Debussy, Rachmaninov, Schumann and more – has
No 2 in A minor
resulted in hundreds of performances with some of
the UK’s finest actors. Lucy is a professor at the 44 MERIKANTO
© Erica Worth (Spanswick); © Sven Arnstein (Parham); Hao LV/Lumira Studio (Li)

Guildhall School of Music & Drama. March Op 16 No 2

Read Lucy Parham’s lesson on page 22
46 BURGMEIN
Romance Poudrée
CHENYIN LI is a celebrated concert pianist known
for her fiery and intelligent performances of a wide 49 BRIDGE
variety of repertoire. Having won multiple Columbine, No 1 from
international competitions, she has established Three Pieces H108
herself as a versatile player who shines in both solo
repertoire as well as concerto. Chenyin has 54 SCHUBERT
performed in many prestigious venues across the Impromptu in E flat Op 90 No 2
UK, Europe and Asia and her extensive discography
includes more than 50 albums for Pianist.
Listen to Chenyin Li perform on this issue’s CD Typesetting by Spartan Press Music Publishers Ltd
 HOW TO PLAY
ABILITY RATING LATE ELEMENTARY

CHOPIN
PRÉLUDE IN A MAJOR
OP 28 NO 7
The shortest of all Chopin’s 24 Préludes, this precious
16-bar gem requires subtle voicing and a dolce tone,
as Melanie Spanswick explains
Key A major Tempo Andantino Style Romantic
Will improve your ✓Chord voicing ✓Legato ✓Cantabile

This brief, intimate piece is the The RH melody line often Careful phrasing will shape the
seventh of Chopin’s 24 Préludes appears as the top note of a melodic line. Looking at the first
Op 28. With its lilting LH chordal chord. Start out by practising two-bar phrase as an example,
pattern and poignant RH melody, the melody line alone. When create a crescendo and decrescendo
it exudes a pristine ballet-like playing this top line, use the same within the phrase. Keep the upbeat
character (no surprise that the fingering that you’d employ when light, with a deeper touch on beat
Prélude makes an appearance playing the full RH part. A firm, 1 (C#) – which might be described
in Michael Fokine’s ballet, smooth, even touch – supported as the most important beat within
Les Sylphides). by a relaxed wrist and plenty of each phrase – and a firm touch on
arm weight – will make for a beat two (B), dying away on beat
Let’s begin with the LH. Whilst cantabile sound that should sing 3 and beat 1 of the following bar.
the chordal note patterns look out above the lower notes. This pattern works until bars 11-14.
fairly innocuous, each two-bar
phrase consists of a ‘leap’ or large Now let’s work on the RH LEARNING TIP
movement from the first-beat bass chords. Practise them carefully, Try singing the melody to yourself
note to the second-beat chord. In including the melody note, before learning the piece. This will
order to negotiate the jumps with ensuring perfect hand balance; allow you to understand where to
ease, practise them in isolation. for example, on beats 2 and 3 of take time to ‘breathe’.
Find suitable fingerings for the bar 1, aim to depress the B, G#
chords on beats two and three, and D together, using the same
and play the first beat with a firm hand/finger weight behind all The thick, wide-stretch chord
fifth finger. three notes, with fingers resting at the start of bar 12 should
on the keys as preparation before have a rich tone. That’s because
Make a swift movement from depressing them. This will allow it is the climax of the piece. It’s a
the bass note to the first chord. all notes within the chord to be wide stretch for both hands (surely
For practice purposes, extend the played precisely together. It’s good the hardest part of the piece), so
jump: try playing the bass note to remember the slower the key if you are unable to play all the
an octave lower than written, but depression, the softer the sound. notes, you could either leave the
make sure you keep the chords bottom RH note out (A#) or find a
as they are, and move as quickly Much time will be needed to suitable fingering (perhaps, 23145
as possible from the bass note to work on balancing the RH if you find 12345 uncomfortable).
the first chord, using a relaxed chords. In order to be able to hear Alternatively, you might wish to
lateral arm motion. By extending the top melody line, the notes slowly ‘spread’ the chord – that
the leap, the pattern becomes Frédéric CHOPIN (1810-1849)

below it need to remain soft. is, play one note after another
DON’T MISS BEGINNER/
MELANIE
SPANSWICK’S INTERMEDIATE
LESSON
TRACK 4 ONTHIS PIECE
PAGE
Prélude Op 28 No 7
20

of them all.
pieces, one in each of the 24 written in the key of A major, is the shortest
Chopin’s Préludes Op 28 are a set of short lesson on page 20.
elegant and popular No 7, Read Melanie Spanswick’s step-by-step
keys, originally published in 1839. This

Andantino q = c. 80

ingrained, and when returning Therefore, instead of playing all like an arpeggio (ascending),
4 5 5
3 1 1 5 5
2
F
3 4
f
4 1
f
5 1 2
2 2 2

# #3 ff ##ff ™™ ff f F f
2
f
5 1 1 1
4

f™ f ff
&# 4f
1
ff FF f
f f F

{ f F ff ff F
p dolce
f F Œ
? ### 34 Πf f F Πf
f

to playing the piece as written, three notes with the same weight quickening the movement when
5 1
3

° ø
1

°
5
ø
5

5 4 5
3 4 3 1
1 2 1 1
1

## F
3
5
f F
1
f f f
f ff ff ™™ f
& # #ff ™™ f F f FF ff f f f F

the distance feels a lot more { behind every key, try to simply secure. Bar 13 works well with a
ff f F
f ff FF ff FF Œ
Πf
? ### f
f f 1
3

°
1 5
ø
5 3 5

° ø

manageable. Also try to give the weight the RH very slightly to gradual crescendo through to the
5
4
5
ff ff # FFF 3

ff
##ff ™™ ff FF
2
ff #FF
1

###
2 3
1
9 1

f™ f ff ff FF
&
1

ff f f F

{
ff ff FFF
f f F f f F Œ
? ### f f F Πf

bass note a slight ‘push’ or deeper the right – that is, move both the start of bar 14, before dying away
1

f 2

°
3
ø
°
5

ø
4 5
5 1 2

f f F
1
5

## FF
3
F fF f
1
f
5

f™
5 1

ff ff
13 j
1
f
4

& # #ff ™™
f
1

nf
3 2

ff
1
F
2
f™ f

touch; this can act as a ‘launch’ { ? ###

f
°
f
f

ø
ff
f
FF
1
2
5
F Œ
f
°
ff
f

ø
f
f
F
F
wrist and the arm to the right – gradually towards the end. n
for the jump, propelling the hand supporting the third finger, but
27• Pianist 118
© Erica Worth

06/01/2021 09:18

up off the keyboard towards the SCORE most especially, the fourth and See what Melanie Spanswick is up to
first chord. ON PAGE 27 fifth finger. at www.melaniespanswick.com.

20• Pianist 118

HOW TO PLAY
ABILITY RATING INTERMEDIATE

CHAMINADE
AUBADE OP 14O
Nils Franke tells you how to bring out the fluid
simplicity of this romantic French rarity by handling the
balance, dynamics and pedalling with care
Key E major Tempo Andante tranquillo Style Romantic
Will improve your ✓Pedalling ✓Chord voicing ✓Dividing melody between hands

Many composers had their The most obvious manifestation Chaminade’s pedal markings are
favourite creations. With such of the focus on sound is the detailed and plentiful. The use of
works, they would take the continuity of the melodic line. the right pedal is also very much
melodic material and rework it, Take bars 3 and 5, for example. The part of the sound world of her
or they would just have ideas octaves in the bass should enrich music. Nevertheless, she must
that kept coming back in slightly the sonority of the coinciding have been aware of the potential
different shapes and contexts. chords in the RH, but they should excess of using the right pedal a
Cécile Chaminade’s Aubade is neither overpower the chords, nor bit too much. In 1930, she wrote
case and point. First published as drown out the tenor line, played
the second piece of her Children’s on the preceding beats. Finding the LEARNING TIP
Album Volume 2 (Op 126 No right balance for this takes a bit of To reduce the overall sonority of
2), and published in 1907, it experimenting, but a good starting sound, experiment with a slight
didn’t take the composer long to point is to think of the octaves as delay in the right pedal after
produce another, meatier version: needing to be played one dynamic you have played a new chord or
Some four years later, in 1911, level below the melody line. harmony.
the piece appeared again, this
time as Op 140, a stand-alone The balancing of chords in bars in an article published in The
work, and enriched with subtle 17 and 18 also needs careful Etude magazine in America that
octaves in the bass, which give consideration. Pianissimo and ‘cleanliness in playing is no more
that little bit more sonority than dolcissimo should be applied to highly esteemed by anyone than
the original version. any note except the melody line the present writer. Therefore no
in the treble, to allow for this one demands a more judicious use
Quality of sound is of the utmost beautiful tune to sing out above of the pedal.’
importance. Chaminade felt very the accompanying chords.
strongly about this, presumably Thankfully, Chaminade also offers
because it was so central to the The texture changes in the a more detailed explanation for
training she received from her second half of the piece. what not to do: ‘For surely there
teacher Félix Le Couppey (1811- Chaminade introduces a texture is no worse fault than that of
1887) at the Paris Conservatoire. that from the middle of the holding the damper pedal through
Chaminade recalled that ‘he used 19th century was often found in a succession of chords so as to
to say that he could determine, virtuoso transcriptions: bars 29 confuse the musical idea and to
from hearing a very simple and and 30 make use of octaves split produce a cacophony.’ In other
calm Andante, whether or not between both hands which need words, depending on the tempo
the performer possessed technic Cécile CHAMINADE (1857-1944)

to be so coordinated and balanced, you adopt for this piece, you might
DON’T MISS
NILS INTERMEDIATE
FRANKE’S
LESSON
TRACK 6 ONTHIS PIECE
PAGE
Aubade Op 140
21

in a simpler version as the second

Aubade Op 140. It was first published
her to study at the Paris
Cécile Chaminade’s father didn’t allow piece from her Children’s Album Op 126.
with top musicians nonetheless. on page 21.
Conservatoire, but she studied privately Read Nils Franke’s step-by-step lesson
piano, including this gorgeous
She wrote many character pieces for the

[sic]… The roundness of tone # ## p

& # C Πff-
Andante tranquillo h = 5 8
3
1
Πff ff
j
ff ‰ Œ ff
-
Πf
f-
Πff
f-
they sound as if they are played by want to split the composer’s pedal
{ f f F
mf ben cantato
F f f f f F
? #### C F Œ
f

and the legato beneath the Ó

one hand. The same is true of the

f

mark for bar 15 in half, whilst

∏∏∏∏∏

F 1
3 2 3 1 3 2 1

1 5
ø ø ø ø
°
5

-
3

- -f -
2

nfff nf Œ
# ## ΠΠff n ff
1

Πnn fff
4

&# Œ
ff Πff ff ff-
∏∏∏∏

f- ff
f- nf

supple pressure of the fingers give { second half of the second crotchet the long pedal marking in bars 8
dolce

nf f f F Πf f
f f f f F F F nF nf <n>f
? #### f f
2
∏∏∏∏

f F nF
Πf F
2 2
2
1
3 2 3 2 5

ø ø ø ø
ø ø ø

evidence of technic [sic] and of 8

# ##
& # Πnnfff fff fff
j ‰ Œ nff Œ nfff fff ff
f Π#ff
1

f
ff
f
f
Πf#f
beats in bars 42-44. Nothing quite and 9 make perfect sense, because
{
p dolce

n>F Πf f F
f
n>F f f f F
F™ f
? #### nF F F™
nF

strength, even in a pianissimo Ó

affirms the sound of an octave at it supports the same harmony.

2

nF
2 1 4 2
1

ø ø ø ø
ø

- - -
Œ -F ff Œ Œ
# ## ff f
Πf#f
ff ff FF
12
F F f ff
&# Πf f F f f #f
∏∏∏∏

∏∏∏∏

F f

{
v

phrase.’ Aubade is marked f f f f

? #### F F
1

ø
2

ø
5
2
f

f f F
^

ø
^
F
F
^ ^ ^ ^
nf f F
nf f f F
ø ø
f f f
3 2
f
f
2
the piano as playing it with one Happy practising! n
Andante tranquillo – meaning hand, and I would recommend that
33• Pianist 118

06/01/2021 09:33

tranquil, at a walking pace – SCORE for the purposes of practising you Find out more about Nils Franke at
so no pressure then! ON PAGE 33 do exactly that. www.nils-franke.com.

21• Pianist 118

 HOW TO PLAY
ABILITY RATING ADVANCED

SCHUBERT
IMPROMPTU IN E FLAT
OP 9O NO 2
Don’t be put off by the sweeping runs, says Lucy
Parham. Dig deep into the keys and pay attention to
accents, and you’ll be gliding through them like a virtuoso
Key E flat Tempo Allegro Style Late Classical
Will improve your ✓Scale technique ✓Range of dynamics ✓Use of accents

The four Impromptus Op 90 this, I suggest finding the right At bar 25 the harmony changes
were written in 1827. Unlike the tempo from the LH, which should to the minor key. The pp marking
subsequent second set (Op 142), lilt and dance like a graceful waltz. is sudden here, so take a comma,
the Op 90 pieces were published or a little breath, at the end of
during Schubert’s lifetime. They Spend some time looking at
are hugely popular and form a core the LH alone. It is the hand LEARNING TIP
part of many pianists’ repertoire. that will guide you rhythmically
I suggest looking at all four from through the piece and will act as I suggest focusing on the RH
the set if you have the time and your ‘conductor’. The RH can scale passages before you look
inclination. then seamlessly weave its triplet at the middle section. Also, fully
figurations around the LH. reacquaint yourself with the scale
This Impromptu is a particularly of E flat major before you begin.
good study in melodic scale Now to the first note of the
playing. And therein lies one piece. Even if marked piano, the bar 24 and immediately change
of its greatest challenges. At no RH Bb upbeat should be given due your touch to achieve a lighter,
point should this sound like four melodic weight. Moving onwards, quieter passagework. The LH fifth
minutes of fast scale playing! Every notice the small crescendo and finger needs to sink into every
note needs to count and every note diminuendo in bars 3 and 4. This dotted minim in this passage.
needs to speak. The runs need to needs to be a small swell as it gives Follow its progression and notice
shine like rows of pearls. the phrase its shape. the succession of ascending and
descending fourths and fifths.
The piece is in ABA form, with a Bar 9 sees a change to forte. It is
coda at the end. As I write in the important to show this very clearly. Observe the RH minims in bars
Learning Tip, spend ample time The touch will change from the 26-33. Play them with the fifth
on the RH scale passages before slightly lighter touch needed at finger and make sure that they
turning to the middle section. It the beginning to a deeper, more ring out like a bell. The underlying
might seem plainly obvious to ‘into the keys’ touch. (When triplets should be balanced
most, but do start off by practising you are practising this under accordingly.
the runs slowly and evenly, the required tempo, remember
building up the tempo over time. to focus on these two different This entire passage needs to
touches.) Bar 9 requires you to remain pp. It is only the accents
Pedalling is crucial. Less is more sink more deeply into each key. It at bars 37 and 39 that provide
– little dabs in the outer sections is not a violent forte, but a warm, dynamic relief. These accents
and carefully placed pedals in the Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828)

projected tone that you are trying should not sound aggressive; lean
DON’T MISS ADVANCED
LUCY PARHAM’S
LESSON
TRACK 12 ONTHIS PIECE
PAGE
22
Impromptu in E flat Op 90 No 2
E.COM
AT WWW.PIANISTMAGAZIN
WATCH CHENYIN LI PLAY THIS
a plethora of interpretations out
impromptus: Opus 90 (D899) on the Pianist YouTube channel.There’s
In 1827, Schubert wrote two sets of four Uchida and Sokolov.
the second in the first there on YouTube from the likes of Brendel,
and Opus posth 142 (D899). This Impromptu, on this piece on page 16.
challenging, and if executed Graham Fitch offers up practising tips

central section should do it. Your to achieve. At no point should

set, is one of his most florid and technically on page 22.

into them with your full arm

pianist Chenyin Li perform it Read Lucy Parham’s step-by-step lesson
well, it can be spellbinding. Watch house

Alleg ro 4 1 2
f ff f ffff
f f #f #f f f f f f f f
1

b 3
4 4 1 3
4 1
ff
2 1 4 4

&b b 4 f f f f f f f nf #f f f
1 1 4
fffff

ears must guide you. { b

°
Œ
? bb 34 Œ F™
p
3
legato
F
3 3
ΠF
F™
ø
Œ
F™ F

ø
Œ
F™
F

ø
any part of this piece sound weight whilst trying to highlight
f f fff ffff
ff f ffffff

forced or harsh in tone. your RH fifth finger with as much

2

fff ffffffff
5 1

b fff f f fffff
1 2 1 1
5 1 1 4 1 4 1 4

&b b f f f f f f
1

{
ΠF
f
FF
Œ F FF FFF f F F™
? bb F™ f
b f

Schubert gives the tempo 10

b
ø Ped. sim.

& b b f ff ff f f f f f ff nf #f ff ff #f #f ffff
f ff f f ffff ff
ff
f f f ff ff f precision of tone as possible.
{ ΠΠΠF FF
ΠF

marking of Allegro at the start. At bar 16 make a crescendo.

