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Welcome to the General Discussion Room for the AB Forum Quarterly Recital #64!

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Enjoy the music!

Sam

10. KevinM - Minuet No. 1 from French Suite in B minor. No. 3 flawlessly played

11. Ido - Invention 11 (BWV 782) For the invention 1 on your video :notes are even and clean , good job. For the audio link invention 11: even better .

18. AndresVel - Two-Part Inventions, No. 9 in F minor (BWV 780) what a beautiful piece ,enjoyed from start to end .

23. pianist685 (Constantin) - If I could see you again an amazing piece played amazingly . brought out the bit sorrowful melody matching the title "see you again" perfectly .

25. Purrblast - Invention in C Major (BWV 772) notes are even and clean , good job.

27. Ganddalf - Sonata Pathetique, Second movement Even if this piece is overplayed , but your version is refreshing .

29. Flygbladet - Sonata Pathetique Mov. 1 This piece can be played by beginners ,but can also be challenging for pros .It's not hard to memorize the score ,but In order to make it sound as intended , stellar technique is required , your play is technically flawless .

33. jamiecw - Prelude in A Major Op28 No7 simple elegant .

34. sandalholme - 4 Mazurkas Op24 Nicely done !

35. Serge88 - Air on the G string flawlessly played

39. cygnusdei - Fantasia in C minor, BWV 906 Sounds as good as richter !

42. Marlings - Well Tempered Clavier / Prelude and Fugue 6 in D minor Nicely played ,especially the prelude part .

45. bSharp(C)yclist (Dan) - Invention No. 8 In F Major, BWV 779 Perfectly excuted

46. Agrajag - Jesus bleibet meine Freude - BWV 147 Enjoyed from start to end .

47. facdo - Nocturne in E flat Major, Op.9 No.2 It's overplayed but still not easy , Your play is beautiful .

52. P Westberg - Bagatelle Op. 119 No. 1 Nicely played

Guess i am one of the first this time!

01. Greta99 - Two Baltic Waltzes -"Tallinn" and "Vilnius" from "Reflections in Waltz"
A very strong start to this Recital! The "Tallinn" waltz was well conceived, very tastefully played with natural breath marks and rubato. An appropriate tempo was chosen and the mood was captured beautifully.

For the "Vilnius" waltz, it was similarly played rather well, my only critique is that the rubato in this was tending towards a little too liberal, with certain eighth notes pushing the pulse rather fast and the triplet figures lacking the rhythmic impulse to identify them. Your voicing is rather good overall with the soprano line singing above the accompaniment figures. Well done!

02. QuasiUnaFantasia - 10 pieces for piano, opus 24,7: Andantino
Very atmospherically played, you have a good sense of phrasing and your dynamics are very well executed. Very good phrasing and touch!

For the tranquillo section, it was wonderfully played as well, the only critique is the melody could actually afford to sing over the accompaniment, perhaps the melody would be more of a mezzo piano instead of a literal piano written on the score. There are some small inner voice motives that could be brought out. Perhaps a slightly (like very slightly) faster tempo would aid in giving a bit more direction to this section.

The ending's emotional impact was well conceived, albeit quite a bit of liberty was taken with the pulse (I don't have fermatas in my score, but it sounds like you were adding 2 or 3 fermates in the final section of the piece)

But overall, you pulled a very convincing interpretation of the piece and it was a very enjoyable listen, thanks for sharing it!


03. PikaPianist - Nocturne Op. 3 No.2
You are low key one of my favorite pianist to listen to in these recitals, quite excited to see what you brought to the table here

Aaaaaand you certainly do not disappoint, very well phrased and the expression is so well delivered. Your tirlls and ornaments are done in a way that does not intrude the mood of the music. Your rubato is very well done, its very naturally imitating a singing voice/instrument without modifying the note values of the piece.
The voicing in the poco piu lento is great, the inner voice sings our beautifully. In fact, in general, the melody is well voiced through without any hammering. You are very aware of the colour and harmonic changes in the piece and the intention is brought forward. A pleasure as always to listen to you. Look forward to seeing your next work!

06. wouter79 - Novelette, No17
This is a very difficult etude and your made a rather fair attempt at it!
I think you certainly have some good musical ideas. For the tempo you chose in the slower chordal sections you have quite a good sense of phrasing and lyrical playing coming through. You also have awareness of the dynamics and execute them accordingly. Good work!

I'll leave some critical comments in a spoiler tag.

