Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Tchaikovsky Themed Recital: April 2014

Opus 39, the Album for the Young, was intended to match Schumann's Opus 68 of the same name. It is aimed at beginners and the pieces are rated from ABRSM Grade 1 to Grade 4. If performance and interpretation are taken into account some may reach Grade 5. There are no finger twisters here, no great leaps or stretches, no weak finger trills and nothing that can't be mastered by April if approached sensibly and carefully.

The Opus 40 pieces were intended for 'moderate' players. They are typically between Grade 4 and Grade 6. A match, it seems, for the later pieces in Schumann's Album for the Young.

The rest of his output wasn't written with ability in mind. The Seasons, Op. 37, are fairly uniformly Grade 7 with January, March, May, June and October on the easier side and August may be Grade 8.

None of his other opuses have 'easy' pieces though I'm unfamiliar with his Op. 72 apart from the pleasant Meditation, No. 5. (I think No. 1 should just be Impromptu. Viktoria Postnikova, like Mikhail Pletnev, was a pupil of Yakov Flier at the Moscow Conservatory but I'm unaware of any stronger links to Tchaikovsky.)

He writes with a lot of counterpoint and that makes much of his keyboard output slightly more demanding.

Success or failure is a concept for you to do battle with. All that matters here is participation and an honest attempt. It's not a competition nor a comparison. There are no entry requirements. It's an excuse to push yourself a little further than you might otherwise go and to focus more clearly on what you're doing. It should benefit your own practise and ability. Most of us enjoy hearing other players, no matter their level, as it's always worth hearing different interpretations.

There is a time constraint, though not small, and that affects some more than others. Still, it's not where you are on the day that matters but how it helps you in your own practise up till then.

It's great to see new names appearing!

I think most people who participated in past themed recitals really felt like they stretched themselves and learned a lot from that, even if it wasn't pulled off perfectly, and I think that has true value here. I really loved listening to everyone because we were kind of there for one another through the process, so it was great to hear people overcome their challenges. I wouldn't feel self-conscious or under pressure to be perfect.

One thing I noticed is that from learning more than one piece by a composer, you really get to understand what he does. This helps you better interpret the pieces, so it's great there are so many, but I do hope that people are able to select more than one for this purpose.

(I think No. 1 should just be Impromptu. Viktoria Postnikova, like Mikhail Pletnev, was a pupil of Yakov Flier at the Moscow Conservatory . ."

Well spotted! I saw that after I`d written it . . . .she`s good isn`t she? She`s my new teacher . . . .

I suspect that there may be quite a few very difficult pieces left when we get the opportunity to make a second choice. The Op.21 pieces all seem pretty challenging, and they are also quite long, meanig that learning them will take a lot of effort. Opuses 4, 7 and 8 are also generally difficult.
I'm ready to take the challenge of learning one of these pieces in addition to my first choice. However, I hope that I'll not have to wait too long before reserving the piece and getting started studying it.

I think I'll just go ahead and learn all the Op. 2 anyways, because it was intended to be performed as a cycle. Hopefully I'll get to play them all for this recital, but no biggie if not.

I listened to the Op. 21 but I didn't really find them as interesting for some reason. The Op. 2 stuff had a bit more "Russian" sound to it which I love. Of course, the Op. 12 pieces are great too and I'd say more difficult in general.

Speaking of Pletnev and this list of compositions, Pletnev made a recording of all of Opus 39 that is wonderful. We think of pianists at that level only playing virtuoso compositions, but his recording shows just how much music can be gotten out of student works.

The Tchaikovsky Themed Recital is due to take place April 15.
To preserve existing selections, always QUOTE from the latest list then, in any order:

-- Delete the initial "[quote=<name> ]"
-- Delete the final "[/quote ]"
-- Add your name and the bold tags, "[b ]" and "[/b ]", around your chosen piece.

Then submit the new list.