F
? bb F ™ F™ F F™ F™ f
b

fffff
fff f f f f f fff
f f ff ff f f fffff fff nf #f ffff
1
1

b f ffffff
5
15 1 3 2 1

&b b

This is important because it is Then really arrive with conviction The LH also has fp accents
2

{
f
ΠΠF ΠF
FF FF F F™ F™
? bb f F f F F™
b

not Presto. You need to avoid the at bar 17. This is important as it in bars 37 and 39, on the Ebb.
54• Pianist 118
© Sven Arnstein

06/01/2021 09:53

temptation to career through the SCORE is our first climactic point of the Lean into this note and use it
piece at top speed. To help with ON PAGE 54 opening statement. to mark the first note of the LH

22• Pianist 118

slur. Match your tone on the
subsequent Db, as the expressive
quality that comes from this slur is
crucial to this section.
A diminuendo in bar 44 leads
us continuously higher up the
keyboard – ultimately to bar 50.
Use some rotation (a left to right
shaking movement) in your RH in
this passage, as this will help you
with the small crescendo.
Bar 52 brings us to the return
of the opening theme. This time
the line is longer, and by the
time you reach bar 64, the RH is
ascending further up the keyboard
and, subsequently, the LH is
descending. The higher you are up
the keyboard the more you need
to play into the bottom of the key
bed. Use the LH to help with the
crescendo as well.
The climax of the phrase is at bar
69. It is crucial that this is brought
to the fore; we need to feel a sense
of arrival, so it is important to
keep driving through the phrase –
all the time focusing on heading
towards the central section.
Bring out the RH fz markings
from bars 71 to 79. Pair and
match these with similar accents in
the LH chords (Bb and D). Drive
through the crescendo in bar 80,
overshadow the outer melody You are aiming for a large,
lines and take note of the small orchestral sound.
crescendo and diminuendo within
the bar. Use bars 99 and 100 to At bar 169 the first section is
make a real contrast in colour and repeated in its entirety. Then
dynamic levels. the Coda appears at bar 251. This
needs to have a sense of onward
It’s very important that the drive, most especially in the accel.
section flows and that you get at bar 267. The RH top accented
across the bar line. It would Bb dotted minims must ring out
be helpful to practise this entire clearly. Brace your fifth finger
passage in block chords, omitting so that we can really hear it in
the details, yet retaining the relation to the lower notes. The
general melody and the structure. LH is also very important – we
need to hear every note in all the
At bar 157 you will find a classic chords, so grip each one of them
example of a hemiola. This is with intent.
where two groups of three become
three groups of two. Remember to keep the tempo
moving as you go through bar
Then, in bar 159, Schubert gives 272 right to the end. The chords
us a glorious key change (E flat in the final four bars need to be
minor). Make sure that you colour separated and very strong – they
this appropriately and follow the also need direction. The last chord
crescendo in order that you arrive is released with a great energy, so
at the fz climax in bar 163. Draw ending this glorious piece with
these chords and octaves out of strength and flourish. n
the piano with a large and mighty
sound. Try to avoid hitting the Find out what Lucy Parham is up to
piano or being too aggressive. at www.lucyparham.com.
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PIANO TECHNIQUES 2
Pianist magazine presents

arriving with great strength and

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PIANO TECHNIQUES 2 • Over 50 pages
of scores
The double bar brings a key Improv e including
ng
your playi Chopin’s
change to B minor. The whole Fantaisie-
mood changes to a stormier Returning after
a long break Impromptu
central section. The marking is ben How to practise
marcato (well marked) and this is Masterclass • Masterclasses
on fingering
greatly helped by the placement of on memorising
The importance
of exercises and fingering
the LH: the staccato crotchet B is Memorising
followed by the accented minim B your music
• 11 videos to
minor chord – and the LH needs INCLUDES watch, listen
8 pieces for
to really swing and dance. Try to beginner level Advanced lesson on Chopin and learn from
Fantaisie-Impromptu
‘place’ the second-beat minim – by Cornelius GURLITT
Song Op 117
(1820-1901)
No 17
BEGINNER

Mily BALAKIREV (1837-1910)

▲

PLAY
PLAY
Cradle INTERMEDIATE/
▲

TRACK
and the
TRACK
the gentle accompaniment
Mazurka No 2 in C sharp minor ADVANCED
up. The LH is first beat of the
bar.
down or speed emphasis on the
sure not to slow make a slight from the crescendo
fellow composer melody. Always mezzo forte. Aside of
studied with RH the pretty not rise above mood is one
composer who Copenhagen, dynamics do at bar 12, the
was a German and teacher in Note how the the diminuendo
Balakirev’s Islamey
legato without
it!). is a favourite for virtuso pianists, but the Russian composer prominent and to shape the phrases. There are some very tricky moments, such
Cornelius Gurlitt success as a performer of Altona to end his career in bar 3, and to make a fine also wrote more accessible pieces for the piano, such as this Mazurka.
father. He won and diminuendo required (try player. as bar 41. Take those bars out of context and practise very slowly.
Carl Reinecke’s to his birthplace Pedalling is not more advanced
before returning 34 pieces in total. utter tranquility. exercise for the Playing tips: This is a luxuriously romantic piece. Even if it may appear that you
Pedal tips: Change the pedal with every harmonic change. Some pianists will
Rome and Leipzig First Lessons Op 117 comprise silently for a perfect sight-reading
His Count the pulse This piece is
might need a wide hand span to cover the LH chords, you will notice that
they prefer a pedal change on the second beat (as we have suggested).
as a bandmaster. is needed throughout. to keep in time, making can be spread (arpeggiated) and that the RH can sometimes take the top notes There are places
calm tenderness where you can hold the pedal throughout a whole bar, whereas at other times you
Playing tips: A It is most important
before you begin. of the chord (e.g. bars 3 and 4, and so on). Make sure to keep to keep
the melody need to change per each beat in the bar (3 beats).
about three bars

19
f f F™
q. = 6 3
f™ J Allegretto q = 120
f™
Andantino
f™
6 f™ f 43 f f f #f f f
5

f™ f f f
2 1 4 5
fj
f f f&#### f f f f f f
2 1 3 2

&b 8
2 2

{
f
5

{
f f f f
1
f
f f f f f f f f

PIECES TO LEARN
p
f f f
f f f f
p
f f f
? b 68 f ff ff fff f
R.H.

? #### 3 f
R.H.
f
2
∏∏∏∏
∏∏∏∏∏

∏∏∏∏

ff
∏∏∏∏∏∏

∏∏∏∏∏∏

5 3 1
4 f Œ f f Œ Œ
f
°

this I mean very slightly delaying

ø ø ø ø ø ø
f ‰ ™™
sim.
f f™
4
1
f nf J
f™ f™ f J 5

f f f f f f ff f
f&#### f f
f™
2 4

f #f Ff f fj f f
4
5
f™
4
f™

{
&b f f f ‰ ™™ fj F™
# ff n# fff
f f
ΠF

{
f f f
∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏

f f f f
∏∏∏∏

1
∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏

f f f f
f f f 2 1

f Œ
4

?b f ff fff f
R.H.

? #### f
5
f
∏∏∏∏

ff
∏∏∏∏

f
∏∏∏∏∏∏

f Œ ff Œ
f Πf ff f

music
f bJf

in over 50 pages of sheet

3

f f™
4
f f
nf J J 9
1

f™
4
2 5 1
5

f™ f™ f f f
f f fff f f ‰f #f
f
5

f f
3 1

f &#### f f f
9 fj
2

f f f
1
™™ f™
1
dim.

{
&b f f
f f f f f f f nf f f

{
∏∏∏∏

mf
f f f f f f
bf f f
4

f
fff
ff
R.H.
f f
? b ™™ ff
R.H.

? #### f
∏∏∏∏
∏∏∏∏∏

ff
∏∏∏

∏∏∏∏∏∏

∏∏∏∏∏∏

3
4
f f Œ f f Œ Œ
f
‰ ™™
f
1

f™
1
f fj13 f ™
f™ ##

it for full effect. The dynamic of

f™ f™ f f™
&## f f f f f f fff™™ f f f
13
f #f f f f f
2

&b f ™

{
‰ fj
f f f f # Ff ™ f F
fj
#f

{
f f
∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏

f f f
f f f f
f f
p
f f f f f
4

?b f ff f f
? #### f ff
∏∏∏∏

ff
5
∏∏∏∏

f Πfj
∏∏∏∏∏∏

f Œ f™ Ff f F
5
4 f f f
07/02/2020
15:52
f f
3

p29-31 Bala-FINAL.indd 29
07/02/2020 15:57

PLUS 11 VIDEOS TO WATCH, LISTEN AND LEARN FROM

ff should fully contrast with the 11/02/2020 09:59

second statement in bar 91, where

it changes to p.

The outer parts in bar 85 require DOWNLOAD TODAY

an excellent legato. Balance the
inner quavers so that they do not
www.pianistm.ag/pianotech2
23• Pianist 118
 H AN S - GÜNTER HEUMANN
BEGINNERS
KEYBOARD CLASS
LESSON 45: THE TECHNIQUE OF
WRIST ROTATION

On these Keyboard Class pages, Pianist covers the most basic stages of learning the piano through a series of lessons by regular
contributor Hans-Günter Heumann. This exercise introduces the technique of wrist rotation.
��ns���nte� �eum�nn

Exercise for wrist rotation ��ns���nte� �eum�nn

When playing this exercise, rotate the wrists very slightly back and forth between the notes. By doing so, the intervals between
the notes will feel more comfortable to accommodate, plus you’ll be able to maintain a tense-free wrist.
��ns���nte� �eum�nn
q = 108 ��ns���nte� �eum�nn

                    
5 5

   
             
mf simile
     
           
                   
5 5

                   
   
5
       
    

                
                   

   
                          
9

    
1

                    
       
1

       
13

                       
    

          
             
   
© 2014 Schott Music Limited, London

Hans-Günter Heumann continues his series for beginners in the next issue.
© 2014 Schott Music Limited, London
To find out more about Heumann, visit www.schott-music.com

© 2014 Schott Music Limited, London

© 2014 Schott Music Limited, London 24• Pianist24 • Pianist 118

#17
 William DUNCOMBE (c.1736-1818) BEGINNER
Fanfare Minuet

British composer William Duncombe (not to be confused with the writer (especially this Fanfare Minuet) which are probably excerpts from his
William Duncombe, 1690-1769) was organist in the London borough of Progressive lessons for the harpsichord and pianoforte published in 1778.
Kensington. He is known mainly for a small group of piano pieces Look closely at the technical tips within the score.

Find a stable tempo.We suggest counting the pulse silently before

you begin. Rhythmic stability is of the utmost importance.

Start off with a good resolute forte in So as to avoid wrist tension with the repeated
both hands. Make an emphasis on the RH notes, the fingering changes on every note.
first beat (notice the accents). Give it a try – it’s a good exercise for repetition!
Make a staccato
q = 1 1 2 on the third beat.

3 >
5
f.
F
3 3

&4
3 4 3 2 1 3 4 3 2 1 4 3 2 1

f f f f f
The key is

{
>f f f f f >f f f f f >
the ‘easy’
key of C
major –
f
? 43 >FF ™™ >F ™ > f.
meaning

FF ™™
no sharps
or flats.
F™ F
3
> 2
5

In the RH, in bars 5 and 6, join the first three notes, Phrase the upper melody line in the RH in
then staccato the third-beat crotchet. bar 7.The notes should be joined (legato).

f. f.
5 Fine
f f f
4
f f f f f f f f F™
& f f

{ ?
f
1
f
4
f.

In the LH above, join the first two

crotchets, then staccato the third.
f
f f. f.
f.
3
f.

Unlike the RH, the notes in the LH in

bars 7 and 8 should be staccato.
f. f.
2
f. &

>ff >f
3

f f f f
3

ff ff ff ff ff f f f f
9 1 4
ff ff ff ff ff
1 4

f
2 2

&

{ & f
p

1
f
2
f
4
f
At bar 9, make a sudden change of dynamic to piano (soft)
and bring out the legato line of the LH. Ditto in bar 11.
Ó f
1
f
2
f
4
f
Ó

When you reach the end, return to the

?

start and play through to ‘Fine’ at bar 8.

>ff >f
13 3 D.C. al Fine
ff ff ff ff ff f f f f
1 4

f ff ff ff ff FF Œ
&
2

{ ?
f f f f Ó

25• Pianist 118

f f f F
f
 Louis KÖHLER (1820-1886) BEGINNER
Easiest Practice Pieces Op 190 No 17

German composer Louis Köhler was a fine pianist and conductor, but he amount of them in past issues; they are great pieces for the beginner –
devoted most of his life to teaching the piano. He wrote copious studies some sounding rather charming.
for his students to enjoy and learn from. Pianist has published a fair Look closely at the technical tips within the score.

This elegant piece should be In the first two bars, the RH notes should Bars 3 and 4 act as an ‘answer’ to the first two bars.
played in a moderate tempo. be played legato (joined). In general, try to Make sure to staccato the two RH crotchets and
keep the melody line even. then make an accent on the minim.

>F >F
h = 88
f f f. f. f. f.
5 5

4F F
5 4 3
f f
2

&4
3 1 1
The key is

{
C major (no
accidentals).
mp

4
&4 f f f f f f f f f f f f
f 1 3
f f 1 f 1 3
5 5 4 5
The LH accompaniment notes should tread calmly and evenly, with a very slight emphasis
on the first beat of the bar. Keep to a quiet dynamic so that one can hear the RH melody.

f f f f. f. f.
5 5 2 Fine
F F
5 3

& f f F F
3 1 1

{ &
f
f f f
f
f f f
f
f
1
f f f
3
f
1
F
5

At bar 9, increase the dynamic to mezzo forte (quite loud)

and bring out the RH accents in bars 10 and 11.

f f >F f f >F f f
f. Œ
9
f f
3
F
5 4 5

& F F
1 3 2 1 3 1 1 3

{ mf Lift the RH for

the crotchet rest.

& f f f f f f f f f f
f f 2 1 2
f f 1 f f 1
f f 3
1
3
f f 2 1 2
3 3 3 4 5
Even if marked mf, the LH accompaniment should be quieter than the RH.

D.C. al Fine
>F f. f. f. f.
Make a gradual crescendo all the way to the last bar.

f f #f f f f f f f f #f f f f
14 4 4
4 5
3 3 3

&
2 1 1 2 1 1 2

{ &
f f
f f
3
1
3
f.
4
ΠF
F
1
5
F
F
1
FF
1
2

26• Pianist 118

F
F
F
F
ff Œ Ó
1
3
.
Return to the start and
end at the bar 8 ‘Fine’.
 DON’T MISS
MELANIE
SPANSWICK’S
LESSON
Frédéric CHOPIN (1810-1849) BEGINNER/
INTERMEDIATE
ON THIS PIECE
PAGE
20
Prélude Op 28 No 7

Chopin’s Préludes Op 28 are a set of short pieces, one in each of the 24 written in the key of A major, is the shortest of them all.
keys, originally published in 1839. This elegant and popular No 7, Read Melanie Spanswick’s step-by-step lesson on page 20.

Andantino q = c. 80
3 4 3 4 5 5
2 4 2 1 1 5

### 3
2 1

f f F
2 5 1 5
1
ff
##ff ™™ ff f
4 5 1 1 2 2

& 4 f ™ f ff ff FF f F f
1

{
f f f F f
p dolce
f f F f f F
? ### 43 Œ f f F Œ f f F Œ
f f
5 1
1

° °
5 3

ø ø
5

3 4 5
1 1 2 3 4 5

###
1 1
5 3 1

& #f ™™ f ff f F f f f F
1

f FF ff ff ™™

{
f f F f f f F f

f f F f f F
? ### f f F Œ ff ff FF Œ
f
5
1 f 1
3

° °
3 5
ø ø
5

5
4

ff ff # FFF
### f ™ f
5
9
ff #
2 2
™
# f ™ f FF
f
3 3

ff ff FF f 1

#FF ff
1

&
1

ff

{
f f F 1

f f F ff ff FFF
? ### f f F Œ
f f F Œ
f f 1

° °
2

ø ø
3
5

4 5
5 1 2

### f ™
5 1
13
f f F
5

ff ff f F
3 4 5 1 3
1

& #f ™ nf f™ fF f FF
2 1 1
j
2 1

F ff f f

{
f™ f
f ff FF ff ff FF
? ### f f F Πf
f 1 f
° ø ° ø
2
5

27• Pianist 118

 Georg Anton BENDA (1722-1795) BEGINNER/
INTERMEDIATE
Allegro in G

One of the lesser-known Bendas in a long and distinguished Czech
musical family, Georg Anton was brother to its most renowned scion,
František and proceeded to have five musical children of his own. In his
own day he was best known for his work in church music and in the
infant genre of German opera. His feeling for drama is appreciated in
this Allegro which is full of grace, excitement and artful flourishes.
Playing tips: This piece encompasses an array of technical issues. Firstly,
listen out for evenness of sound in the groups of descending and
ascending quavers which appear in both hands from bar 1. For the RH
semiquaver motifs (bars 5, 6 etc), keep the wrist relaxed and rotate the
hand slightly. Make the most of the dynamics, especially the crescendos.
Pedal tips: Pedal is not needed.

q. = 7 8
2 4

j f f f fj
— —

#6 f f f f
3 1 3 1
5 2 3

‰ ‰ j ffffffffffff
4 1 4 4
3 2

& 8
1
ff fff f J f™

{
f f.
f

? # 68 ∑ ∑ ff
ffff ‰ f™ f™
f
1 2 3
1 2 3
— — —
fff 1
4 1 2 5

# f f f j ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff f ‰ ‰ f. j
3 4 4

j
6 4
2 1
4 1

f. f f f f f f f ™
1 1 1

& f f f f f.
1 4

{ ?# f™
f ‰
f™ f™ f™ f
1
‰ f fJ f fj f.
3 5
3
ff
1
f ‰
mf

# f f f f f f #f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f fJ fJ ‰ j f f f f f #f f ™
11 5 4
1 2 1 2 4 3 3 1

Ϊ
4

& ™™
3
f.

{
f

f™ f™ #f ™ f ff
?# f™ J J ‰ ‰ f™ ff ‰ ™™
f™ ff
3 1 3 2 1 5 1

ff . f f f f f f # fJ j f f f f f.
5 5 4

# ffff f f f fJ f fJ f ™
16
# f
2 1 5 4
f ‰‰J ‰ f f f fJ ‰ J
1
f
4

& J
1 2 1
f
.

{ ?#
f

∑ ∑
ff
1 2 3
ffff
4 1
f #f ™
f #f f ‰

28• Pianist 118

f

4
f™
3
mf
#f ™
2
f™
1
 nf f f f f f f
f f f J ‰ f. f f f fJ ‰ j nf f f f ‰ j f f f f f f ™
#
22
Œ ‰
4

& J f. f f f J f f f f f

{
.
f mf f mf
f fff
?# f™ f™ #f ™ f™ f™ f™ ff
f™ f™
2 1 2 5 4 2 1 1 2 4
3 5

2 4

j f f f fj
— —

# ffff
1 3

‰ ‰ j f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f fj
27 5 3
1 3 2 1 1 1

&
1
ff ff f™
fff J .

{
f.
f

?# f™ f™ f™ ff ‰ f™
f™ ffff f f™ f™ f‰
1 2 3 5 1
fff

# ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff f j f f f
33 3 2 1 1 2 5

& f f f f ™ ‰ ‰ j ffffffffffff
1 4 1

f.