09. peterws - Mozart's 23rd k488 Intro
This is a really tough work (even in this arrangement), Mozart sounds simple but requires so much technique and skill to play it well. But it is a really charming piece. You have given a very fair attempt at it and some sections have the lively youthful character for this piece.

I'll leave some more critical comments in a spoiler tag:

11. Ido - Invention 11 (BWV 782)
I actually played this piece a couple months ago. So it'll be interesting to hear someone else's rendition of it!
And a very good rendition it is! Very steady and a very valid tempo (i took a tempo closer to your but i am aware of a faster tempo closer to 80-90 bpm). Your touch is nice and singing and you capture the mood of the piece well.

I only have two critiques for this, the first would be in general, more direction and phrasing would serve for this piece. And secondly, and probably the hardest thing for all of us playing Bach is the interplay between the two voice. In this particular invention, there are two major things that would need to be brought out, the first is the 'passing' or 'relaying' of the main theme between the hands. The first exchange happens from the right hand to the left hand at the start of the third measure. Meaning at the third measure, the main theme in the left hand must be brought out. The relay happens throughout the piece with this theme passing between the hands in different keys.

The second and more finicky thing about this invention is the fact there an equally important motif in the form of those chromatic falling and rising notes. The headache in this invention is to allow the two main motifs to 'converse' with each other. As you gain more mileage in Bach and his inventions, you will naturally start to create this effect where the two hands are like two singers conversing with each other.

Hopefully this input was is helpful to you as much as it was for me!

Wow, thanks for the extensive review!

I didn't find it "incredibly" difficult, others are also pretty demanding (maybe in different ways).

Yes I know it's still uneven. Decided to stop worrying about that. Teachers never helped to fix it, comments here neither. Main problem is that I don't really hear it. Yes I hear it sort--of in the recording but that does not help. I don't get expert advice at this moment anyway (no teacher). I now hope it will get better if I keep pushing. Also, this is a recording from almost a year ago, I optimistically assume it would be a bit better if I tried again now.

Sticking with slow stuff just is not an option. Fast stuff is also required for me to have fun with this.

tyschoco thank you so much for the detailed comment! I agree with your input and will try to apply it in the next inversion I'm currently working on.

Focusing on the classical entries, I'll be working my way backwards from the end. First of several batches.


53. Moo - Rondo in D K485
Clean, rhythmical, and a pleasantly light touch. Interestingly dry (un-reverberated) recording.

52. P Westberg - Bagatelle Op. 119 No. 1
Very nice (I really like op. 119). Spotless.

51. RudolfRSK - Sonetto 47 del Petrarca
Enjoyable! Kudos for working on a non-Consolation Liszt piece, and rendering it so well.

50. Coati - The Setting Sun
You may feel unsure about this, but your performance was a very assured one. Well played!

49. Pathbreaker - Nocturne No. 3 - Op. 33
Lush, smooth, and very nice listening to.

48. Rachtoven - Piano Sonata in C Major K.545 1st Movement
Brilliant! Not a lot of polishing needed there.

47. facdo - Nocturne in E flat Major, Op.9 No.2
Elegant, and very pleasantly flowing. Excellent trills.

46. Agrajag - Jesus bleibet meine Freude - BWV 147
Amazing for one year's experience. Very nicely played.

45. bSharp(C)yclist (Dan) - Invention No. 8 In F Major, BWV 779
Sprightly, and very well executed.

44. selfishplayer - Variatio 8 from Goldberg Variations
Maddening tempo; very impressive.

1 Greta99

Very articulate playing from yourself which constituted a really nice listen. I never heard a wrong note, plenty of light and shade, but maybe it all needs a little spice? A little passion?
Ahhh! Got a bit of that just before the ending.
Well done!

2 QuasiUnaFantasia

Great sounding instrument, carefully and nicely played. I hadn't heard it before, sop really, I failed to appreciate its finer points!

3 Pika Pianist

There's so many excellent Russian composers out there. Maybe his other stuff isn't as good as this one. . . but I can see why you like it. Your piano is quite explosive at times . . . great job!

4 Sam S

A decent reflective and quite emotional work which I'd never heard before, like so many others I'll hear before I'm done. As you say, the good thing is the variety, and the unknown which has been unearthed!
Thanks, Sam for the music. And this one was a nice rare treat. Nicely played.