A 30sec clip is available of each piece in the same order as below @ http://www.deezer.com/en/album/4725421 (If you sign up or in with FB, the whole pieces can be played for free)
Or here, if you're restricted from the above due to your location:
http://www.allmusic.com/album/tchaikovsky-complete-piano-works-mw0001360556



Op. 1 No. 1. Scherzo a la russe
Op. 1 No. 2. Impromptu

Op. 2 No. 1. Ruines d'un chateau (Morodiene)
Op. 2 No. 2. Scherzo
Op. 2 No. 3. Chant sans paroles

Op. 4 Valse caprice in D major
Op. 5 Romance in F minor (Ganddalf)
Op. 7 Valse-scherzo No. 1 in A major
Op. 8 Capriccio in G flat major

Op. 9 No. 1. Reverie
Op. 9 No. 2. Polka de salon
Op. 9 No. 3. Mazurka de salon

Op. 10 No. 1. Nocturne in F major (Valencia)
Op. 10 No. 2. Humoresque in E minor

Op. 19 No. 1. Reverie du soir (Dipsy)
Op. 19 No. 2. Scherzo humoristique
Op. 19 No. 3. Feuillet d'album (zrtf90)
Op. 19 No. 4. Nocturne (Rupak Bhattacharya)
Op. 19 No. 5. Capriccioso
Op. 19 No. 6. Theme originale et variations

Op. 21 No. 1. Prelude in B major
Op. 21 No. 2. Fugue a 4 voix in G sharp minor
Op. 21 No. 3. Impromptu in C sharp minor
Op. 21 No. 4. Marche funebre in A flat minor
Op. 21 No. 5. Mazurque in A flat minor
Op. 21 No. 6. Scherzo in A flat major

Op. 37 No. 1 January: By the Fireside (dynamobt)
Op. 37 No. 2 February: Carnival
Op. 37 No. 3 March: Song of the Lark (SwissMS)
Op. 37 No. 4 April: Snowdrop (Pavel.K)
Op. 37 No. 5 May: White Nights
Op. 37 No. 6 June: Barcarolle (Sam S)
Op. 37 No. 7 July: Song of the Reaper
Op. 37 No. 8 August: The Harvest (dire tonic)
Op. 37 No. 9 September: The Hunt
Op. 37 No. 10 October: Autumn Song (Andy Platt)
Op. 37 No. 11 November: Troika
Op. 37 No. 12 December: Christmas (carlos88)

Op. 39 No. 1. Morning Prayer (casinitaly)
Op. 39 No. 2. Winter Morning
Op. 39 No. 3. Mamma
Op. 39 No. 4. Hobbyhorse
Op. 39 No. 5. The Toy Soldiers' March
Op. 39 No. 6. The New Doll (ClsscLib)
Op. 39 No. 7. The Sick Doll (earlofmar)
Op. 39 No. 8. The Doll's Funeral
Op. 39 No. 9. Waltz
Op. 39 No. 10. Polka
Op. 39 No. 11. Mazurka (MrPozor)
Op. 39 No. 12. Russian Song (Johnny D)
Op. 39 No. 13. Peasant Prelude
Op. 39 No. 14. Popular Song
Op. 39 No. 15. Italian Song (sinophilia)
Op. 39 No. 16. Old French Song (Recaredo)
Op. 39 No. 17. German Song (sydnal)
Op. 39 No. 18. Neapolitan Song (IreneAdler)
Op. 39 No. 19. A Nursery Tale
Op. 39 No. 20. The Witch Baba Yaga
Op. 39 No. 21. Sweet Dreams (AimeeO)
Op. 39 No. 22. The Lark (tangleweeds)
Op. 39 No. 23. At Church (AZ_Astro)
Op. 39 No. 24. The Organ-Grinder's Song