{
f.
f™
mf
f™ f ™ f f
‰ f fJ f fj f.
?# f
f ‰ f™ f™
3 5 3 5

#
‰ ‰ fj
38 1 4 2 —
2 5 4
f
& f f f f f f f f f f f f f fJ J ‰ fj f f f f f f f ™
4 3 — 3 1 3 1
2 1 2

{?# f™ f™
f

f fJ fJ ‰ ‰
1 3 2
f™
3
f™
2
f f
1
f fj ‰ ‰

f f f f f
5

# f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f. f f f F™
42 1 1 1 2 3
1 4
3

& f f f

{?# f™
mf

3
f™ f™ f

29• Pianist 118

f f
J
4
—
3
f

1
j
f f
5
—
4
4
—
3
3
—
2
j
f f f f ™
1
f
 Antoine REICHA (1770-1836) INTERMEDIATE
Etude dans le genre fugué Op 97 No 6

Although it belongs to a set of 34 pieces gathered under the title of
Etudes dans le genre fugué, this beautifully solemn F minor work is strictly
speaking neither a study nor a fugue. Functioning rather as a prelude, it
establishes a mood of grave and calm reflection which would prove useful
in tackling or listening to the set as a whole. The first etude from the set
was featured inside issue 105, with a lesson from Melanie Spanswick.
Playing tips: Feel the tempo and keep the pulse moving; there could be
the tendency to slow down without realising. Notice the long crescendo
and diminuendo hairpins and also the subito changes of dynamics.
Fingerings are there as a guide; all hand shapes are different.
Pedal tips: Follow the markings on the score. You might prefer less pedal,
especially if your finger legato is spot-on.

Poco alleg retto e = 89

b ‰ ‰ fj f bfj fj j j
5

b 3
4

f f
&b b 8 ‰ f f f
1

f
1
f f fJ f fJ f
J

{
fJ f
mp
f f ™ f f ™™ f f ™ f f ™™ f f ™
? bb b 38 f f™ f f f ™™ f f ™ f
b
° ø ø ø ø ø ø ø
5 3 2 1 1 1

b bf ™
6 5

& b bb ff ff ™ f ff ™ f f f
5

f f f f ™ f fJ f
2 3 1 2

b
1 2
f ™ f ff ™ f f
f nf ™ J

{
f ™ f fJ

? bb b f j j nf f bf f
b f f f f J bf J
J
ø ø ø
1 4
4
sim.

4 5

f f ™ f nf ™™ #f f ™ f
2 4 5 3
f f
f ™™f f nf nf bf
2 4 5 3

b f™ ™
11

&b b
b ff ™ f f nf ™ nf f f f ™™f f f bf
1 1 1

J J J J

{ ? bb f
bb
f
J
4
f nf
J
f
f
J
f f
f f f bf

j
5

bbb ff™™ nf bf ™ bf ff j
16
j
3

b j
4 5 4 5

&
1 1 1 4 5
f f
J f J f f f f f

{
fJ f fJ f f
fJ f
mp

? bb b f j f f ™ nf f ™™ bf f ™ f f ™™ f f™ f
b f f f™ f
3 2 1 3
mf 2 1

30• Pianist 118

 b
21

& b bb f
4

j
2 3 1

™ f f ™ f f ff ™ f ff f f

{
f f f f
fJ f ™ f fJ ™
j
? bb b f ™™ f f
R.H.

ff nf ™ f f j j
j
1

b f™ f
n fJ f f
f bf bf f
2 1

f nfj j
4

b
26 5

& b bb f nf ff ™ f ff ™ f f
1 5

ff ™ f ff ™ f f f
2 1

f f
1 1

f
f nf ™ J f f fJ f

{
f nf ™ J J
subito p

? bb b j j f f ™nf f ™™
nf nf f f™ f f f™ f
b f f bf bf J

bb f j j j
32
j
5 4

& b b f f
1 1

fJ nf f f f f f f ™ nf f f

{
fJ f fJ f fJ f f f
f
? bb f f ™ f f ™™ f f ™ nf f ™™
bb f f™ f f f™ f
f f™
f

4 5
3 5 2 3 3 2

bb
37 5 4 2 3 4

f ™ nf ff ff
1 1
f
& b b f ™ nf ff ff
3 2 1

ff ™nf f ff ff ™™ ff f f nf ™ f f
2 1

f nf b f f

{
fJ f
f1
mf
? bb f f f™ f f™
bb f™ f f™ f™
f f
f f

bbb ff ™nf bff ff ff ™™ ff f f j j j

42
b f nf ff f f bf
& J f f bf

{
fJ f fJ f
p

? bb b f f™ f™ f f ™ f bf ™™ f bf ™ f
b f f f™ f

31• Pianist 118

 bb
47

&b b f j j bf f
f f f™

{
fJ f f f f ™ b f f ™ f f nf ™ f f f
fJ b f f f™ f f
? b b f ™™ f f ™ f f ™™ f f™ f f j j j
bb f bf f nf
f

bb f bfj
52

&b b f f f ™b f f f f
f ff ™ f ff ™ f f f f
ff ™ f ff ™ f nf ™ J J

{
f f ™ f fJ
subito p
j j f f™ f
? bb j f nf f f™ f
bb f bf bf f f f J

58
bb f j j j j U
f f
& b b fJ f fJ f
f f f f f f f f n ff ™™

{
fJ f fJ f f™
f ™™ f f ™ nf f ™™
? bb f f™ f f f™ f™
bb f f™ f f f
™ f™
u

5
4 5 4

b
64 1 5 3 3
f f f
& b bb f
5 5 1 1 2
f
2 1 1

bf nf f bff ff f
1 1

f f f f nf ff

{ b f™
pp

? bb b f ™
3
5
ff ™™
2
4
bff ™™
1
3
ff
1
2
n
f f f
j f
f
f
f
R.H.

f
f

b
69

& b bb ff ™ f f j
5 5

‰
2 4 1

ff f nf f™ f™ f nf f

{
1
™ f™ f fJ f fJ f
1
p pp
? bb b ff ™™ ff
1
f
b f™ J f f bf ‰
f f f f™
2
f
32• Pianist 118
 DON’T MISS
NILS
FRANKE’S
LESSON
Cécile CHAMINADE (1857-1944) INTERMEDIATE
ON THIS PIECE
PAGE
21
Aubade Op 140

Cécile Chaminade’s father didn’t allow her to study at the Paris Aubade Op 140. It was first published in a simpler version as the second
Conservatoire, but she studied privately with top musicians nonetheless. piece from her Children’s Album Op 126.
She wrote many character pieces for the piano, including this gorgeous Read Nils Franke’s step-by-step lesson on page 21.

Andante tranquillo h = 5 8
#### C Πp j
3

Œ ff ‰ Œ Œ Œ
1

& ff ff ff ff f ff

{
- - f- f-
mf ben cantato

F f f f F f f F
? #### C F f
f
Ó Œ
∏∏∏∏∏

F 1
3 2 3 1 3 2 1
f
1 5

° ø ø ø ø
5

-
3

#### Π- ff- -
2
4
ff Œ fff Œ Œ nfff Œ nf Œ
& n ff
1

ff ff ff f
nn fff
∏∏∏∏

{
f- - - nf
dolce
f nf f f F Πnf f
? #### f f f f f F F
F nF
f
2

<n>f
∏∏∏∏

3
Πff FF
2 3 2 1
2 nF 2 2
5

ø ø ø ø ø ø ø

#### Πj
8
ff f
& nnff ff ff ‰ Œ nff Œ nfff fff fff Œ #ff f Œ f#f
1

{
f f f f
n >F
f p dolce

n >F f f f F Πf f F
? #### nF F F™ f
Ó nF F™
nF
1 2 1 4 2 2

ø ø ø ø ø

Π- - - -
#### Πff
12

& f Œ f#ff F FF ff ff FF ff Œ Œ
∏∏∏∏

∏∏∏∏

ff ff

{
F f f F f #f
v
f

f f f f f f F^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
? #### F nf f
1 2

F F F f f f f
3 2
F nf f f F f
ø ø ø ø ø
5 3 2 2

33• Pianist 118

 > > > >
3 2

####
1 1 4 3
16
Πj f f f F
fff fff ‰
F F
& fff f f Ff f f f f f F

{
f f f f
pp dolcissimo
ff ff FFF ff ff FFF ff ff nFF
? #### f f f f
F F f f Πff f
Ó F Ó Œ f f Œ Ó Œ f
ø ø ø ø ø ø ø
>
#### f f f F >
20 3
4

& Ff f F ff f ff f ff ff ff ff f f

{
f f f f f f ff ff f- f- f- f-
- -
- f-
ff- ff ff- ff- f f
f
? #### #ff ff f f ff ff f
f
f ff ff
f- f f- f f- f f f
f- f-
ø ø ø ø °
#### j
24

& f f f ff Œ ff ff ff ff ff ‰ Œ ff Œ f Œ fff

{
f
# f- f- n ff- f-
∏∏∏∏

p p dolce

F f f f F f f f F
? #### f f
L.H.
R.H.

F F
∏∏∏∏

f Πff
f f
f w
2 1 5
w
° ø ø ø ø
> >
#### Π>
4 5
28

nnfFF f f F
3 4

& ff Πfff F ff #ff

nf

{
f F Œ Œ
∏∏∏∏

Πf
> > >
f f f nf f f F
? #### f f f F2 1 2

F F
∏∏∏∏

f Πf F
f Π2 1
f F
ø ø ø ø ø
> >
#### Œ
31
j Ff F
Œ Œ f ‰ Œ
& #fff f ff ff
f f
∏∏∏∏∏

{
fff f
f f
p pp mf dolce
j f f FFF
? #### f f f f ff ff
R.H. L.H.

f F f f ‰
F Ó Œ f
F f f f
f fJ
3 1 2 1

ø ø ø ° ø
34• Pianist 118
 > >
#
# # F
34

& # ff f f Ff Ff Ff
3 4

ff f ff f f f F
∏∏∏∏∏
f f

{
f f f f f

∏∏∏∏∏
f f
-
f f FFF f f
? #### ff ff fff fff nFFF #ff ff f- f
Πf Πf f f
f f
° ø ø ø ø
>
#### >
37

& Ff F ff f ff f ff ff ff ff ff ff

{
f ff ff ff f f f f f f
f sonore
? #### f f
f f f f f f f f f
f
f
f
f- f f- f f- f f f
f- f
ø ø ø ø ø ø
####
40
Œ Œ
4

&
1

f ff ff ff ff ff f ff

{
# ff ff f
n ff f
pp mf
p L.H.

F f f F
? #### f
R.H.

ff f F F f f f F
f
f w
w 1
4
2

ø ø ø ø ø
>
#### Π>
4
43 2

& f Πfff Πff Πff F
1

nf fff

{
f f f f f f F Œ
Πf
> >
? #### f F
4

f f f
2

f F f f f f F
f f F f f f f f F
Πf 1
4
2 Πf F
ø ø
U
5
F
#### n>f
4

Œ
2

#
2 5
pochettino rit.
f F
46 5 1 2

f f FfF f j ‰ F
4

& n FF #fff Œ Œ
u

{
fff f F
∏∏∏∏

f
U
2
pp
>
mf 5

# f Œ
L.H.

nf f f fF f
1

? ####
L.H.

f f f
R.H.

F fF f F
∏∏∏∏

u F f F
Œ
1
f F
° ø ø ø ø
35• Pianist 118
 Anton DIABELLI (1781-1858) INTERMEDIATE
Rondo from Sonatina Op 151 No 1

A contemporary of Beethoven, Diabelli was born in Salzburg, Austria.
A musical child, he sang in the boys’ choir at Salzburg Cathedral where
he is believed to have taken music lessons with Michael Haydn. By the
age of 19, Diabelli had already composed several important compositions
including six masses. He moved to Vienna in 1803 and is best known in
his time as a publisher and for penning the waltz that Beethoven later
used as the theme for his ‘Diabelli’ Variations.
Playing tips: This Rondo should be rhythmically tight and full of joy.
Make sure that the fingers are well-articulated – each note within a run
really matters (don’t skim over any of them). In bars 18-21 (and also
when the theme returns at bars 66-69), there’s a lovely dialogue between
the hands. Make the runs that pass between the hands as seamless as
possible. Bars 33-48 see some developmental material until the theme
returns at the upbeat of bar 49. A sweet coda, which starts at the end of
bar 80, brings the piece to a joyous close. End with a fortissimo flourish.
Pedal tips: Very little pedal is required. Just a few dabs here and there at
the ends of phrases.
Graham Fitch offers up practising tips in his masterclass on page 16.

Alleg retto q = 1 1 2

# 2 f f f #f f . f. >™
f nf f f f. f.
1 5 3 2 1 2

f
f. f f
4 1 4 1 4

& 4f f f f
1 2 3 3

{ ? # 42 ‰
p

fF ff
4 1
2
ff ff fF ff ff ff fF
5
ff ff ff fF ff ff ff
1
2
4

# f f #f f . f. >™ f f f f
5 3

f #f f f ‰ ™™
1

& f f f
1 1
f
J

{ ? # fF
ff ff ff fF ff ff ff
&
f

ff
1
2
5
f
j ‰ f
# ff
j
1
3
5
‰ ff f ff
2
4
.
™™

f f f f . f. f f #f f . f. f f f f nf. f.
9 2 4

# ™ f f f f f f f. f.
3 2 3
4 4 2 1
1 2 1 2

f f
1 2 4

& ™

{ &
# ™‰
™
p

fF
ff
1
2
ff ff f
fF f 1
2
ff ff f
fF f 1
3
f f
f f f
fF f 1
2
ff ff

# f. f f f f f f f. f. . .
4 3

f f #f. f f f f f f f. f f #f f f f
2

#
13 1
3 4 3 4
1

&
2

{ # j
sf

& bfff ‰
1
2
5
ff
f
j
‰
cresc.

ff
f
1
3
5
Π?
sf
bff
f ‰
J
1
2
5
ff
f
J
‰ ff
f ‰
J
bff
sf
f

36• Pianist 118

 # f. f f #f f f f f. ‰
f nfJ. ‰
17 4

Œ ‰ Œ
1

&
1

J f f f

{
f f

nf f.
f

? # fff ‰ bff ff f f
f f f f f J ‰ Œ ‰ f f
J 1 3 2
&
f f f f 1 3
sf 5 5

f > f > f. f f f. f nf .
4 5 3

# ‰ f f f f f f #f f f f f f
3

f f f f. f #f
4 2 4 2 4 3
21 1 1
2 4 3 2
3

&

{ # .
& fJ ‰
2
Πff
1
2
3
5
ff
j
‰ ff
ff
j
‰ ff
j
ff ‰ Œ ∑ ?

# f f #f f f. f. >™
f nf f f f. f.
25 1 2

f
4

& f
J
f f. f f

{ p

? # fF
4
ff
1
2
ff ff f f f
fF f f f fF
5
ff ff ff fF ff ff ff

# f f #f f f. f. f™
™™ n
29 5
f nf f f #f f f f
1 4

‰
5 1

& f f f
2 1 2 3 4 5 4 1 2

{? # nfF
5
ff
f
1
2
4
ff ff
f f
5
f
f f f ff
1
3
5
1
3
f
ff
1
2
5
f
J
‰
1
3
5
f
#ff
J
‰
ff f ff.
2
4
™™ n

j f.
nf f f f.
33
f #f f
5 4
f f f
2 1

f f f f. f
1

& ™™ f.
2 1 5 2 3 2 4 3 1 2 3 1 3 2

f . f

{? ™™ ‰
p
ff

1
2
f
f f f
5
ff

1
2
f
ff
f

37• Pianist 118

f

1
3
f
f f f f ff
f
1
2
ff
f
37
f
1
f f f f™
5
f f. f.
2
f
3
f f
5

f ‰ ™™
2

& f
1

{ f
? fF f
5 1
3
ff ff f
fF f
4 1
2
ff ff
fF
5
ff

1
2
ff ff ff
2
4
f ff.
™™

f. .
f f f f. f .
f
f f f f. f
4 5

f f f f
4 5

J #f f f
3 4 4
41
& ™™
1 2 2 2 1 3 2 4

{? ™™ ‰
p

& bff
1
2
f
5
ff
f
ff
1
2
f
ff
f
pp

ff
1
2
f
5
ff
f
ff
1
2
f
5
ff
f
?

f™ f f f f f f f f f f
5
f f
4

f f f. f.
4 3 3 1

™™ #
5 2
f
45 3 3 4 2
3 2 2

‰
2 1 1

&

{ ff f ff.
f
ff ff ff f ff ff ff
? #fF n f f f f f f f ‰
J
f
J ‰ ™™ #
5 1 4 1 5 1 1 1 3
2 2 3 2 3 5
3 5 5

# . f. >™
f f f f f. f.
49
f f #f f
f f
1

& f f f. f f
1
f f
J

{?# ‰
p

fF ff ff ff fF ff ff ff fF
ff ff ff fF ff ff ff

# f f #f f f. f. >™ f f f f f
53 3

f f f #f f ‰ f f
1 1

& f
1 1

{ f p
ff ff ff f f f
? # fF fF f f f j ‰ j ‰
& ff f
# ff ff f ff ‰
f .
1 1 2
2 3 4
5 5

38• Pianist 118

 f f f f . f. f. f f f f nf. f.
# f f f f f. f.
3
57 2 2
f f #f f . 2

f f
&

{ #
& fF nff ff ff
fF
ff ff ff
fF
f
f
f f
f f fF
ff ff ff

# f. f f f f f f f. f. . .
3

# f f #f. f f f f f f f. f f #f f f f
61 1
3 1

&

{
sf cresc. sf

# j j bff ff fff ‰ bff

& bfff ‰ ‰ Œ f ‰ ‰
ff ? f f
f fff J J J
sf

# f. f f #f f f f f. ‰ f nf. ‰
65
Œ ‰ Œ
1

&
1

J f f f J

{
f f
n f.
f
. bff .f
? # fff ‰ f ff f f f f f nf J ‰ Œ ‰ f f
J 1 3
&
f f f f
sf 5

f > f > f. f f f. f nf .
4

# ‰ f f f f f f #f f f f f f
3

f f f f. f #f
4 2 5 4
69 4
4 3

&

{ # f. ‰
& J Πfff
f
j
‰ fff
f
j
‰
f
j
fff ‰ Œ ? ∑

# f f #f f . f. >™
f nf f f f. f.
73 2 2
f
1

f. f f
1

& f f f
J

{
p
ff ff ff f f f ff ff ff fF ff ff ff
? # fF fF f f f fF
4

39• Pianist 118

 f.
# f f #f f . f.
5

f™
77
‰ J
5
f nf f f #f f f f
5 4 1

& f f f f
1 2

{
f p
fff fff fff f ff f ff f ff f
? # nfF f f f ff f ‰ #ff ‰
J J 3
5

f.
f f f f f f.
5

f.
4

# f f
2 4
81
f
3

J
2 2 4 2 4

f ‰
1 3

& f f f f

{
pp

f f ff f ff f ff f ff f ff f ff f ff f
?# f
2
5

f
# f #f f f #f f f nf f f f f.
3

f.
85 2 3
5
4 3 3
1
3 3 5 4

f #f f f f #f f f
2 2 2 1 2

&
1 2 2

{ f
?# f
f ff f ff f ff f ff f ff f

. f f f ff ff ff f
#
5
f f
88 4 1

f ff f ff
1 3
1

& nf. f nf f f f f f f f f f
3 1 1 4 3 1

{?# ff.
3
5
J ‰ Œ
FF
F
1
2
5
ff
1
3
J ‰
f

Π& FF
1
2
5
F

4 5

f ff
2 2

fff
5 5 5
1 1

U
5 2
f ff
4 3

# J ff
92 2 1

‰ J J ‰ fff
2 1

‰ ‰ ‰ Œ f Œ
1 1

& f FF
J J

{
F
ff
U
# fj ‰ j j f ff
& f f ‰ ff ‰ ? f
J
‰ J ‰ Œ ff Œ FF
1
f 1 1 1 1
2 2
3 5 3 3 5 5
5

40• Pianist 118

 Johann Sebastian BACH (1685-1750) INTERMEDIATE
Sarabande from English Suite No 2 in A minor BWV 807

The six English Suites (BWV 806-811) were written for harpsichord, and
are thought to be the earliest of Bach’s suites for keyboard – the others
being the French Suites, the Partitas and the Overture in a French Style.
This stately Sarabande is the fourth out of a total of eight movements
from the Second Suite. Full of pathos, it will be a pleasure to master.
Playing tips: Firstly, look at the structure. Turn the page and you will see a
double bar at the end of bar 27. That’s the end of the Sarabande. What
follows is an embellishment of the 27 bars (notice the wording ‘con
adornos’, which basically means ‘with decoration’). What you need to do
is play the first 12 bars, followed immediately by bars 1-12 of the ‘con
adornos’ section. If confused, listen to the recording! It will mean a bit of
page turning back and forth, but there’s ample time to do this. Revel in
the harmonies and try to keep the line smooth (notice ‘sostenuto’ at the
start). Take care to voice the melody throughout.
Pedal tips: Pedalling has not been added. With Bach it’s often a matter of
taste as to whether you want a dry or a more sonorous sound.