5 MarieJ

Now, we can't have a recital without Einaudi. Unthinkable! And this is sweet..
Reminds me of some old Enya tracks which had an ethereal feel.
One can float away into the stratosphere and leave the problems of the world far behind.
Or just listen and enjoy, with a drink. I chose the second option , , ,

6 Wouter 79

Fine resonant sounding piano which you did a fine job of micing up.
Yet another unknown piece, certainly a good 'un. You put a lot of feeling into this and it shows!

7 Ted Jones

A high level of mucial skill enables you to do this, Ted! The nearest I ever get is playing around a predetermined chord sequence . . .
I catch the influence of Rachmanninov in your delivery.
And I'm reminded of the "Warsaw Concerto".
Dunno how you do it! Have fun . . .

8 Jeff Greener

Some unusual stuff tonight! A hard complex piece, you made it flow nicely. Enjoyed it..

10 KevinM

You play it because you want to. What better reason? i do the same.without necessarily the continued need for improvement . . . .A good sound, good playing.. . .

Thanks for your insightful comments. In my youth I was trained to think of music in terms of chord sequences, as many people were, and still are. Trouble is, it is as creatively confining as it is helpful, and getting rid of that mindset, with difficulty at first, freed my musical impulse considerably. Nothing wrong with chord sequences, of course, but music is much bigger. Don't worry, I always have fun these days.

13. Mateusz 'Mati' Papiernik - Loutky (Puppets), H. 92: No. 3. Columbine

23. pianist685 (Constantin) - If I could see you again

Nothing really constructive I'm afraid, but I just enjoyed listening to these two pieces so much. In each case I could close my eyes and imagine what they are portraying. Beautiful playing.
Maybe one day I could try them. Thank you so much for sharing them.

I'm moving slowly through these wonderful entries and it's been a great pleasure as always. I will do small batches of responses here and there but most likely not in order.

01. Greta99 - Two Baltic Waltzes -"Tallinn" and "Vilnius" from "Reflections in Waltz"
Of these two waltzes I think the first is very sweet and direct as a waltz. The second is more adventurous and I quite enjoyed your playing of it.

02. QuasiUnaFantasia - 10 pieces for piano, opus 24,7: Andantino
Nice choice! I agree with you about the piano music of Sibelius. I have tried some of the op 24 as it was suggested by a former teacher. That was my only introduction to his music and sadly I didn't finish any of it.
The Andantino is introspective and dreamy at times with a very satisfying close. Your performance is very nicely done!

03. PikaPianist - Nocturne Op. 3 No.2
My first thought when I started the video is that I love your camera angles. Those are exactly the angles that I want to set up! So aside from that I also like your piano sound and rendition of this piece which is new to me. The middle section is especially beautiful.

04. Sam S - Valse de l'adieu
I like this one, Sam. The melody has a natural flow that pulled me right in but also keeps interest throughout. Very well played and your piano sounds great! Happy 50th! I don't think I'm anywhere near that since I'm so sporadic in my participation. I'll have to take a look at where I am. Thanks for doing such a great job running the show. It is very important work.

05. MarieJ - Berlin Song
I was surprised by the warmth in this piece right from the start. I think you have a great balance in your playing which achieves a great harmonic sound. I think of Einaudi as music of the night. This piece works really well in the late evening, I think, but it sounds great here early in the morning too.

Such a great recital - many excellent performances. Starting in the middle this time...

30. sma55 (Shepherd Abrams) - Sentimental Waltz, Op 51 No 6 Very sensitive playing. I don't remember hearing this before. That middle section is quite the contrast - what was he thinking? And that explosion at the end - a bit of an anger issue? Maybe that's why the piece is not more well known!

31. thepianoplayer416 - Christmas Oratorio #2 - Sinfonia in G (BWV248) This is quite the accomplishment! Bravo to you for writing your own transcription.

32. Pavel.K - Evening Clouds, No.9 from Album de Nina Op. 141 Very nice - sounds like great material. I went to imslp and now have my own copy! Thanks!

33. jamiecw - Prelude in A Major Op28 No7 Nice dynamics. I like the way you got softer on the repeated chords. Well done!

34. sandalholme - 4 Mazurkas Op24 All of these are just excellent. I have to confess I am always a bit confused by the mazurkas - where's the beat? - as if Chopin did not notate them as he would play them. So there is some big mystery about how they should be played. Not criticizing you. That #2 for instance - in 2 or 3 - the beginning sounds like 2 but notated in 3. And the beginning of #4 - obfuscated would be a good description. Maybe I need to be Polish to get it!

35. Serge88 - Air on the G string No shades this time? But you still have your audience - and an elf! This was great - just right for Christmas season.