Op. 40 No. 1. Etude
Op. 40 No. 2. Chanson triste
Op. 40 No. 3. Marche funebre
Op. 40 No. 4. Mazurka in C major
Op. 40 No. 5. Mazurka in D major
Op. 40 No. 6. Chant sans paroles
Op. 40 No. 7. Au village
Op. 40 No. 8. Valse in A flat major
Op. 40 No. 9. Valse in F sharp minor (PikaPianist)
Op. 40 No. 10. Danse russe
Op. 40 No. 11. Scherzo
Op. 40 No. 12. Reverie interrompue

Op. 51 No. 1. Valse de salon
Op. 51 No. 2. Polka peu dansante
Op. 51 No. 3. Menuetto scherzoso
Op. 51 No. 4. Natha-valse
Op. 51 No. 5. Romance
Op. 51 No. 6. Valse sentimentale (lyricmudra)

Op. 72 No. 1. Impromptu Prostnikova (Peterws)
Op. 72 No. 2. Berceuse
Op. 72 No. 3. Tendres reproches
Op. 72 No. 4. Danse caracteristique
Op. 72 No. 5. Meditation
Op. 72 No. 6. Mazurka pour danser
Op. 72 No. 7. Polacca de concert
Op. 72 No. 8. Dialogue
Op. 72 No. 9. Un poco di Schumann (Wayne32yrs)
Op. 72 No. 10. Scherzo-fantaisie
Op. 72 No. 11. Valse bluette
Op. 72 No. 12. L'espiegle
Op. 72 No. 13. Echo rustique
Op. 72 No. 14. Chant elegiaque
Op. 72 No. 15. Un poco di Chopin
Op. 72 No. 16. Valse a cinq temps
Op. 72 No. 17. Passe lointain
Op. 72 No. 18. Scene dansante: invitation au trepak

... and here they are and they are indeed delightful. Opus 39 Album for the Young, played by Pletnev.

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-EbSmbfX83yBDz6Bo7kp5zUgzv5xILPP

The Tchaikovsky Themed Recital is due to take place April 15.
To preserve existing selections, always QUOTE from the latest list then, in any order:

-- Delete the initial "[quote=<name> ]"
-- Delete the final "[/quote ]"
-- Add your name and the bold tags, "[b ]" and "[/b ]", around your chosen piece.

Then submit the new list.

A 30sec clip is available of each piece in the same order as below @ http://www.deezer.com/en/album/4725421 (If you sign up or in with FB, the whole pieces can be played for free)
Or here, if you're restricted from the above due to your location:
http://www.allmusic.com/album/tchaikovsky-complete-piano-works-mw0001360556



Op. 1 No. 1. Scherzo a la russe
Op. 1 No. 2. Impromptu

Op. 2 No. 1. Ruines d'un chateau (Morodiene)
Op. 2 No. 2. Scherzo
Op. 2 No. 3. Chant sans paroles

Op. 4 Valse caprice in D major
Op. 5 Romance in F minor (Ganddalf)
Op. 7 Valse-scherzo No. 1 in A major
Op. 8 Capriccio in G flat major

Op. 9 No. 1. Reverie
Op. 9 No. 2. Polka de salon
Op. 9 No. 3. Mazurka de salon

Op. 10 No. 1. Nocturne in F major (Valencia)
Op. 10 No. 2. Humoresque in E minor

Op. 19 No. 1. Reverie du soir (Dipsy)
Op. 19 No. 2. Scherzo humoristique
Op. 19 No. 3. Feuillet d'album (zrtf90)
Op. 19 No. 4. Nocturne (Rupak Bhattacharya)
Op. 19 No. 5. Capriccioso
Op. 19 No. 6. Theme originale et variations

Op. 21 No. 1. Prelude in B major
Op. 21 No. 2. Fugue a 4 voix in G sharp minor
Op. 21 No. 3. Impromptu in C sharp minor
Op. 21 No. 4. Marche funebre in A flat minor
Op. 21 No. 5. Mazurque in A flat minor
Op. 21 No. 6. Scherzo in A flat major