Andante sostenuto q = 5 3
5 5 4
4 5 2

3
3

ff ff ff f f f f ™ f
3 4 4 5 1

& 4 fff fff ff ff #ff f F ff #f #ff f

1

ff f f

{ ∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏
f f ff FF ™ fJ ff f
p mf

? 43 f f f f f f f f ff f
f f f f f
f
1
3 2

f F
5 2

ff f ff f f f
5 2 1 3

f f
5 3 1 2 1 3

& f f f f f f f f f f f f f F

{ ? f
p

f
cresc.

Œ
f
f Œ
f
f f ff f f f
1
f
1
1 2
f F
f f f f f f
1
5
4 2

n f Tf nf
3 5 5

f bµ
3

f f nf ff f f
9 5
4
f f Œ
2

& bf f f bf ff ff f FFF ™™
2 2 1
f f f f

{
Œ
p p

? F ΠF #f Πf
f ™™
f
F

f #f #f f ff ff f
13 2 2 3
5

nf f #f
2 1 1

& ™™ ff
3
f f
4 2

ff ff f f f F f
#f ff #f ff #f

{
ff f F Œ
f # f # ff f Œf #f
p f p
f
cresc. 2

f f f
R.H. 1
f f
? ™™ f f f f f F ‰ f
1

f ffff f f f
f #f f J
1 3 4 5
1 2
2 3

41• Pianist 118

 5
1 4

f
nf f f n fff #ff ff ##ff
4

#f f f f F nf f f f f F
5
f r
18
j j
ff FFF #f bf fF
4 2

f nf #f f #f #f f
& ‰ Œ ‰
2 1 3

{
Œ
f f f
1

#f j f
? #f ‰ nf f f nf f Œ Œ
nf f 1 f f
f
1
2 2 5
4

5 4 4
4 1 2 1 5

bf
3 2 2

fF f f f ff ff f ff #ff ff nff ff
4 2 5

f f F f f nf f f F
23

& Œ ‰ nf f fF
1 2

{
‰
Œ Œ
1
f f f
2
p f
f f f f f
? f f f f ΠΠf f f f nf f
5 1 1 1 1
#f f 1

La misma S arabanda con adornos

5
3 5
Andante sostenuto
27
3
& f nff f #fff f ff
#f f f ™™ & 4 fff fff ff ff #f f #f f f F
4 5

FF

{ {
Πf F f f f F
p smorz. p

? f f F ™™ ? 43 f f f ff Ff
f f f
#f f f f
1
2

3
3 5
3
M 3 1 2

f ff ff f f f f
2 5

f bf f nf ff
f f f f f nf
1 4

& fff ff #f #ff ff ™ f f

5

{
fJ ff f
∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏

™
mf p cresc.

? fff f
f f f f f
Œ
f f

3
2

f ff f ff f f f ff f f f f f f f ™ FF
6 1

f f nf f
2

& f f
5

f f f f f™ f f f

{ f
f f
1

f F
1
f f ff
? f
2

Πf f f f f f f f
f
4

42• Pianist 118

 3

f f bf f n Œf f f f f f f nf f
5 5
3

ff f
9 5

f f
1 2

f
1

& bf f f f bf f f f f
2

ffff f f f f ff FF ™™
2 2 1 3

f f ff F

{
Œ
p f p

? F ΠF #f Πf
f ™™
f
F

f #f #f f f f #f#f f
3 4
13 5 3 2

#
2 3 5 4 2 1

& ™™ ff ff f # f
3 2 1

f f
ff ff f f f ™f f F #f #f f #f f f #f Œ

{
ff f F Œ
p f
f f
? ™™ f f f f f F f # f # ff f Œf #f
f ffff f f
f #f f 1 3 4
4
1
2 1

f f f f f f f f f f j #f
5

f #f f nf f #f f #f n
17
n f
nf f #f f f #f f #f f nf #f f f f f ‰ # ff
1 1

f
3 2 3

&
1 1 3

‰ J

{ ? f
p
f
‰ f
J
4
#f
#f
‰ nf
j
2
f f f

f ™ f b f F nf f nf f f f f fr F
5
r
1

#ff ff F f ™f f frF f f nf f f f f f fr F
1 4 3
r
20 1 5

# #f bf fF f
f
‰ nf f
f
& f FF Œ ‰ ‰ Œ fF

{
1
p
‰
ff f ΠΠfff
p

? f nf f f Œ Œ f f f f Œ Œ
f f f 2 5 1 5 1

3 5

ffb f ff f ff #f f f f f f f f #f f f f nf ™ m
2 2 2 4 5

f f f f f f f f f f ff f
25 4 4

f nf f f
1

& ff ™™
‰ J Œ #ff f fff FF

{
F
f p smorz.
f f f f F
? f f f f nf f f ™™
f #f f #f f ff
1 1 1 1
4

43• Pianist 118

 Oskar MERIKANTO (1868-1924) INTERMEDIATE
March Op 16 No 2

Ever since we featured Merikanto’s Valse lente inside issue 78, we’ve heard
nothing but admiration for this underrated Finnish composer. We are
always glad to feature more of his music (other pieces have appeared
inside issue 107 and 114).
Playing tips: Things are pretty simple throughout: The LH takes care of
the ‘um-pah-pah’ gruff-sounding accompanying chords while the RH
takes care of the melody. Enjoy the peasant-dance swing and don’t rush.
There’s a fair amount of repetition, but if you take note of the changes of
dynamics – especially the subito pianos – you’ll never be bored!
Pedal tips: See markings on the score.

.
™™ f f f f. f. f f. f. f. f. f f #f f. f fJ ‰ f f f f. f. f f. f. f.
Moderato h = 46

&c ∑
1 2 1

. .

{ f.
° °
f.
mf

?c f f f f
f.
1 /2
5
f.
1
2
™™ f

°
f.
ff.
ff

°
.
ff.
ff
.
sim.
ff.
ff
.
ff. sim.

ff
ff
ff
ff

j #f f f f f f f f f f f f f f F #f f f f f f f f f
5 2

& f. f f f. f. f f ‰ ™ ™
1
™ ™
2 3 2 3

{ ?
f
f
ff f
ff f ™™ ™™
p

ff
ff
f
ff
ff
ff f
ff f
ff
ff
f
ff

f fff f F . . f f. . . f. f f #f. f. f f . f. f f. f. f.
9

f. f f f f ff ‰ f f
& J f
. f

{ ? f
f
ff f
ff f
mf

ff
ff
ff
ff
ff
ff f
ff f ff
ff
ff
ff

>f. f . . f. #f. f #>ff f f f f f f

3 2
4 1

j
2 1
13 2 1

& f. f f f. f. f f ‰ ™™ ∑ ™™ f f ff ff ff f f f f f f J ‰

{ ?
f
f
ff f
ff f ™™ f
f>
>ff
ff
>
>ff
f

™™ f
f
ff
ff
ff
sf

ff
>
ff f
ff f

44• Pianist 118

 >f
5

>f. f . . f. #f. f f f f f f f ff f ‰ >f f f f . . f. f. >f. f f f. f f >F

3
17 5
f f f
& f f f ff f f f J . f. f f

{? f
f
ff
f
f
ff
sf

ff
>
ff
f
f
f
f f f f f f f f f f. f. f f f. f f F
> . . f. . . > >

. .>
. . f. f. f. f. >F
4

#f f #f F
1

f.
21 1 5
2 3 3 1 3

& f. f f f. #f. f f. f. f. f. f f f. f f F #fff f FFF #f f. f. f. f. F-

1 1 2

{
> . > > f
ff 1
mf f
2
ff FF
? #ff ff FF
5

f. f f f #f f f f. f. f f f. f f F f f F f f F
> . . f. . . > > # ff
> >f

.
™™ f f f f. f. f f. f. f. f. f f #f f. f fJ ‰ f f f f. f. f f. f. f.
26

&
1 3

. .

{
f. f. f. f. f. F-
mf mf
ff ff ff f ff ff
? f ff f f f f ™™ ff ff ff f ff ff
f. . . .
f ff
f f

j #f f f f f f f f f f f f f f F #f f f f f f f f f f f f f f F
30 2 3

& f. f f f. f. f f ‰
2 3

{?
ff
ff
f
f
f f
p

f
f
ff
f
ff
f
f
ff
f
f
f f
f
f
ff
f
ff
f
f
ff
f
f
f f

. . f f. . . f f #f. f. f f . . f f. . j
35

& f. f f f f f .
f f J ‰ f. f f f f f f. f f f f. f f f ‰
. .

{? f
f
mf
ff
f
f
ff
f
f
ff
f
f
f f

45• Pianist 118

f
f
ff
f
f
ff
ff
ff
f
f
f f
 Jules BURGMEIN (Giulio RICORDI) (1840-1912) INTERMEDIATE
Romance Poudrée

Wondering why there are two names attributed to this work? Italian
music publisher Giulio Ricordi was also a fine composer, and for
whatever reason, he chose to write under the pseudonym of Jules
Burgmein. So, what’s right? Was Romance Poudrée written by Ricordi or
Burgmein? Let’s not worry about it – it’s too ravishing! Listen to Chenyin
Li’s performance on the soundtrack and you’ll be hooked.
Playing tips: Try to find your finest cantabile sound for the RH melody,
and don’t hold back on the use of rubato. The LH accompaniment
should float – keep it soft, though, so as not to interrupt the melody. The
fiorituras (bar 38 onwards) will need to be practised out of context.
Pedal tips: See suggestions on the score.
Graham Fitch suggests further playing tips in his lesson on page 16.

Andante sostenuto q = 46–5 0

# 3 fff f fff f ff f
5

& #4 ∑ f f f
3 1
ff
f f

{
3 3 3
pp
j f ff f j f ff ff j f ff ff fj ff f fj
? ## 43 ‰ fff ff f ff fff ‰ fff ff f f ‰ fff ff f f ‰ f f ff
f ‰ #ff
F™ 2
3
1
2
1
2
F™ 1
2
1
3
F™ F f
°
1 5 3 5 5 5

ø ø ø ø ø ø

f f
# f ff ff f™
5 43

&#
j 3
f
4
j
f f ff f f f ff f
3
f
4 1
F f ff

{ j
3
j
fj ff f f f j f j
ff ff ff ‰ nfff ff fff ff fff ‰ fff ff fff fff fff ‰ ff fff ff ‰ f
ff
‰
? ## f f
f f f f f
F™
2 1
nF ™ F™ F f
ø ø sim.
3 2
5 3

più marcato
3
f #f
j f
## ff ™ f F
9 3
f f f™ f F f f f f f
& f f f f
ff ‰ fff ff fff ff fff ‰ ff fff ff ff f

{
‰ fff ff fff ff f fJ f f ff
j J J
‰ fff ff ff fff ff
? ## f f F™
- F- ™ F- ™
F™
° ø ø
f f
## f ™ f F
13
f f f f f f
3

& ‰ ff #ff ff # ff f f f f f f
3 1
f

{
# fJ f f f ff
j
ffj j f
f
ff f # f ff
? ## ‰ f f ff ‰ nff ‰ fff ff ff
f f ff
f
#F- ™ F nf F™
ø ø ø ø ø
46• Pianist 118
 ## f #f f
32
ff f f ff f
16 4

f f f f fj f ™ f F f
1

& f #f f f f f f

{
3 3

ff ff n ff f f
sub. pp
f ff ff ff f f ff ff ff f
R.H.

f F #fff f
n f ff ff
? ## j fff FFF f f
f J f f j j
f f
ø ø ø ø ø sim.

dolcissimo
20
# f f f f f f
&#
f f ff f ffff ffff
1 2
F

{
3

f f f ‰ ff fff ff fff
? ## f f f #fff j j nf f fff
f f & f ff ff f f ?
nF ™
f f f f

## f f ff f™ fj
23
1 2
f f f f f f f™ f F
& f ff fff f ff

{
j j
f
f f f f ‰ j
fff fff fff ‰ f
ff ‰ fff ff ff fff ff
? ## ‰ ff f ff ff fff f f
F™ F f
F™

# ffj ffj ff j j j j j
26
ff
& # ‰ ff fff f f f
ff ff fff fff f
#ff ff
ff
ff #ff
ff ff ff

{
f f f f f f ff
f
f f f f™ f f
? ## f f f f f f™ f F f

## ff
30

& ‰ ff f ff f ff nfff ™ f f #f f f f # ff #fff fff fff f ™ f F ™ #f

ff # ff ff

{
ff
J J f f fJ f
nf #f >f
? ## f f #f #f f f f f
f
f f f
f f f f
J J
47• Pianist 118
 >
5 4

>
2

>
1
1

## f ff #f nff f f
34
F ff ff ff ff f f f f ™ f ff f f f f f f f
& f f #f f f ff ff f f ™ f
f f ff ™™ ff ff f f f f f f

{
F f f f - - - f
>
‰ ff ff ff ‰ ffj
ff
ff
ff ff
? ## f f f #f f f f ff ff #ff
f f
F f f ff f f
f F f f
f f
° ø ø ø ø ø ø
dolcissimo
10
37
# f f
10

& # #fff ™™™ f FF f fffff fffff fffff fffff

2 1
f

{
f™ f F
> j j f
sub. pp

ff f ‰ nfff fff f ff
? ## f f f
ff f ff ff f fff ‰ fff ff fff fff fff
f nF ™ F™
f
ø sim.

j > >
## f. f f f f f ™ f f ff #f ff
40 1 1
f f f F #ff ff f f F #ff
4

ff f f
& fff ‰ ff ‰ f fJ ‰ ff ‰ f fJ ‰ #fJ

{
J J
j ff f ff ff ff. ff. pp
>F >F
‰ f f f nf nf bf
? ## ff f ff
F f
f

>
dolcissimo
f f f f f f fffffff
3
44
## F ™ f f f
3 1
f
f f f f f f f
2 5 1 1
ff ff
1 1

& ‰ ff f fJ

{
9

>F ™
f sub. ppp

? ## f f F ™™
f F & Ff ff
FF f ff

f f f f. f. f. f. . .
f
rall. molto
ffff ffff
## F f U
1

f f f. .
47 4 1
1 2
4

&
1

f f fff F f F FF ™™™

{
13 f nF f F ff
f FF ™
FF U
##
sempre pp
? F
F f F f F
& fF f ff f FF f F f FF ™™
f f F™
F f 1
2 1 1
3 4

48• Pianist 118

 Frank BRIDGE (1879-1941) INTERMEDIATE/
ADVANCED
Columbine, No 1 from Three Pieces H108

Brighton-born Frank Bridge studied at the Royal College of Music under
Charles Villiers Stanford among others. He was a concertising violist, and
conductor, but ultimately decided to devote his musical life to
composing. Underappreciated even today, he is most frequently
recognised as the teacher of the young Benjamin Britten. Bridge wrote
his Three Pieces H108 in 1912: Columbine is the first piece in the set.
Playing tips: The pulse should be quite fluid, so the tempo marking is
there as a basic guide (hence, the ‘approx’). We suggest practising hands
separately: a firm grasp of the LH is a must, so that the RH can float and
dance over it. From bar 5, get used to rotating the LH’s wrist/elbow very
slightly from left to right, in order to cover the wide stretches without
tensing up. Practise the RH in short sections: that is, take a bar, then add
another bar and so on, until you have managed a phrase.
Pedal tips: Ample use of pedal is required.

Poco lento q. = 48 a pprox.

. . .
.f f. f f f f f f f f f f f f f. f U
. . .
Tempo di valse
b b 3 f. . .
rall.
f f
b f ™ f ff ™™ f f f
4

& b 8
2 1 1

J J

{
p j j U pp
ff ff ff b fff f
? b b 38 f f j nf j bf nf f f
bb J f f j j f ‰
J f f f f
con Ped.

bbb f f f f™
6 2

f f f nf f
3 5 1

b f™
4

f f f f f f f
2

& f f f f f f f f f

{ ? bb f
bb f
f
‰ f
f
f
‰ f f
f
‰ f
f
f
‰ f f
f
‰

poco rit. a tempo

>f ™
b f™ f nf. bf. bf. f. . f ™
11
b f f f f™
ten. 1

&b b
5

f bf f
1
f f f f
n f f nf

{ ? bb b f f
b
mf
f
‰ f f
f
‰
pp

nf
f
f
‰ bf
f
bf
‰
f
f
f
‰

f f. f. f. f. . .
f
ff
1

f f f f f. . .
1

b
16 2

& b bb f
ff f ff
1

ff
ffff
f. b f. n f. bf. nf.

{
f
f
? bb b f f f ff
b f f ‰ f ‰ f ‰ f ‰ ‰ ∑ ?
∏∏∏∏∏∏

& fJ
f
49• Pianist 118
21
b b f™ f f™
&b b f ™ f f f f f f f f f f f f f f™ f f nf
f f f f

{? bb f
bb f
pp
f
‰
f
f
f
‰ f
f
f
‰ f f
f
‰
p

f f
f
cresc.

f f f™ f f f™ f f f
bb f nf f nf f f f
26
f
4

&b b f f f f f f f f f
1 2
1

{
mf cresc.
f bf f f
f
? bb f f ‰ f f ‰ f ‰ f f ‰ f ‰
bb & f
f

f f f f n f ffff ,
ff f
1

b f f f nf
31 1

& b bb ffff f bf f f
2 marcato 3
1 1

f f fff f
1 1 2 1

{
J
>j ff f f f
> nn ff
f2
> j ff
bb
&b b ‰
? f f
f bf
f
f n f nf f f
fJ

bf f bf f f nf f f
3
rall. a tempo rall.

f f nf b f f
3

b bf f f f bf
36
b ffff f n
3

f
&b b
3 1

f bf bff f ff nf
1 3 5 1

{
n fJ n fJ
j j
ff b f ff f j bffj n ff nf f j n
nff
j ? nfj n f nnffj ffJ J
ff
? bb b n
b ‰ f & nff J J nn ff & J
?
f J

>.
“”j >. . f. f.
a tempo

. . . . n f # fj f
n f f . . . . f nf nf f
b f nf. f f f. nf. f. nf. f f
41
b J f J
&b b f

{
>
ff
pp sempre stacc. f f f f
? bb j f f f n ff j ‰ ff
bb f ‰ J f ‰ J f ‰ J nf ‰ J f J
J J J
f
50• Pianist 118
 >.
b . . . bf. f. f. n fj f
46
b n nf J
& b b f f. nf. f. f. f nf nf f
# f. nf. nf. #f. . . f nf. f. f. f.

{
f
>
nf nf
? b b j ‰ fJ j ‰ n#ff j ‰ nnnfff f f
bb f nf J f J j ‰ fJ f
j ‰ f
J
f

>. >.j poco rit.

j
j f >
. . . n fj f >
b . f. nf f f
51
n
& b bb
f
f f b .
f b f f bf ff #f ‰ f f
n . . ‰ ‰ fJ n f f ‰ ‰ nfJ

{
n f. f. . .
f f
mp espress. espress.
ff ff f f nf f
? bb b j ‰ f ‰ J ‰ ‰ J
b f f
J f j j
j
f. nf f .

“” j >.
a tempo

n f f
. . . nf. . f. f. n f.
f
b . f. nf f f
56

& b bb #ff nnff ‰

J f . .
f f
f f. . . f.
f f

{
f f
>
nf bf f bf ™
p

? bb b nf bf f™ fff ™™™
b j j ≈ f™ f™
j
nf f . f.
> >f
f™ ffffff fff
bb f™ f f f™
61

&b b

{ >f ™ >f ™
pp sempre e grazioso
f f
? bb f f f > fff > ff ff
bb ff f f
f f f 3
1
1 1 4 1 4

>f
f f f f f f™ >f
b
66
b fff
&b b f f f™ f f™ f
ff

{
> ff
>f ™ >f ™ pp
f f
? bb f ff f f
bb f f f
2
>f 3 f f

51• Pianist 118

 poco rit.
71
bb f j
f ff f f
Tempo I
ff ™ f f f f
b
& b ‰ ff f™ f f ™ f f f f f f f f f f f

{ b
mf
f
? bb b ‰ f
f™
f™
pp

f
f
f
‰
f
f
f ‰ f
f
f
‰

>f ™
poco rit.
b f™ f™
76

& b bb
f™ n f f f f
ten.
f f
f f f f f f f f f f f f

{? bb b f
b f
f
‰
p

f
f
f
‰ f f
f
‰
mf

f
f
f
‰ f f
f
‰

a tempo

b b f™ f nf. bf. bf. f. . f ™

81
f f
&b b f bf f f f f f f f
n f f nf f. b f. n f. bf. nf.

{ pp

? bb f
b b nf
f
‰ bf
f
bf
‰
f
f
f
‰
f f
f
‰
f
f
f ‰

f f. f. f. f. . .
f
ff
bb
f f f f f. . .
86

&b b f
ff ff ff ™
™ fff fff ff
f

{? bb f f
bb
f
‰
f
ff
ff ‰ ‰ ∑ ?
f

f
f
‰ f
f
‰
∏∏∏∏∏∏

& f
J f

f f f™
bbb f f f f f f f ™ f™
91
b f f f f
& f f f f f nf f f f

{? bb f
bb f
f
‰ f f
f
‰
p

f f

52• Pianist 118

f
cresc.

‰ f
f
f
‰ f f
bf
‰
 f f f™ f f f f f f nf f f f f
f f f f
bbb f f f f nf f nf f f f
96

& b

{
mf cresc.
f f
f > >
? bb f ‰ f f ‰ f ‰
bb & f f bf
f
f f n f nf
“”
nn fff con fuoco
>f n nf>ff >ff
b nf n n
101

& b bb J ≈ n ff b ff n
≈ b fff

{
R J R
> #n ff n bn ffff > n bn f>ff
ff

bbb nfj n
2 1 1

? #f nf nf #f f f f
#f ≈ R nf nf nf f f ≈ Rf
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53• Pianist 118

 DON’T MISS
LUCY PARHAM’S
LESSON Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) ADVANCED
ON THIS PIECE
PAGE
22 Impromptu in E flat Op 90 No 2
WATCH CHENYIN LI PLAY THIS AT WWW.PIANISTMAGAZINE.COM

In 1827, Schubert wrote two sets of four impromptus: Opus 90 (D899) on the Pianist YouTube channel.There’s a plethora of interpretations out
and Opus posth 142 (D899). This Impromptu, the second in the first there on YouTube from the likes of Brendel, Uchida and Sokolov.
set, is one of his most florid and technically challenging, and if executed Graham Fitch offers up practising tips on this piece on page 16.
well, it can be spellbinding. Watch house pianist Chenyin Li perform it Read Lucy Parham’s step-by-step lesson on page 22.

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54• Pianist 118

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55• Pianist 118
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56• Pianist 118

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57• Pianist 118
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58• Pianist 118
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59• Pianist 118

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60• Pianist 118

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61• Pianist 118

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62• Pianist 118

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63• Pianist 118

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64• Pianist 118

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65• Pianist 118

66• Pianist 116

PIANO TEACHER HELP DESK
A m a tc h m a d e in h e a v e n
Get the chemistry right, and both parties will reap the benefits: Kathryn Page addresses the
subject of creating a good working relationship with your student
S
how all your pupils that
you care! Passion for
music, the desire to share
and support, the spirit
and motivation to always
build up, heal, provide pathways
and inspiration… These are the
essentials that must be in place in
a teacher’s DNA. Tutor empathy
is so important in all kinds of
subjects and educational scenarios,
but it could well be argued that
it is even more important during
current restrictions for piano
teachers working online with
students. It is vital to be very
aware of your own ‘vibes’ when
you are teaching online. Your
body language, tone of voice and
responses to what the pupil is
doing will come across very clearly.
If you are teaching online the
lack of physical presence makes
your physical reactions even more
vital if a positive rapport is to be
maintained through computer
screens. Because you are not
actually with the pupil physically
it is most certainly worth adding
extra energised zest in terms of
positivity to your encouragement
after each scale is attempted, or a
difficult corner in a Bach two-part
invention is triumphantly realised.
Do not be artificial or untruthful.
Do not say something is wonderful
if it is not. Online and offline,
artificiality and fake encouragement
will upset a student arguably even
more so than harsh, direct criticism
will. But if you hear something
genuinely positive and you are
pleased during an online lesson,
then turbo-energise your facial
reactions with a beaming smile.
On many an occasion I have
© Erica Worth
literally jumped for joy when a
student has managed to remember
F O R T H E T E AC H E R
Kathryn Page has appeared in concert
and on television as a soloist and in
chamber music. She is a teacher,
adjudicator and administrator for
Chetham’s International Summer School
and Festival for Pianists, as well as the
Manchester International Concerto
Competition for young pianists. She lives
in Cheshire and has five children.
all the fingerings in G sharp the lessons, On the other hand,
melodic minor after several weeks adolescents may reach a stage
of stumbling and stopping. I where they simply do not wish
frequently raise my arms like a to have Mum involved at all – let
footballer after scoring the winning alone sitting in lessons – as they
goal for England in the World Cup strive to find their own identity
Final when a triumphant flourish and personality both as a musician
marks the end of a particularly and a person.
positive rendering of one of the Do have long term objectives
more energised C pieces from the (curriculums) as well as short
ABRSM or Trinity lists (Prokofiev’s term goals. Think carefully about
Tarantella seems to need this motivational projects such as class
response after its concluding D concerts, festivals, and exams (the
major cadence!) latter should never be seen as the
be all and end all), but do share
Sweet dreams and communicate with your pupils
So, creating a caring, positive about scheduling.
atmosphere is extremely important To a greater or lesser extent all
– the vital initial stage in building teacher-pupil relationships are
the empathy without which a partnership. Give and take is
musical progress will be less rapid. important, and we should always
You can and you should create try to give the pupil what they
excitement and magic by asking want to receive. At the same time,
what the dreams are of your by subtle means, we have a deep
pupils. Find out what they most responsibility to draw out talents,
want to play, study, achieve. Tell interests, and inspiration from
them not to be embarrassed if the our pupils that they may not have
works they want to mention may perhaps realised they have. This
to them appear too difficult, too is the really magical part of the
impractical for study at present, teacher-pupil relationship, and
or perhaps too cheesy or ‘poppy’ one that never fails to surprise
– hear them out and adapt or me. Perhaps a future instalment
plan long term to help them and in this column will be devoted
support their aspirations. to ‘drawing out rather than
Ask questions and listen with drumming in’ talent from our
sensitivity to what you hear. With pupils, but that is for another
children it is important to get the time. Meanwhile, keep warm, keep
parents interested and involved in empathetic and keep inspiring! n
67• Pianist 118
UP CLOSE
SLOWLY
BUT
SURELY
Turning 50 is a landmark
moment for many of us, but for
Steven Osborne it’s just another day
in an ever-rewarding life in music
He talks to Erica Worth
F
ifteen years ago a young Scottish pianist
appeared on the cover of Pianist 23. He had
recorded Messiaen’s Visions de l’amen on two
pianos with Martin Roscoe and was keeping his
record company – and concert halls worldwide
– very busy. Now, as Steven Osborne approaches a
milestone birthday – impish-looking as ever, I might add
– he has notched up 29 recordings for Hyperion Records
and, Covid aside, is still very much in demand.
No surprise, then, that when we speak over the phone,
he’s not in Edinburgh, his home for the past decade, but
in London, preparing to record Rachmaninov (the First
Sonata and Moments musicaux) at St Silas Church in
Kentish Town. ‘I start tomorrow,’ he tells me, ‘with
producer Andrew Keener.’ Twenty-one years with one
record company is quite an achievement: ‘A lot of notes!’
he laughs. ‘I have a great relation with Hyperion. They are
fantastic to work with. When I asked Simon [Perry, MD]
if I could record all of Tippett’s piano music, his response
was: “This probably won’t sell, but it’s a great project.”
They were not looking at the bottom line, but the artistry.
I like Hyperion’s ethos.’
Give and take
Osborne can draw and hold an audience with Messiaen’s
Vingt Regards as readily as he can with Beethoven’s
‘Moonlight’ Sonata. ‘There’s never been a master plan,’
he says of his repertoire. ‘One project just leads to the
next. It’s what I feel like doing. You work with one
composer for a while, then you take a break and want to
work with another.’
There is music, however, that he’s happy to leave aside.
© Benjamin Ealovega
‘When I was at music college, I did a lot of Bach, but it’s
not been at the top of the list. And it’s even less likely that
I will play Chopin! I’d love to be able to play the
68• Pianist 118
Steven Osborne plays
Rachmaninov Etude-
Tableau Op 33 No 2
TAP TO WATCH
Steven Osborne plays the
first movement from
Beethoven Sonata Op 109
Mazurkas, really idiomatically, but the style feels so foreign
to me. I did play the Cello Sonata with Alban [Gerhardt],
and that was fun, but I still didn’t feel I’d managed to
digest it properly.’
His latest album finds Osborne right at home: a
collection of ‘French Duets’ featuring Fauré’s Dolly,
Debussy’s Petite suite and Ravel’s Ma mère l’oye. His
partner was another colleague of long standing, Paul
Lewis. ‘It’s an amazing project,’ says Osborne. ‘We did a
tour first, and it was the most wonderful experience. Paul
and I are such good friends, and we click so well. I was so
sad when it was over. These duets aren’t particularly flashy:
it’s fantastic to give concerts where you don’t have so many
notes; you don’t have to think to yourself, “I’ve got to hold
this together”.’
Osborne and Lewis made some friendly bargains over
primo and secondo. ‘I knew that I wanted to do the top
for Mother Goose’, he says. ‘And we easily agreed on that.
We had a “give and take” attitude: we might not have
played the parts we wanted for all the pieces, but we didn’t
even have to discuss it – and it felt very easy.’
Learning to listen
I ask Osborne if he feels a sense of achievement as he
approaches his half-century. ‘I’ve never had a sense of what
I wanted to achieve,’ he says. ‘I have always gone from one
project to the next, and I feel satisfied with all the
recordings I’ve done. I try not to make “perfect”
recordings. I try to do a bunch of takes and listen back.
Once I know the broad layout of what I want to do, I can
feel free in the recording session. Being able to feel free is
the most important thing, and it gets easier and easier.
He has had to learn how to harness a natural inclination
to get everything just so. ‘With the first recordings I made,
I was such a perfectionist. The process of doing that can
take the life out of it. When you see perfect, digitally
enhanced faces, they are quite alienating. You need things
that aren’t quite predictable. Some things do get to me – a
phrase that doesn’t work well or the odd wrong note – but
whether in recording or concert, most people wouldn’t even
register these tiny flaws.’
Osborne has also learnt how to practise differently, and
better. ‘I have better control. My advice would be to practise
slowly – really slowly – and for how it feels as much as for
how it sounds. Find good posture. Play really simple things.
Even a simple chord is difficult to do without tension. I
suggest to my students that for one minute every day they
play a single chord and see what it feels like.
‘Arnaldo Cohen taught me to play the Op 23 No 9
double-note Rachmaninov Prelude super-slow. Playing the
piano is very complicated in terms of coordination for the
fingers – the ones that play and the ones that don’t – and for
the brain. When playing slowly you really notice what’s
happening. That’s why I’m playing better now. I do this
every time when starting to learn a piece; I play really slowly SALES HIRE MOVING TUNING
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I have always been struck by Osborne’s calm demeanour.
Is he like this on the inside? ‘Absolutely not!’, he laughs.
‘I need space and time – to sit, to take walks, to meditate, to
conserve energy. You need space in your mind to be able to
respond. What I did was buy a mediocre piano. That may
sound odd, but it means that any piano I play on in concert
I think “wow, I am enjoying this. It’s a great piano!” Many We offer OPEN
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As we draw to a close, I wonder what Osborne is up to for
the rest of the day. Practising for the sessions, surely?
‘Goodness, no,’ he answers. ‘I am off for a walk in Regent’s
Park. I like to have space and take a day off before going FOR EXPERT ADVICE CALL
inot the recording studio.’ n
01923 720 974
French Duets is out on 5 March (Hyperion CDA68329). info@richardlawsonpianos.com
Steven Osborne celebrates his 50th birthday at Wigmore Hall
@richardlawsonpianosltd
on 12 March 2021: see wigmore-hall.org.uk for more details.