Op. 37 No. 1 January: By the Fireside (dynamobt)
Op. 37 No. 2 February: Carnival
Op. 37 No. 3 March: Song of the Lark (SwissMS)
Op. 37 No. 4 April: Snowdrop (Pavel.K)
Op. 37 No. 5 May: White Nights
Op. 37 No. 6 June: Barcarolle (Sam S)
Op. 37 No. 7 July: Song of the Reaper
Op. 37 No. 8 August: The Harvest (dire tonic)
Op. 37 No. 9 September: The Hunt
Op. 37 No. 10 October: Autumn Song (Andy Platt)
Op. 37 No. 11 November: Troika
Op. 37 No. 12 December: Christmas (carlos88)

Op. 39 No. 1. Morning Prayer (casinitaly)
Op. 39 No. 2. Winter Morning
Op. 39 No. 3. Mamma
Op. 39 No. 4. Hobbyhorse
Op. 39 No. 5. The Toy Soldiers' March
Op. 39 No. 6. The New Doll (ClsscLib)
Op. 39 No. 7. The Sick Doll (earlofmar)
Op. 39 No. 8. The Doll's Funeral
Op. 39 No. 9. Waltz
Op. 39 No. 10. Polka
Op. 39 No. 11. Mazurka (MrPozor)
Op. 39 No. 12. Russian Song (Johnny D)
Op. 39 No. 13. Peasant Prelude
Op. 39 No. 14. Popular Song
Op. 39 No. 15. Italian Song (sinophilia)
Op. 39 No. 16. Old French Song (Recaredo)
Op. 39 No. 17. German Song (sydnal)
Op. 39 No. 18. Neapolitan Song (IreneAdler)
Op. 39 No. 19. A Nursery Tale
Op. 39 No. 20. The Witch Baba Yaga
Op. 39 No. 21. Sweet Dreams (AimeeO)
Op. 39 No. 22. The Lark (tangleweeds)
Op. 39 No. 23. At Church (AZ_Astro)
Op. 39 No. 24. The Organ-Grinder's Song

Op. 40 No. 1. Etude
Op. 40 No. 2. Chanson triste (Greener)
Op. 40 No. 3. Marche funebre
Op. 40 No. 4. Mazurka in C major
Op. 40 No. 5. Mazurka in D major
Op. 40 No. 6. Chant sans paroles
Op. 40 No. 7. Au village
Op. 40 No. 8. Valse in A flat major
Op. 40 No. 9. Valse in F sharp minor (PikaPianist)
Op. 40 No. 10. Danse russe
Op. 40 No. 11. Scherzo
Op. 40 No. 12. Reverie interrompue

Op. 51 No. 1. Valse de salon
Op. 51 No. 2. Polka peu dansante
Op. 51 No. 3. Menuetto scherzoso
Op. 51 No. 4. Natha-valse
Op. 51 No. 5. Romance
Op. 51 No. 6. Valse sentimentale (lyricmudra)

Op. 72 No. 1. Impromptu Prostnikova (Peterws)
Op. 72 No. 2. Berceuse
Op. 72 No. 3. Tendres reproches
Op. 72 No. 4. Danse caracteristique
Op. 72 No. 5. Meditation
Op. 72 No. 6. Mazurka pour danser
Op. 72 No. 7. Polacca de concert
Op. 72 No. 8. Dialogue
Op. 72 No. 9. Un poco di Schumann (Wayne32yrs)
Op. 72 No. 10. Scherzo-fantaisie
Op. 72 No. 11. Valse bluette
Op. 72 No. 12. L'espiegle
Op. 72 No. 13. Echo rustique
Op. 72 No. 14. Chant elegiaque
Op. 72 No. 15. Un poco di Chopin
Op. 72 No. 16. Valse a cinq temps
Op. 72 No. 17. Passe lointain
Op. 72 No. 18. Scene dansante: invitation au trepak

The Tchaikovsky Themed Recital is due to take place April 15.
To preserve existing selections, always QUOTE from the latest list then, in any order:

-- Delete the initial "[quote=<name> ]"
-- Delete the final "[/quote ]"
-- Add your name and the bold tags, "[b ]" and "[/b ]", around your chosen piece.