69• Pianist 118

 R E P E R TO I R E
THE KEY TO EVERYTHING
Ever wondered why a sonata is written in a certain key? Or why a nocturne would
sound so wrong in another? John Evans takes us on a colourful journey through
a mixed bag of key-signature emotions
A
dashing scherzo, a
bittersweet waltz, a
smouldering study, a
flirtatious mazurka and,
among his most difficult
works, a sonata that ranges across the
emotional spectrum. These works by
Chopin couldn’t be more different from
each other; remarkably, however, they
share the same key: B minor.
‘Remarkably’ because it’s thought, at
least by some people, that each of music’s
24 keys has a particular quality that
composers tap into when wishing to
express a particular mood or feeling. As
early as the late 17th century people were
writing about the effects of keys, but it
was a composer and journalist called
Christian Schubart (1739-1791) who
took the bold step of defining the
characters of all 24 of them in his book
Ideen zu einer Aesthetik der Tonkunst,
loosely translated as Ideas for an Aesthetic
© AdobeStock/KsanaGraphica
of the Art of Music. Regarding B minor,
he described it as ‘the key of patience, of
calm awaiting one’s fate and of
submission to divine dispensation.’
That hardly describes the tone of the
first movement of Chopin’s Sonata No 2
and certainly not its finale. The one
movement that does suggest ‘calm
awaiting one’s fate’ is the third, but it’s
composed in B major about which
Schubart says, ‘Anger, rage, jealousy, fury,
despair and every burden of the heart lies
in its sphere.’
A similar contradiction exists in the
‘In the 19th century and into the 20th
century it was believed that the more
sharps or flats there were, the more
profound the emotion being expressed’
three Nocturnes Chopin also composed
in B major. In keeping with the form, far
from raging and despairing they are
wistful and reflective. Meanwhile, his
B major Prélude is a delightfully sunny
work. At a stretch, the three B major
Mazurkas satisfy some elements of
Schubart’s description but they have their
more introspective moments, too.
70• Pianist 118
We could go on like this, comparing
Schubart’s descriptions with pieces in the
same keys and finding huge disparities.
Inevitably, as with Chopin’s Mazurkas,
we’d find some measure of agreement,
too. For example, Schubart’s description
of G minor as ‘uneasy and discontented’
perfectly captures the mood of Chopin’s
G minor Ballade.
Turning to Mozart, the same key
conveys the mood of the composer’s G
minor Sonata K312. In fact, G minor
was his go-to key when wishing to
express sadness. Considerably darker than
this is the key of A flat described by
Schubart (and composers around the
same time) as ‘the key of the grave’.
Accordingly, Beethoven chose it for his
Sonata No 12 Op 26, the one containing the
famous Funeral March, itself written in A flat
minor but ending in A flat major.
A mother’s voice
Ivan Hewett is a broadcaster and music critic
who presented a series on BBC Radio 4 that
explored the idea of keys having distinct
characters. After 15 programmes examining
many of the most significant ones and discussing
them with experts including the pianist Peter
Donohoe, was he persuaded they have?
‘I was – sort of. I think it’s fair to say that
C major has a simplicity and a naïvety about it
which composers such as Debussy latched onto
in Dr Gradus ad Parnassum. However,
considered purely in terms of a key’s
emotional quality, I think the idea is rather
messy. Instead, it’s more useful to think of the
scientific, technical and cultural factors
surrounding a composer’s choice of key. For
example, in one episode of my series, Professor
Paul Robertson, founder of the Medici
Quartet, suggested that our ability as infants
to recognise pitches so that we can recognise
our mother’s voice stays with us and means we
have specific pitch responses.’
It’s an idea supported by Adam Ockleford,
Professor of Music and Director of the Applied
Music Research Centre at the University of
Roehampton, London. ‘In humans, music
develops before speech. So, because music is
everywhere, we quickly associate it with certain
emotions. It means that by the time we’re five,
we’ve heard enough to distinguish between
minor and major keys and know, for example,
that a minor key means sad.’
Turn of the screw
How instruments were once tuned also helped
guide composer’s responses to particular keys,
says Hewett. ‘In the Baroque period, the
prevailing meantone tuning system meant that
F minor sounded very peculiar – on the
harpsichord, A flat was tuned as G sharp – to
the extent that it became associated with
melancholy and even anger.’
This may explain Schubart’s description of
F minor as sounding like a ‘deep depression, a
longing for the grave’. It also appears throughout
Beethoven’s music, not least as the home key
for his Sonata No 26, the aptly named
‘Appassionata’. Later, Chopin would use it for
his tragic-sounding Ballade No 4. Pianist Glenn
Gould revealed that if he could be any key, he
would choose F minor because ‘it’s rather dour;
halfway between complex and stable, between
upright and lascivious, between grey and highly
tinted… There is a certain obliqueness.’
Other factors that might influence a
composer’s choice of key, says Hewett, include
▲
71• Pianist 118
KEY CHART
In his book Ideen zu einer Aesthetik der
Tonkunst (Ideas for an Aesthetic of the
Art of Music) the journalist and
composer Christian Schubart described
the characters of music’s 24 keys.
Schubart himself was as colourful as his
keys, a talented keyboard player who
also wrote poetry (his poem, Die
Forelle, was immortalised by Schubert
in his ‘Trout’ Quintet). See if his views
of the 24 keys align with your own:
C major Completely pure
C minor The lament of unhappy love
Db major A leering key, degenerating
into grief and rapture
C# minor Intimate conversation with
God
D major The key of triumph
D minor Melancholy womanliness
Eb major The key of love
D# minor Feelings of brooding despair
E major Noisy shouts of joy
E minor Naïve, womanly innocent
declaration of love
F major Complaisance and calm
F minor Deep depression, funereal
lament
F# major Triumph over difficulty
F# minor A gloomy key: it tugs at
passion as a dog biting a dress
G major Everything rustic, idyllic and
lyrical
G minor Discontent and uneasiness
Ab major Key of the grave
Ab minor Grumbler, heart squeezed
until it suffocates
A major Declarations of innocent love
A minor Pious womanliness and
tenderness
Bb major Cheerful love, clear
conscience
Bb minor A quaint creature, often
dressed in the garment of night
B major Strongly coloured, announcing
wild passions
B minor The key of patience, of calm
awaiting one’s fate
R E P E R TO I R E
how certain ones fit under a pianist’s
hands more naturally. ‘E, E flat and F
sharp lie particularly well, so feel more
natural and relaxed.’ Chopin is said to
have liked the way B major fitted neatly
beneath his hands. The same can be said
of D flat, the key Beethoven chose for the
slow movement of the ‘Appassionata’.
Mozart’s love of A major may originate in
its ease of playing. That the note A
vibrates at a cheery 440 beats per second
(at least today) could be another reason
and perhaps why Schubert chose the key
for his carefree ‘Trout’ Quintet.
Regarding string instruments, Hewett
says that keys that have no open strings
sound closed, less resonant and less bright.
Tchaikovsky exploited this effect in the
anguished Finale of his Symphony No 6,
‘Pathétique’. Conversely, a key with open
strings sounds brighter and more
resonant. Could this be why Beethoven
chose E flat major for his Piano Concerto
No 5? The E flat chord with its open G
that announces the start of the work is
bold and authoritative.
Thorny accidentals
Even the appearance of accidentals
can influence how a key is perceived,
Hewett explains. ‘A thicket of sharps
looks spikey, while a cluster of flats looks
softer. In my view, Chopin’s Barcarolle in
F minor would look better written in G
flat minor.’
In fact, in the 19th century and into the
20th century it was believed that the more
sharps or flats there were, the more
profound the emotion being expressed.
An example is Beethoven’s Piano Sonata
No 24 composed in F sharp, until then an
unusual key to use but about which
Schubart writes, ‘Triumph over difficulty,
free sigh of relief uttered when hurdles are
surmounted; echo of a soul which has
fiercely struggled and finally conquered
lies in all uses of this key.’ For once, he
may have hit the spot. Another example is
Ondine from Gaspard de la nuit, by Ravel,
an intensely atmospheric piece composed
in the horrifyingly spiky-looking key of
C sharp.
The conductor Sir Mark Elder is
unimpressed by this talk of keys having
character. ‘I think there’s flim-flam in it.
Pitch has changed so that what was heard
as E flat 200 years ago is now D. As for
Mozart’s connection with keys, E flat was
his Masonic key owing to its three flats
which relate to the three ritual journeys a
novice Mason must undertake.’
72• Pianist 118
Escape from C major
What makes this discussion of keys and
their character difficult is that since the
great composers are no longer with us, we
can’t ask them why they chose one in
preference to another. So let’s ask a living
one who is making strides on the world
stage. James McCarthy, 41, is a British
composer with a number of acclaimed
choral works to his name. Is he inspired
by specific keys?
‘It’s very easy to paint yourself into a
box with a familiar key, which is why I
like to work in less familiar ones that will
trigger new musical experiences,’ he says.
‘When I compose an oratorio, for
example, I will write the choruses, arias
and solos in different keys, to help my
inspiration. Later, I will rekey them to
help them blend from one to the other.’
McCarthy says that many composers
avoid C because they have exhausted their
musical imagination with it. ‘It’s too cosy
and familiar. I certainly wouldn’t compose
angry music in it. It needs spicing up with
black notes, which is why C minor is
much more interesting.’
He’s in good company. C minor,
considered to be an alien key at the time,
was used occasionally by Mozart (Fantasy
in C minor and Piano Concertos Nos 20
and 24 among other works) when he was
in a dramatic mood. The same key became
a favourite of Beethoven who used it
much more often (numerous piano
sonatas including Nos 8 and 32, 32
Variations and Piano Concerto No 3). In
time it became the signature key for his
more turbulent and heroic-sounding
works or movements. As the pianist
Martin Helmchen, whose recording of
Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No 3 has just
been released, says, ‘C minor was
Beethoven’s home for invention and
expression.’
Later, Rachmaninov would use the key
for his Piano Concerto No 2, a vitally
important work for the composer that
he wrote following treatment for
depression. Schubart’s definition of the
key could have been written for it:
‘Declaration of love and at the same time
the lament of unhappy love. All
languishing, longing, sighing of the
love-sick soul lies in this key.’
Calmer waters
Less dramatic is F major, a key that
Beethoven, for example, appears to have
chosen when wishing to express peace and
contentment. Examples include his
 SCRIABIN’S WORLD
The Russian composer Alexander Scriabin
(1872-1915) perceived musical keys as colours.
For example, to him the scale of D major was
golden brown in colour and E flat, red bordering
on purple. Accordingly, in his mind the cycle of
fifths looks like a decorator’s colour chart,
especially so from the key of E which the
composer perceived as pale blue and which, via
darker blues, shades of purple and then of dark
red returns to C, itself bright red.
In later life Scriabin abandoned key signatures
altogether and devised his own atonal system.
The fact that his music lost none of its expressive
power suggests the link between keys and
emotions is a tenuous one.

‘Pastoral’ Symphony No 6 and the Piano

Sonata No 6. Schubart’s definition of it,
‘Complaisance and calm’, certainly
describes much of the ‘Pastoral’
Symphony, while the Sonata is a cheerful
and uncomplicated work.
The pianist Vanessa Benelli Mosell
whose album, Casta Diva, a collection of
popular arias, overtures and themes has
just been released, believes there’s
something in the idea of keys having
characters. ‘Were Liszt’s B minor Sonata
composed in the key above it and called
the C minor it would sound less legitimate
to me. Even in A minor it would feel less
unstable. B minor gives me the feeling of
something uncertain, darker and at the
same time sharper than other keys.
‘However, I am very influenced by what
I play and haven’t an absolute opinion of
keys. My favourite changes frequently. At
the moment it’s G minor because it’s the
beginning of Bellini’s Norma and of
Reminiscences de Norma, by Liszt, one of
my favourite transcriptions. It has a
solemn yet expressive start in G minor
before moving quickly to different keys
throughout the piece. I think modulation
like this is how composers give character
to keys.’
Has Bellini hit the nail on the head?
Perhaps, more than the key itself, it’s the
sound of other keys around it that give it
life and soul. It’s all in the ears of the
beholder. n
P I A N I S T AT W O R K
BENEATH
THE SURFACE
Ahead of his upcoming album, Burkard Schliessmann
talks to John Evans about the fantasy world
of Schumann, the influence of Bach on Chopin,
and the allure of deep-water diving
TAP TO WATCH
Burkard Schliessmann plays
Schubert arr. Liszt
‘Ständchen’
Y
our new Schumann album is called
Fantasies. Why were you drawn to
the composer?
My relationship with Schumann dates
from my earliest years. I was fascinated
by how his music combines abstruse
Romanticism with intelligence, philosophy and literature.
However, although it has to be played in an
improvisational style, its internal structures remain
Classical. My programme shows how Schumann
abandoned the large architectural forms of his early years
in favour of miniature and more detailed forms in his later
ones. This transition can be a challenge for performers.
How did you decide on the repertoire for the album?
In the pieces I have chosen for my two-disc album, one can
trace the composer’s compositional journey. For example,
on the first disc we have Kreisleriana Op 16, Fantasie in C
major Op 17, Arabesque Op 18 and Fantasiestücke Op 12.
On the second disc we have Nachtstücke Op 23,
Fantasiestücke Op 111 and Gesänge der Frühe Op 133.
It’s a wide-ranging programme dominated by fantasy, a
concept close to Schumann’s heart. The realm of fantasy,
that dreamland called Atlantis about which the great
Romantic author and music critic E.T.A. Hoffmann
wrote, is the true domain of all Romantic musicians. The
thoughts and dreams of the poets, their poetry and vividly
evocative tales, become associated with musical sound,
© Matthias Heyde
stimulating harmonic inventions that may seem absurd,
and creating forms that dissolve and break up inherited
and established preconceptions.
74• Pianist 118
What are Schumann’s defining qualities?
While Chopin composed mainly for the piano, Schumann
composed not only for that instrument but also for voice,
for chamber groups and for orchestras. Like many
Romantics, he poured his enthusiasms into creating a
‘golden reflection of life’ whether in words, pictures or
music. His creative path led him from Classical forms
to the freedom of subjective self-expression. However,
we know today that he did not really abandon all the
Classical rules, but that they provided a firm framework
for his music.
Following a period in which the piano had revelled in
sensuous beauty of sound and brilliant coloration, in
Schumann it becomes a tool for conveying poetic
monologues in musical terms. The tone-colours of the
various registers are not employed in an orchestral sense,
as in Beethoven, for instance. Instead, an effective
Schumann interpretation relies on dynamic richness and
the differentiation between main and secondary voices.
A wide variety of touch is required including humorously
abrupt accents and elegant staccatos. Hand-spans of up
to a tenth are frequently found while at other times, the
two hands may move simultaneously over the same groups
of notes.
The fact that Schumann rarely uses the top and bottom
extremes of the keyboard is one feature of his piano style
that significantly differentiates its colour palette from that
of Liszt or Chopin. The use of the sustaining pedal over
long arcs of sound, especially in lyrical passages, helps the
performer to feel Schumann’s dreamlike moods,
mysterious sound quality and free-roaming imagination.
 Opposite: Burkard Shliessmann in
What is the secret of a great interpretation? performance at the Alter Oper, Frankfurt
It is one that is like an improvisation, only grounded in a
deep knowledge of the piece. For example, rubato is not
random or arbitrary; it must be minutely planned. Only
when Artur Schnabel understood a Chopin piece
intellectually did he trust his feelings for it and apply
rubato. But interpetation is flexible, too, being
responsive to the circumstances one finds oneself in; for
example, the acoustics of the concert hall or the mood of
the audience. Ultimately, you must give your listener
goosebumps! My favourite interpreter of all is Arturo
Benedetti Michelangeli.

You grew up playing Bach’s music. How was Chopin

influenced by him and how does this inform your
playing of Chopin’s music?
Chopin was particularly inspired by Bach. He took an
edition of the composer’s Well-Tempered Clavier with him
to Mallorca and devoted himself to a special study of it. In
Bach’s compositions Chopin saw greatness, order and calm
but also security in the past. Accordingly, his works have a
Classical structure. I personally see Chopin striving to
combine Baroque and Classical forms with the Romantic;
a free, improvisational style with clear structures. For me,
he is the pinnacle of 19th century piano composers.
You play the organ. What does playing this instrument
teach us about playing the piano?
Frankly, the organ and piano have nothing in common!
A cello is more closely related to the piano. It has a
sonorous sound that has been described as being like an
extension of the human voice. To my mind, the piano is
not a percussive instrument.
However, based on experience, it is my belief that a well
trained and developed technique as a pianist is essential to
being a superb organist. Liszt and Schumann composed
outstanding pieces for the organ that cannot be performed
without a well developed piano technique. Remember, the
organ itself is not only an instrument of the Baroque era;
it’s also the great Romantic instrument of Franck, Widor,
Vierne and Reger.
You teach the piano as well. What do you think makes
a good teacher?
That’s easy: it is to draw out the personality of each
student and to treat each in an individual way. Often,
when I am teaching the same piece, I will say and
recommend totally different things to my students so they
are able to find their own voice – one that is authentic and
unique to them.
What influences your performance of a piece?
One must respect and honour the composer’s intentions
or else the performance is a lie and a fraud. But, especially
regarding works of the Romantic era, you must also tell a
story. As Liszt said, ‘Instrumental music no longer sets out
to be a simple sequence of notes: it has become a poetic
language which is perhaps even more suited than poetry
itself to express all that moves in the inaccessible depths of
unquenchable longing and in our intimations of
immortality.’
‘Great interpretation is like
an improvisation, only
grounded in a deep
knowledge of the piece’
In his great Sonata in B minor the listener, with no
preconceptions, hears massive waves of sound breaking
over him and forms from them the image of a passionate
soul seeking and finding the path to faith and peace in
God through a life of struggle and a vigorous pursuit of
ideals. It is impossible not to hear the confessional tone of
this musical language.
You are a diver, too. How does this influence your
music-making, if at all?
I am an elite Professional Association of Diving Instructors
(PADI) master-instructor and can refer to more than
8,500 logged dives in the seas and oceans all over the
world. I’m certified to teach classes on underwater
photography, videography and many more activities. I’m
proud to say I have been appointed the PADI ambassador
of the Project Aware foundation that works to protect
the oceans.
Diving enriches and inspires my life and art. As a
synaesthetic, I am fascinated and influenced by the variety
of the colours of the underwater world which I transform
into the musical world of my interpretations, via my
Steinway piano. n
Robert Schumann: Fantasies is released in the middle of
2021 on the Divine Art label (Divine Art 25753).
Full details at www.schliessmann.com. More details on
Burkard Schliessmann’s diving life can be found at
www.scuba-adventure.org.

75• Pianist 118

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74• Pianist 116

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75• Pianist 116

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 ON FILM
P
ianists appear in the movies again and again.
Sometimes the plots in which they pop up are
predictable to a yawning degree, and could
probably be boiled down to ‘tortured young artist
pours out his heart into a concerto (usually
Rachmaninov No 2) and then wins the girl, the competition,
and everlasting happiness’. But sometimes films also pack
surprises and ring changes upon common tropes with a bit of
freshness. How about ‘if you play one wrong note in the
concerto, I’ll kill you’ as a hook for the plot of Grand Piano?
Sounds fun, no? And who could resist ‘disembodied hand plays
some Bach, then hops upstairs to murder everyone in their
© AdobeStock/KsanaGraphica (above); © British Film Institute (The Piano);YouTube (Marx Brothers)
beds’? (The Beast with Five Fingers). Yum. Count me in.
The piano has had a long association with films, both as a
subject of the lens and as an accompanying musical event. If
you want to explore the wider history of celluloid and the
keyboard, there’s an excellent article by Michael Quinn in issue
33 of Pianist with oodles of fascinating details. But I’m
proposing to narrow the field, and look only at pianists in film.
And, to narrow this further, only at fictional pianists in film.
Thus I won’t be covering documentaries about Horowitz or
Rubinstein, or biopics of real-life men and women. Which is a
relief, because there are literally gazillions about the Schumanns
(including Song of Love with Katharine Hepburn and
Frühlingssinfonie with Nastassja Kinski), and a whole heap
about Liszt (Sueño de amor with Claudio Arrau, Lisztomania
with Roger Daltrey, et al). Flicks about Chopin aren’t lacking
either – remember the frothy one with Hugh Grant? – and
there’s even a surprisingly stodgy romp about Percy Grainger’s
78• Pianist 118
SILVER
SCREEN
PIANISTS
Horror movies, romantic epics, spy dramas
and more: Warwick Thompson explains
why there’s nothing like a piano-hero-in-need
to brighten up our screens
mother-fixated bondage and flagellation fetish (Passion).
And let’s not forget the dazzling Behind the Candelabra
about Liberace.
Oh dear, I seem to have mentioned them by promising
not to mention them.
The power and the passion
But now I’ve cleared that blockage, I’ll look at some of the
films in which stories are told about made-up pianists, from
thrillers via lush melodramas to romantic comedies, with some
curiosities thrown in. The list is far from exhaustive, so if I’ve
missed one of your favourites, apologies in advance.
Having researched a hundred or so movies, it’s been
fascinating to see a few recurring themes emerge. This is not
entirely surprising, since there have to be strong reasons why
pianists should feature in films at all. The piano is not a
particularly exciting instrument to watch, and actors cannot
convey much in the way of plot, exposition, or dramatic
conflict while they’re bashing away at their Rachmaninov.
And, as yet another drawback, it can be risible when actors’
hands barely match what they’re supposed to be playing.
Why is it, then, that with so much against them, pianists
have been – and continue to be – such attractive subjects for
writers and directors?
The main reason is the same one that prompts any of us to
go and see pianists live in concert: to witness the mysterious
power of music and musical expression. But in the movies, this
power is usually given a necessary psychological twist to give it
dramatic oomph. Thus playing the piano becomes a plot-point
– the yearning of a noble soul in torment, a means of revenge,
or a pratfall. In The Seventh Veil, the psychologically damaged
heroine is tyrannised by her guardian, played by James Mason.
She can’t articulate how his actions have driven her to attempt
suicide, but she can express it through music (via Rachmaninov
No 2, of course) with tortured looks and all the lushness a
Vaseline lens can offer. Harvey Keitel might be a violent New
York hoodlum in Fingers, but, hey, give that bum a piano and
see what he does with a hunk of Bach. He’s got soul! He’s
conflicted! He plays naked!
Light relief
Comical as that precis might sound, it’s interesting to note that
there aren’t so many actual comedies featuring pianists. Possibly
this is because getting music to bear the burden of comedy
(outside of comic opera or operetta) is a tough sell. The main
maestro of merriment is Chico Marx, who developed an
exaggeratedly balletic right-hand manner, with plenty of silly
one-finger doodling, to get laughs – although whether he counts
as a ‘fictional pianist’ is a moot point, I know. Some of his skits
are rather repetitive, but when he hits the comic sweet-spot, he’s
delightful: check out the duet scene with Harpo in The Big Store
for a chuckle. For my money, the real comic stars of the
keyboard firmament are Bugs Bunny, and Tom and Jerry who
offer clever parodies of Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No 2 in
Rhapsody Rabbit and Cat Concerto. And let’s not forget that their
antics are hoiked up to yet another level of parody in the piano
scene from Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
Outside of the slapstick universe, there are some comedy-
dramas to be found too. In The Seven Year Itch, the nerdy Tom
Ewell imagines seducing his upstairs neighbour Marilyn
Monroe while playing, you guessed it, Rachmaninov No 2; for
some unfathomable reason, the fantasy sequence sees him adopt
a Noël Coward accent while making his moves. (Although,
come to think of it, Coward did famously use the piece in Brief
Encounter.) Elsewhere Dustin Hoffman shows the artistic
versatility of his character Dorothy Michaels by having her play
a number in Tootsie, and in The World of Henry Orient Peter
Sellers is a pianist (with, ho hum, Rachmaninov No 2 in his
repertoire) who tries to dodge the attention of two besotted
teenagers. Music isn’t really the driving force behind the gags in
either of these comedies, but rather something incidental to the
laughs. For humorous films in which music is involved more
79• Pianist 118
Above: Love blossoms in The Piano; Below: Marx Brothers in action in The Big Store
directly in the plot, we could turn to the extraordinarily camp
Huit Femmes (Eight Women), in which Isabelle Huppert tickles
the ivories as the repressed and sarcastic Augustine, and The
Fabulous Baker Boys, in which tart-with-a-heart Michelle Pfeiffer
(yes, they were still writing tarts-with-hearts in the 1980s) helps
lounge pianist Jeff Bridges to stop coasting and reconnect with
true art.
Period-drama pianists
This last film brings us back to the ‘piano playing as yearning of
the soul’ theme, which is more often expressed without comedy.
One fascinating sub-category of this genre takes what we might
call a keyboards’n’corsets approach. There’s Edwardian Lucy
Honeychurch in A Room with a View, for example, who declares
‘Mother doesn’t like me playing Beethoven. She says I’m always
peevish afterwards.’ Ruth Prawer Jhabvala’s witty screenplay
makes it quite clear that ‘peevish’ and ‘dying for a good seeing
to’ are pretty much synonymous. Lucy is a fictional cousin of
the irrepressible Laura Tweedle Rambotham in The Getting of
Wisdom whose rebellion against the repressions of her late-
Victorian boarding school – and her lesbian feelings for fellow
boarder Evelyn – flow into her passionate playing of Schubert.
(You might be interested to know that Henry Handel
Richardson, who provided the source novel for this film, also
wrote the book upon which Rhapsody is based, which sees
Elizabeth Taylor ditched by a selfish violinist, but then move on
to a middling concert pianist. The film includes – what else?
– yet another Rach 2 at its climax, after which she falls into her
lover’s arms.) The pathologically shy and awkward Victorian
heroine of Washington Square also only comes out of her shell
when she plays duets with her handsome admirer – who, alas,
proves to be a wrong’un.
The corset genre reaches its climax in Jane Campion’s odd but
haunting fable The Piano, which makes the connections
between female sexual restrictions and artistic expression explicit
in a violent, but also rather lyrical way.
Perhaps if we take the ‘corset’ to be metaphorical rather than
literal, we can also include the rather horrible power-games of
La Pianiste (The Piano Teacher), in which control-freak piano
teacher Isabelle Huppert embarks on a sado-masochistic
relationship with her student. I would also suggest that the
psychosexual conflicts of Ingmar Bergman’s Höstsonaten
(Autumn Sonata), which has Ingrid Bergman as a famous
▲
ON FILM
pianist bombarding her estranged daughter with fingerfuls of
Chopin, have something in common with the theme too.
Manly touch
But what about men? For certain male characters, the tortured
longing idea is presented as a battle between their ‘masculine’
and ‘feminine’ natures, with a dash of class-conflict thrown in.
I’ve already mentioned Harvey Keitel as a Bach-playing thug;
he’s quite like Charles Aznavour in François Truffaut’s Tirez sur
le pianiste (Shoot the Pianist), who is also a low-rent criminal
and keyboardist; and he’s also thematically related to the
anti-hero (played by Jack Nicholson) of Five Easy Pieces. He’s a
self-hating former pianist from a wealthy bourgeois family who
now works as a labourer, the poor conflicted diddums.
Sometimes the ‘conflicted longing’ theme is spun into ‘noble
sacrifice’, and there are oodles of lavish weepies in which
women have affairs with married men but then renounce their
lovers when the long-suffering wife (usually an invalid of some
kind) pleads for his return. This formula can be found in When
Tomorrow Comes, in which Charles Boyer is a philandering
In Dishonored, Marlene Dietrich
is a cat-loving prostitute
concert-pianist spy (how on
earth did she find the time?)
pianist with an unsatisfactory wife; Interlude with June Allyson
falling for married conductor/pianist Rossano Brazzi; and
September Affair with Joan Fontaine as a pianist who plays – can
you guess? – Rach 2 to ease her way through renunciation.
Fontaine pops up again in another self-sacrifice weepie Letter
From an Unknown Woman, in which she falls for selfish pianist
Louis Jourdan, but resolves not to trouble him with her feelings.
Perhaps the ultimate ‘noble sacrifice’ film is Dangerous
Moonlight, in which Polish pianist/composer Stefan Radecki
(Anton Walbrook) becomes a fighter pilot for the British and
survives a suicide mission to destroy a German plane. The film
includes the swoony Warsaw Concerto by Richard Addinsell,
and any similarities with Rachmaninov No 2 are purely
coincidental.
In the peculiar Moonlight Sonata, written as a vehicle for
Paderewski, music is used to set
an erring woman on the right
path, and show her longings to
be false. When flighty Ingrid
falls for the charms of handsome
dashing Mario, Paderewski
plays her a hearty dose of
medicinal Beethoven – the first
movement of the ‘Moonlight’
Sonata, of course – to bring
her back to her senses, and to
force her back into the arms of
her dull dependable
boyfriend. Astonishingly, his
ploy works. (Factoid: the
80• Pianist 118
screenplay was co-written by E.
M. Delafield, author of the
delightful Provincial Lady
books.)
The nail-biters
Occasionally the idea of
music-as-subtext is treated with
absolute literalism, that is,
‘music as secret code’. In
Dishonored Marlene Dietrich is
a cat-loving prostitute concert-
pianist spy (how on earth did
she find the time?). When she
seduces a Russian officer with
‘liquor and sex play’, she immediately transliterates his secret
plans into a musical composition – as one does. In Hitchcock’s
The Lady Vanishes, the elderly disappearing lady of the title
(Dame May Whitty) also turns out to be a British spy, and in
the final scene of the film she is seen at the piano merrily
playing all the information she has gathered in musical code, to
the great relief of the hero and heroine. And in Grand Piano,
the piece of hokum I mentioned in the first paragraph, the
composition which the pianist must perform note-perfect or
otherwise die, is revealed to be the code to a secret safe hidden
in the piano.
The thriller genre bleeds quite nicely into the horror category,
which is where we’ll finish. Just as in the ‘music as yearning’
films, piano music is here treated as subtext, and as a metaphor
of something otherwise inexpressible. In this case, however, it
represents not the sensitive longings of tormented artists, but
rather the dark dregs of their twisted, deranged, vengeful,
paranoid, devil-worshipping souls.
One key idea which crops up again and again, is transference.
Indeed, Maurice Renard’s novel on the subject Les Mains
d’Orlac hit such a nerve that it was filmed four times (Orlac’s
Hände, Mad Love, The Hands of Orlac, and Hands of a Stranger).
It tells the tale of an injured pianist who receives hand
transplants from a criminal and then comes to believe that the
hands are controlling him. Something similar appears too in the
The Beast with Five Fingers, mentioned earlier. But here,
although we do actually see the hand hopping about, it might
only be a visual realisation of the insane hallucinations of
murderer Hilary Cummins (Peter Lorre) transferring his guilt
onto an external object. In The Mephisto Waltz an elderly
concert pianist, who also happens to be a card-carrying Satanist,
transfers his soul into the body of a young journalist, who,
overnight, becomes a superb performer and starts harbouring
murderous thoughts against his family.
What is it that these transference films tap into? Could it be
the psychological fear that listening to music transforms us in
some wordless way, gets under our skin, toys with our
emotions? Could the plots be metaphors for the divided self,
and the fear that even good people such as musicians and
artists, might find themselves capable of brutal deeds? It’s
certainly possible, for it’s surely no coincidence that the horror
genre flourished particularly well after both world wars.
Whatever it is, the horror genre plays with the same
fascination which pianists have exerted, and continue to exert,
on the imagination of film-makers since film began. And long
may it continue. n
 ALBUM
TAP TO WATCH
Watch Daniil Trifonov play
Scriabin Etude Op 8 No 12
reviews
EDITOR's CHOICE
DANIIL TRIFONOV
Silver Age: Prokofiev: Concerto No 2 Op
16; Scriabin: Concerto Op 20;
Stravinsky: Three Movements from
Petrushka; The Firebird Suite; Prokofiev:
Sarcasms; Sonata No 8
Mariinsky Orchestra/Gergiev
Deutsche Grammophon
483 5331
★★★★★
The ‘Silver
Age’ referred
to in the title
of this double-
album is the
agitated period
in Russian
music from
the turn of the
20th century until the revolution,
when expressionism, cosmopolitanism,
occultism and any number of other -isms
were at loggerheads. It’s slightly curious,
then, that two of the items date from
1925 and 1944. But never mind. With
playing this breathtakingly audacious,
who cares about chronology? The big
draw is Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No 2,
accompanied by the Mariinsky Orchestra
under Gergiev, which Trifonov performs
with romanticism and spikiness held in
perfect balance, and with truly mouth-
gaping virtuosity.
Scriabin’s meandering Op 20 Concerto
(the soloist prefers the adjective
‘improvisational’) may be a work of lesser
stature, but it’s hard to imagine a better
advocate for its sweeping, lushly tonal
gestures than the performer here. For my
money, however, the delights are greatest
in two Stravinsky solo transcriptions, The
Firebird and Petrushka. Such dazzling
varieties of tone, touch, and mood; such
balletic energy; such freedom – and all
fired by a truly poetic imagination.
One slight drawback is the dryish sound
of the auditorium (Princeton University’s
Alexander Hall) used for all the solo
works, but even that has its advantages in
the cool humour of Prokofiev’s Sarcasms
and Piano Sonata No 8. Trifonov certainly
makes a compelling case for the latter,
highlighting its programmatic and
illustrative aspects. Even if his wizardry
doesn’t quite spark at the same level as in
Stravinsky, overall this is a superb recital –
and much more golden than silvery. WT
Reviews by Colin Anderson,
Peter Quantrill and
Warwick Thompson
KHATIA BUNIATISHVILI
Labyrinth: Works by Morricone, Bach,
Gainsbourg, Villa-Lobos, Couperin, Glass,
Pärt etc.
Sony Classical 19439795772
★★★★
You wait ages for a
piano labyrinth, and
then two come along
at once [see opposite].
Khatia Buniatishvili’s
conceptual thinking is
still more obscure (‘The
labyrinth is our fate and creation; our impasse
and deliverance…’) but her repertoire winds
down well-worn corridors from Bach (a four-
hands Badinerie with her sister Gvantsa) to
Cage (a suspiciously stagey-sounding 4’33”),
taking in sweet chestnuts from Morricone
and Rachmaninov along the way.
Her exquisite touch and the slick studio
engineering imbue Ligeti and Couperin
with magical stillness, and a sequence of late
Brahms, Pärt and Philip Glass (the repressed
tragedy at work in his soundtrack to The
Hours) throws up stimulating harmonic cross-
currents. In sequence, however, the artful
introversion of her Liszt and late-Romantic
Bach prevails over the kooky charm of her
Gainsbourg and Villa-Lobos. Let me out. PQ
STEPHEN HOUGH
Vida Breve: Works by Bach/Busoni, Chopin,
Liszt, Busoni, Hough, Bach/Busoni/Hough
Hyperion CDA68260
★★★★★
This album’s title is Vida
Breve (the brief life).
Stephen Hough has put
together a death-centric
recital that includes his
own similarly named
and suitably short
Piano Sonata No 4. Also programmed is
a magisterial account of the Bach/Busoni
violin Chaconne; then a dramatic but not
sensationalist or indulged version of Chopin’s
B flat minor Sonata, that’s the one with the
Funeral March; and, in a similar vein, Liszt’s
Funérailles, which receives a wonderfully dark
and raging outing, followed by his impish
Bagatelle sans tonalité. Busoni reappears with
his Sonatina No 6, a confection of familiar
tunes from Bizet’s Carmen – in the opera she
dies, a short life that cues Hough’s Sonata,
an intense and incident-packed ten minutes
of impassioned growth (Hindemith meets
Tippett) that is abruptly curtailed. The two
final pieces are a lovely Korean number
arranged by Hough who goes on to link
hands with Gounod’s Bach-inspired Ave
Maria – a slice of heaven. CA
81• Pianist 118
REVIEW
DAVD GREILSAMMER
Labyrinth: Works by Janáček, Lully,
Beethoven, Crumb, Ligeti, Bach, Granados,
Satie, CPE Bach, Pelz, Marais, Scriabin etc.
Naïve V 7084
★★★★★
On Baroque Conversations
and other Sony albums
juxtaposing Baroque,
Classical and modern
repertoire, David
Greilsammer has made
a specialty of plotting out illuminating
journeys through time. Now recorded in
wraparound sound by Naïve, the Swiss
pianist has placed C.P.E. Bach inside a pair of
pieces by Satie, J.S. inside Ligeti, Lully inside
Janáček and so on, cunningly edited to run
in close sequence, so that the door has hardly
slammed shut on Beethoven’s manic Bagatelle
Op 126 No 4 before the star-burst chords of
Crumb’s The Magic Circle of Infinity fill the
speakers with light. Greilsammer’s booklet
explanations don’t add much, but they don’t
need to: the music and his marvellously
streetwise performances do all the talking. At
this Labyrinth’s centre ‘Love and Death’ from
Granados’s Goyescas lies in wait, heavy with
rubato, desire and foreboding in Greilsammer’s
hands. I’m a willing captive. PQ
LARA MELDA
Chopin: Four Ballades; Nocturnes
(selection)
Champs Hill Recordings CHRCD153
★★★★★
Eleven Chopin choices
are included here, seven
of the Nocturnes and
the Four Ballades. Lara
Melda (born in 1993
and the 2010 BBC
Young Musician of the
Year) impresses with the poise of her playing
and the natural shapeliness of her phrasing.
The Nocturnes are sensitively coloured
and, when required, are contrasted both
emotionally and dynamically. It’s all very
persuasive and inviting; there’s a generous
and perceptive soul at work here. So too for
the Ballades in which Melda does a nice line
in narrative fantasy without overriding the
music’s structure and direction – much that
is affecting, stimulating, characterful and
ardent. Very well recorded – Patrick Allen
as producer, engineer and editor – with
occasional distant birdsong to be heard in the
background that only complements and adds
to the allure of the Nocturnes, and which
also suggests The Music Room at Champs
Hill as idyllic, this release can be heartily
recommended. CA
REVIEW
SHEET MUSIC REVIEWS Reviews by Michael MacMillan
INSECTOPEDIA
Aleksey Igudesman
Universal Edition
ISBN: 978-3-7024-7689-2
(UE 38047)
Insectopedia is a collection
of ten piano solos by Aleksey Igudesman,
a multi-talented artist who is perhaps best
known as the violinist in the brilliantly
entertaining Igudesman & Joo comedic duo.
Illustrated with cute drawings (by a 12-year-
old, no less), titles such as Bug Hug and
Cockroach Approach reflect the composer’s
humorous creativity. The presentation is
top-notch, and it comes with a glowing
endorsement by Yuja Wang. The music is
quirky without being particularly memorable,
and lacks the sort of pedagogic substance
valued by teachers at this level of writing. The
book is listed as being suitable for Grade 2-3,
but the inclusion of glissandi and polyrhythms
puts this in the Grade 3-6 range.
BEST OF BACH
BEST OF MOZART
Schott
ISBN: 978-3-7957-9930-4
(Bach); -1923-4 (Mozart)
These two books contain 30
pieces each, selected and edited
by Hans-Günter Heumann.
Over half of each book’s
selection appear in their original form,
ranging in difficulty from Grade 1 to 8,
and the remainder is made up of judicious
arrangements of some of Mozart’s and Bach’s
most endearing works, such as a couple of
arias from Mozart’s The Magic Flute or Air
from Bach’s Orchestral Suite in D major.
Clearly presented, and with helpful fingering
suggestions included, the breadth of difficulty
contained and the inclusion of additional
popular tunes from other instrumental
sources will ensure that anyone looking for
a sampler of these composers will not be
disappointed.
DISCOVERING MUSIC
THEORY
GRADES 1-5
ABRSM
ISBN: 978-1-78601-345-3
(Grade 1); -346-0 (2); -347-7
(3); -348-4 (4); -349-1 (5)
The ABRSM recently moved
its paper-based music theory
assessments online, a process accelerated
by the pandemic. Whilst testing the same
musical knowledge, it has made some
changes to the way in which it presents
questions to suit the online format, and
these new workbooks have been prepared
to support those revisions. The presentation
is colourful, and far more inviting than the
ABRSM’s previous Music Theory in Practice
books, whose dryness caused many teachers
and their students to favour third party
publications such as Music Theory Made Easy,
and Music Theory for Young Musicians. All five
books contain around ten chapters, each of
which focuses on a distinct topic, followed by
a practice exam paper. A much improved and
recommendable set of books.
PIANO TALES
Martin Doepke
Universal Edition
ISBN: 978-3-7024-7688-5
(UE 38066)
This is Martin Doepke’s first
book of piano music for Universal Edition.
It contains 13 pieces, three of which are
taken from his musical, Beauty and the Beast.
Written at a level around Grade 5-7, the style
and harmonic language is in keeping with the
type of genres he is most associated with –
films and musicals. The pieces, which are two
to four pages long, are easy to listen to and
the music lies well under the hand. The pieces
don’t move much beyond restating a few
simple ideas, with much repetition of motifs,
and at the same time they don’t fit into a
minimalist soundscape, leaving the listener
rather short-changed in both directions.
LITTLE STORIES
Agnieszka Lasko
Euterpe
ISMN: 979-0-801507-88-4
The majority of composers that
specialise in writing music in
the lower grades produce pieces that have at
least some pedagogic value. Some composers
additionally have a flair for writing music
that has kinaesthetic appeal, whilst others
have a knack for including creative pianistic
effects. This book of 16 pieces around Grade
3 shows that Agnieszka Lasko is one of those
very few composers who is able to do all
this at the same time as writing music that
is consistently interesting, satisfying, and
original. Five of the pieces offer opportunities
for improvisation, whilst colourful
illustrations enhance the presentation. An
outstanding collection of pieces that stands
alongside the finest writing at this level.
COOL KEYS 1 & 2
Sonny Chua
Faber
ISBN: 978-8-571-54183-6 (1);
-54184-4 (2)
One of the leading lights
of educational composers in
82• Pianist 118
Australia, Sonny Chua passed away last
year at the age of 52. His music is not well
known in the UK but plenty of his pieces
appear on Antipodean exam syllabuses,
and for good reason. His music is often
characterised by infectious rhythmic drive,
humour, and catchy motifs that appeal to
children. Yet underneath the ‘cool’ exterior
of the music is sound pedagogic nous and
pianistic know-how; the music is never
harder than it needs to be to convey its
essence. Book 1 contains 12 pieces from
Initial to Grade 2, whilst Book 2 contains
ten pieces that are Grades 3-5. Highly
recommended!
RICHARD STRAUSS
Piano Sonata in B minor
Henle
ISMN: 979-0-2018-1467-4
This is the first urtext edition
of Strauss’s only piano sonata,
which he composed at the age of just 18.
It is rarely heard in concert and although
it has been championed on record by
Glenn Gould, there are few recordings of
the work. It was originally conceived with
three movements, but in the process of
revising the work in 1881, just a year after
completing it, Strauss replaced the third
movement with a Scherzo and new Finale;
Classical and Romantic Germanic influences
are clear throughout. Henle’s edition (based
on the first edition published by Aibl) runs
to 30 pages, showing the scale of the young
composer’s ambition, and a performance
of the complete work takes almost half
an hour.
6 EASY PIECES FOR
3 RIGHT HANDS
AT 1 PIANO
Mike Cornick
Universal Edition
ISBN: 978-3-7024-7690-8
Opportunities for young pianists to play in
ensembles are limited, so we are fortunate
that Mike Cornick has written music
designed to get two, three, four, and even
five pianists playing together. As the title
indicates, this book is for three beginners (up
to Grade 1). The six pieces, including five
well-known tunes such as Three Blind Mice
and an original piece by Cornick, are written
in C or G major, with small movements
needed outside five-finger positions in all
parts. Chords are limited to just one of the
parts in one of the pieces. These would be
an ideal introduction to ensemble playing
for young beginners, and an optional second
piano part is provided for a teacher to provide
some added support and texture.
BURKARD SCHLIESSMANN
Recipient of Goethe-Prize 2019 of Frankfurt/Main, Germany
Global Music Awards 2018:
2 Gold Medals “Awards of Excellence” (Schumann)
Global Music Awards 2018:
3 Silver Medals “Outstanding Achievement” (Bach)
Global Music Awards 2017:
3 Silver Medals “Outstanding Achievement” (Chopin)