Then submit the new list.

A 30sec clip is available of each piece in the same order as below @ http://www.deezer.com/en/album/4725421 (If you sign up or in with FB, the whole pieces can be played for free)
Or here, if you're restricted from the above due to your location:
http://www.allmusic.com/album/tchaikovsky-complete-piano-works-mw0001360556



Op. 1 No. 1. Scherzo a la russe
Op. 1 No. 2. Impromptu

Op. 2 No. 1. Ruines d'un chateau (Morodiene)
Op. 2 No. 2. Scherzo
Op. 2 No. 3. Chant sans paroles

Op. 4 Valse caprice in D major
Op. 5 Romance in F minor (Ganddalf)
Op. 7 Valse-scherzo No. 1 in A major
Op. 8 Capriccio in G flat major

Op. 9 No. 1. Reverie
Op. 9 No. 2. Polka de salon
Op. 9 No. 3. Mazurka de salon

Op. 10 No. 1. Nocturne in F major (Valencia)
Op. 10 No. 2. Humoresque in E minor

Op. 19 No. 1. Reverie du soir (Dipsy)
Op. 19 No. 2. Scherzo humoristique
Op. 19 No. 3. Feuillet d'album (zrtf90)
Op. 19 No. 4. Nocturne (Rupak Bhattacharya)
Op. 19 No. 5. Capriccioso
Op. 19 No. 6. Theme originale et variations

Op. 21 No. 1. Prelude in B major
Op. 21 No. 2. Fugue a 4 voix in G sharp minor
Op. 21 No. 3. Impromptu in C sharp minor
Op. 21 No. 4. Marche funebre in A flat minor
Op. 21 No. 5. Mazurque in A flat minor
Op. 21 No. 6. Scherzo in A flat major

Op. 37 No. 1 January: By the Fireside (dynamobt)
Op. 37 No. 2 February: Carnival
Op. 37 No. 3 March: Song of the Lark (SwissMS)
Op. 37 No. 4 April: Snowdrop (Pavel.K)
Op. 37 No. 5 May: White Nights
Op. 37 No. 6 June: Barcarolle (Sam S)
Op. 37 No. 7 July: Song of the Reaper
Op. 37 No. 8 August: The Harvest (dire tonic)
Op. 37 No. 9 September: The Hunt
Op. 37 No. 10 October: Autumn Song (Andy Platt)
Op. 37 No. 11 November: Troika
Op. 37 No. 12 December: Christmas (carlos88)

Op. 39 No. 1. Morning Prayer (casinitaly)
Op. 39 No. 2. Winter Morning
Op. 39 No. 3. Mamma
Op. 39 No. 4. Hobbyhorse
Op. 39 No. 5. The Toy Soldiers' March
Op. 39 No. 6. The New Doll (ClsscLib)
Op. 39 No. 7. The Sick Doll (earlofmar)
Op. 39 No. 8. The Doll's Funeral
Op. 39 No. 9. Waltz
Op. 39 No. 10. Polka
Op. 39 No. 11. Mazurka (MrPozor)
Op. 39 No. 12. Russian Song (Johnny D)
Op. 39 No. 13. Peasant Prelude
Op. 39 No. 14. Popular Song
Op. 39 No. 15. Italian Song (sinophilia)
Op. 39 No. 16. Old French Song (Recaredo)
Op. 39 No. 17. German Song (sydnal)
Op. 39 No. 18. Neapolitan Song (IreneAdler)
Op. 39 No. 19. A Nursery Tale
Op. 39 No. 20. The Witch Baba Yaga
Op. 39 No. 21. Sweet Dreams (AimeeO)
Op. 39 No. 22. The Lark (tangleweeds)
Op. 39 No. 23. At Church (AZ_Astro)
Op. 39 No. 24. The Organ-Grinder's Song