“A fantastic Bach recital

all around, and in an
SACD recording that
projects the piano right
into your listening space
with a three-dimensional
effect that spreads the
keyboard in front of you
from left to right and the
full length of Schliessmanʼs
Steinway concert grand
from front to back. This
earns the strongest of
recommendations.”
Jerry Dubins, Fanfare

“I rank this Chopin among

the best available. With
both the technique and
intellect to do just about
anything he wants,
Schliessmannʼs strength
is in the lyrical, legato
“Schliessmannʼs playing is
melodies that make
representative of the best of
Chopinʼs music such a
the modern school ...”
cornerstone of the piano
Harold C. Schonberg,
repertoire ...”
The New York Times
James Harrington,
American Record Guide

www.schliessmann.com | divine art

83• Pianist 117

The Next Generation of the Bösendorfer Concert Grand
Breathtaking dynamics, astounding colours and exhilarating brilliance:
the new Bösendorfer 280VC – Vienna Concert – represents the culmination
of Bösendorfer’s legendary approach to piano crafting.
Pure emotion at play.

www.boesendorfer.com

CG VC
Concert Vienna
Grand Concert

81• Pianist 116

 Charles Villiers STANFORD (1852-1924) BEGINNER/
INTERMEDIATE
Scherzo, No 2 from Six Sketches

A dominant (and dominating, by some reports) figure in turn-of-the-century
British music life, Stanford was a composer and teacher who taught Vaughan
Williams and Holst, among others. Six Sketches dates from 1918.
Playing tips: This light, sweet piece is good for working on your RH legato
and staccato. In nearly every bar you will have to use both touches (there are a
few exceptions, of course). In the second and fourth bars (and in similar places),
feel the ‘down-up-up’ motion of the hand. Remember to keep the rhythm even,
allowing the LH to be the accompanying pulse. Aside from a crescendo in bar
22, most of this piece is piano, so keep it light throughout.
Pedal tips: Pedalling not required.

Allegro

3
& b Allegro f. f.
1 2 1 2

4 f f f f f
f f f f f f f f #f

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3p .
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2
 Enrique GRANADOS (1867-1916) INTERMEDIATE
La mendiga Op 1 No 2

Granados placed La mendiga (The Little Beggar-Girl) second in his Cuentos
de la Juventud (Stories for the Young). The opus 1 designation is misleading:
this is mature, soulful Granados, composed six years before his tragic end.
Granados and his wife were sailing back to Spain after a prestigious tour of the
US when a German torpedo hit their ship, and they both drowned.
Playing tips: La mendiga contains some gorgeous harmonies, so take your
time, treading carefully and tenderly over them. The thick texture in the RH
will require good voicing to bring out the top notes of the melody. This draws
to a poignant close at the bottom of the first page. With the livelier central
section, we are transported to a different, ‘prettier’ world (from bar 21) – it’s
as if the beggar-girl is dreaming of a happier life. In bar 30, however, her sad
tune returns. The dreamier section appears again at bat 42, cut short by the
pause at bar 50. The melancholy mood of the opening is finally recalled in
the five-bar coda.
Pedal tips: Lavish pedalling is required. See markings on the score.

Lento
j
2 f ™™ ff f f f f
3 4 3 4 3

f f f f
5

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5 4 5 4 2 5 4 1 2 4 3

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ŒŒ
& f ff f ff f ff ff ff f f ff f ff f ff ?
f f f ff f ff f
meno
meno
U
51 meno 1
1 rall.
rall.
51
U
4 3 5 4
ff Œ
2
3 rall.
f
4 1 5 4
51 meno 2

& f
4 3 2 1 3
f
4 3 5
4 4

Œ
2 3 2 1 3
meno
f U

{{
& f fΠff FF
4 3 2 1 3 rall.
f
1
f f
51
ff f U
3
f f f
4 5
ff ffΠff FF
4

ŒŒ
2 1 rall.
ff
51
& f f
4
f f
3 2 1 3
ff
4 3 5
f f f
2 4

& ŒŒ fff FFF

4 3 2 1 3
ff ff fff ff ff ff ff ff
f
f f U
U F
? Œ FF f f f ™™ F
? f Πf f f f
f f f U
U F
? ff FF ff f f FF
? ŒŒ 1
1
5
1
5 FF ff ff
2
2
2 ff ™™ ff
3
3
3
4
4
4ff ff
5
5
5 FF
5 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4
5 5
1
5
 Sergei RACHMANINOV (1873-1943) ADVANCED
Etude-tableau in G minor Op 33 No 8

Regular Pianist contributor Lucy Parham says that she loves to teach and play this composed in 1911 when Rachmaninov was already a well-kown composer with
piece. Parham describes it as the ‘pearl’ in the opus 33 Etudes-tableaux, which were an American tour under his belt.

Moderato
b4 f- f- f-
&b 4 ∑ Œ

{
Moderato
bb 4 pp ∑ Œ - molto legato - e cantabile f-
& b 44
mf
f f f

{
b ≈
& 4Moderato fff f ≈ fff f ≈ f molto f ≈
f legatofe cantabile f
f f f
pp f f f f f f mf f f
bbb 4 f
∑
f
Œ
f -
f≈- f- f f
& b 4 ≈ ≈ ≈ f f
& 4 f ffff f f

{
f f fff f f fff fff f
Moderatof f f
bb 4 ≈ - ? f- f f ff- f f
pp mf molto legato e cantabile
b
3
b ∑ Œ
RH

& 4 f
& b f & b 4 ≈bff f f ff f f ≈f #ff f ff f f Ff ≈ f ff f f f f≈ ≈f f f f f ff ≈
f
RH RH

{ {
≈ ff ff mf f molto legato e cantabile
b
ppLH f f f f
3
f
RH

& bb f bb 4 ≈bfRHf ? ≈ f ff ≈f
RH
dim. pRH
f f ≈f #f ? f f Ff f≈f f
LH
f ≈ f

{
b ≈ & f 4f LH ≈f ff f ≈f f f f f≈ f f ff ff f f f f f f ff
3& RH f f RH f ≈ f f f f f - f f #f
f f f
bbbb f≈
dim. p
f f f ≈
LH
f? f F f f ? mf≈
RH

& bf≈RHf f f
& ≈
f #f ≈ f f f f f f-

{
f f LH f f f f f f f #f
f f
3
5
b
RH
f f RH f
dim.
≈ f
LH
f
p
f f f f
? b f ≈F Œ f f ff- f ≈ff- f
f ? ff ≈
RH
f bf ff
& bb ≈ ≈f ff f ≈ f f f≈ & f f f#f f f f
&
mf
?
RH
f

{
f f - f f f #f
LHf
? b p≈ f f f RH f
5 dim.
f LH p
f Œf f f- f-
b b f & f f
mf
f f
? b ≈ ≈ ≈ ? ≈

{
& bb f f f f ≈ f f f f f ≈ f f f-≈ ff f f #ff
pw
f f f & f f f
5
f ff f f f f f
f
fff f
?
? bbb ≈ f
f
f f ≈& f f f f f f f & ≈Œ f- f f≈- f ff
mf
b w

{
f f f f f f f fff
f f
fff
5 p
? b ≈f f
7
?
& bbb f w ≈& f f ff f f f f F& ≈Œ f f- f≈- bf f f f f
4 5

F f f f
f ffbff f ff f ff nff#f

{
f f f f
f f
b
7
f f
p
f f
? bbb f
4 5

& F F f b f
fff ≈ f f f f & ≈ f f bff ? f≈ f f nf ff nf f f
f f #f
mf dim.

{
bb ≈ w f f ≈f fff f f
≈ ff f f f f ff f f ff
7& f ff f b
bf f f mf ff ™ fbff Ó
f
b J ff f # f f
4 5

F b n
dim.
& bb ≈ f ff ≈ f f F f f bf ? f f f f f nf #f
≈

{
& f f ff f f f f f bfÓ
f ffJ ™f bf
bf
7
b f f ff f # f f
4 5

F b n
mf dim.
& bb ≈ f f F f f bf ? f f f f f nf #f
f fff ff ≈ff fff f ≈ ff

{
& ff ™ bf bfÓ
mf J
f nf f # f f
dim.
b f f f f
&b ≈ f f f f ≈f fff f ≈ ? f f
f ffJ ™f f bf bfÓ
9
b ff- ff ff ff f F f f f f
f f f f ff FF
&b F ?≈ f f ≈

{
f f f f f
mf p
f f f
? b ≈ bf f f f f f
f
≈ ≈ f f f f f f
b f - f f f #f
mf

- -
f f f f bbfff
f Ff #ff
?b ≈fff f F
11

b f f nf f ff
∏∏∏∏∏∏

& F f f #f

{
- -
ffff b ff f dim. f # f f
mf

f ≈ bf f nf f
? bb f f ≈ f f f ≈ nf
F f nf
f

ff ff ff f f FF
f f f ff n ff
13

b FF F f fff
b f f ? ≈f f≈
& F f f f

{ ?b ≈f f
b f
p

ff f
ff
mf

& fF f f f fff ≈
p

≈
ff f
f

-
?
ff
mf

f f f f #f

nf f ff f
15
? bb ≈ f f f f ≈ff
& ≈
FF
3
b f f ff bFF n fff

{
b f f F f f F
f
cresc. f
? bb 3 3

f™ nf f f f ™ f f nf w F™ #f
> >
18
b ff- ff ff ff f ff- ff ff f f f- ff ff ff f 2
& b ff Œ #ff Œ Ó f f f f ff f f f ff ff ff f f f ff 4

{
f. f fff
f
mf
pp
f ff f ff ff 2
? bb Œ f Œ ≈ ff f ff ≈f f ≈ ≈ ff ≈≈ fff ≈4
f. f f f f
 b2
21

& b 4 bfff ff ff ff f 44 #F ff n ff fff fff bbfff fff nfff ff

{
f f f ff
n FF- f f f
bf-
dim. pp
? b 42 ≈
b f f f bf ≈ 44 ‰ f #f f nfJ ‰ f
f f f
f f
poco rit.

b fff #nff #ff

23

& b #FF f f b f
f f
f f f f f f
ff n ff ff ff b f nff ff # ff #ff f- Óf f f

{
n F- f f f f
LH

bf- nf f F
? bb ‰ f #f f nfJ ‰ ≈ #f
f f f
f f
f f

b
25 veloce

& b #fÓ f f
f f f f f f f Óf f f f f f f f
f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f

{
> RÔ
cresc. f
w
LH

?b
b

b ® ® ® ®
26
f f f f
& b #f f f f f f f f nf f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f bf f f f bf f nf

{? bb
ff
>
LH
> > >

b ® f ® ®
27
b f f f ®
& f #f f f b f nf f

{
bf f f f nf f f f f f
f f f n f f f f nf f f
> > > > f f
f
? bb #f f
28
b f
&b ® f ? f f f f
#f f f

{
f
bf f f f f f f f f

? b >f #f f nf f f f nf
f
f
b f bf f bf f f
> > > > >

f nf f f f f
f bf
29
?b #f f
rit.

b f f f f
n f bf nf f bf nf f f

{?b f
b #f
>
nf
nf f
>
bf
f f
>
f f
>
nf
fj f bfj
5

>
? bb n##w nf #f #f nf #f Œ ? n#fF ™
30
w Œ
4

w
1

nf # f f nf #f
2 5 3 1 5 3 4

&

{
ff
#f mf

?b ®
b # w f #f nf Π#f
j
f f f
j
#w> # ff # F™
“” -
nf
f #f F
? b nw
32
f f f
nf
b w f #f nf f #f nf Œ Œ
∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏∏

&

{
nf f
f
#f nf
pp f
f
?b ‰ n f f # nf f
Ó Œ
b nf f
#f f & f f f Πf
#w # f nf #f
#w

ff.
34
fF ™ b F ™ f f f
Tempo I
b bf f f
&b Ó ≈ f f ≈
ff #f ?
f f

{
# ff.
.f
p pp pp

b - ff f f f f
&b w ? f ff Ó ≈ f- f f f #f
w f.
mf
 - -
f F bf -
? bb ≈ f f f f F #ff
37

&F
f f f f f bff f f nf f ff f f #f

{
- -
f f f f ff f f # f nf f
dim.

b f f b
?b ff ≈ f f ≈ f f ≈ nf f
b F
f f nf
p

ff- ff ff f f F
f f f ff ff FF ff-
39

b FF ff ff ff f
b
& F fff ff f f f f ff

{
p mf p mf
ff ff f ff
? bb ≈ f f f ff≈ ≈ f f
& fF f f f f ? ≈
f ff f f
f

41

f f f >f ™
poco accelerando

b fff ™™™
3 3

& b f f f f™ f bf f f ™ f f f

{
> >
3
> cresc. 3
> >
p
f f
? bb f f f f f f
f f f f ≈ f f
f

b
42
b
3 3 3 3
& f™

{
f f f f™ f f bf f ™ f nf f f ™
> > > f f #f
> > > > > > >
? bb b f ™ #f nf ™ nf b f ™ #
3
f f f f f f f f
> f f f f
#f

#f f. U
b
f f f f FF- -
w
w
43
f #f f f
&b Πw
f f f ? F
#f f

{
f
f f f
F™ f f f
> sff pp

f #f f.
U
ff

? bb f f f f
f f f
f f #f f Œ
f f #f f
F™ f f f f F- w-
>