Op. 40 No. 1. Etude
Op. 40 No. 2. Chanson triste (Greener)
Op. 40 No. 3. Marche funebre
Op. 40 No. 4. Mazurka in C major
Op. 40 No. 5. Mazurka in D major
Op. 40 No. 6. Chant sans paroles
Op. 40 No. 7. Au village
Op. 40 No. 8. Valse in A flat major
Op. 40 No. 9. Valse in F sharp minor (PikaPianist)
Op. 40 No. 10. Danse russe
Op. 40 No. 11. Scherzo
Op. 40 No. 12. Reverie interrompue

Op. 51 No. 1. Valse de salon
Op. 51 No. 2. Polka peu dansante
Op. 51 No. 3. Menuetto scherzoso
Op. 51 No. 4. Natha-valse
Op. 51 No. 5. Romance
Op. 51 No. 6. Valse sentimentale (lyricmudra)

Op. 72 No. 1. Impromptu Prostnikova (Peterws)
Op. 72 No. 2. Berceuse (MaryBee)
Op. 72 No. 3. Tendres reproches
Op. 72 No. 4. Danse caracteristique
Op. 72 No. 5. Meditation
Op. 72 No. 6. Mazurka pour danser
Op. 72 No. 7. Polacca de concert
Op. 72 No. 8. Dialogue
Op. 72 No. 9. Un poco di Schumann (Wayne32yrs)
Op. 72 No. 10. Scherzo-fantaisie
Op. 72 No. 11. Valse bluette
Op. 72 No. 12. L'espiegle
Op. 72 No. 13. Echo rustique
Op. 72 No. 14. Chant elegiaque
Op. 72 No. 15. Un poco di Chopin
Op. 72 No. 16. Valse a cinq temps
Op. 72 No. 17. Passe lointain
Op. 72 No. 18. Scene dansante: invitation au trepak

(Too ambitious? I may end up regretting this.)

You have lots of time! Take it slow and be methodical in your approach. If you never push yourself, you won't ever know what you can accomplish!

I'm feeling a bit of this too. But I'm taking Morodiene's words to heart also.

OTOH, if there's anyone out there who loves Op.39 no.22 The Lark as much as I do, but is more confident of their ability to pull it off, just let me know. I'll happily cede to anyone more competent than myself.

... but if no-one else wants it, I feel really good about it as a challenge piece.

I wish mine was half the length. 3 min is toooo long . . .I only have a half mb memory . . .and it`s already stretched to it`s max on the Joplin thingy . .

I'm wondering. How can you have a Tchaikovsky Recital without the 1812 Overture?
Does somebody have something against playing with cannons? HHHHhhhhuuuuummmmm?

I just listened to a Youtube recording of the Berceuse piece in Opus 72.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-A7_ZbbKlj8

... and I read along with the score. Looked challenging for me (early intermediate) but depending on your level, it might be very manageable.

But what a delightful piece that will give you great joy! I was quite taken with its charm and I think it is well worth the effort.

I wasn't sure I wanted to participate in this recital, because I'm not familiar with Tchaikovsky's piano music, and I couldn't find a piece on the list that really appealed until I got to Op. 72. This one I thought especially charming. I think it should be okay for my level (although there's an 8-measure sections of triplets that could be trouble!), but I'm just worried that I'm taking on a few too many pieces: one for the Joplin recital, the usual ABF quarterly recitals, this one, and then another very special piece that I'm going to start learning soon.

Or even a loose cannon?

Cathy

I am so pleased that I joined this Tchaikovsky recital. Maybe I like the Russian style? But I am finding that the Opus 39 pieces (Album for the Young) to be quite delightful and there are five or six pieces in there that I would enjoy knowing. The French Song looks almost sight-readable! (I'm sure it is, for those with the knack!)

The Grieg recital was also very rewarding to participate in and I adored many of those pieces as well.

AZ

That`s a great piece. I never had time to try `em before grabbing one I liked or I`d`ve had that!