36. tyschoco - Sonatina in F Major, Op 20 No 3 Excellent! Very clean and smooth and definitely in the style for the period.

37. lyricmudra - Venetian Boat Song No. 2 (Song Without Words Op. 30, No. 6) Wonderful! But the earlier one is good too, just different...

38. CasualPianist123 - Sonata Op. 40 No. 2, 1st Movt Excellent! A very dramatic 1st movement - very Beethoven like. Not what we normally think of as Clementi.

39. cygnusdei - Fantasia in C minor, BWV 906 I've played this one too. Well done! My only suggestion is to slow it down a little - or maybe I am used to hearing at the speed I played it, which is slower. It was a lot of work to learn this (I had to memorize it), so great job!

40. OE1FEU (Peter) - Intermezzo b-flat minor Op. 117 No. 2 Excellent! Loved your transitions, the way you build up tension and then release.

42. Marlings - Well Tempered Clavier / Prelude and Fugue 6 in D minor One of my favorites! Well done!

43. CarlosCC - One wave one sea Welcome back Carlos! This is great, definitely reminds me of the sea...

More to come...

Sam

Thanks for listening and for your kind words. I agree with you regarding the middle section. In my view, the middle section is really the only portion that has anything worthy of the description of the piece as a waltz. Of course, that may also have something to do with my own approach to performing the piece. As for the "explosion at the end", your hearing it as an anger issue made me laugh out loud. Because I myself hear it as simply impassioned composing. On the other hand, if you're right and it's anger, it does sound as if, immediately after that, with the return of the more subdued and mournful tone of the main theme, Tchaikovsky concludes, "What's the point of getting pissed off? In the end, life is still sad and it sucks." (Not my views on life, by the way.)

Thanks for your compliment.

The process of arranging & learning the piece started in March. There are orchestral performances but few piano arrangements that I'm happy with. The last version I found online contains only the last section in a slow tempo which is just 1/3 of the piece. It was a challenge to condense 6 instrument parts into something playable for 2-hand piano by moving notes around. Besides keeping the top 2 melodic lines together, I want to keep the lower lines as much as possible like a Bach fugue. Compromises were made while keeping the piece sounding close to the original. A piano won't sound like the original instruments including flutes, oboes, violins, viola & organ that can sustain long notes even with legato playing.

11 Ido

Some Kawi grand! It sounded grand all right. 100% on that. Great timing, and had an air of quiet capability. You been playing 5y; I been playing over 50. I don't think I'd handle that as well as you, but these things are worth a try. Could be good for me. . . Excellent!

12 JJHLH

Scriabin must take a bit of understanding; the subtleties are wholly pleasant and correct. A gentle piece with a nice lilt.

13 Mateusz

Super piece, very interesting, quirky entertaining, and professionally addressed. Wonderful!

14 Calavera

Well done for the transcription. I just done one for this recital, and they are hard work. But I had all the time in the world, so I enjoyed the process. Fine playimg.

15 rwsavory

Nice job on this. A bit repetitive, mind.

16 PianogrlNY

Nice rcording. More often than not, I'm hearing new poece from most here . . .and yours are always so pleasant and nicely played. I could listen to that piano a lot longer.

17 JP-PW Je
Here's another super piece! Great sound, evocatively played. What's not to like?

18 Andres Vel

A super view of your new looking piano, and those working hammers!
You've made excellent progress to get here so quickly and competently. Lokk forwards to seeing your future work. . .

19 Taleo

I'm liking these Satie pieces more and more. This Gnoss is definitely for the collection. You play it beautifully on your excellent sonorous piano

20 Winterflower

Beautiful sound you achieve from your PT Bluthner. It's one of my favourites too, and has a great ring to it.
You playing of this nebulous piece was thoughtful, contemplative and has a quality that makes me think this could be your genre . . .


Guys! Congrats to all of you. If the first 20 is anything to go by, this is the most proficient recital ever . . . .
You are all a bit special . . .

Second batch, working backwards. More to follow.


42. Marlings - Well Tempered Clavier / Prelude and Fugue 6 in D minor
Unbelievably good for only four years experience. Flawless.

40. OE1FEU (Peter) - Intermezzo b-flat minor Op. 117 No. 2
Very impressive playing, and both audio and video quality were great.

39. cygnusdei - Fantasia in C minor, BWV 906
Magnificent speed and consistency.

38. CasualPianist123 - Sonata Op. 40 No. 2, 1st Movt
Very interesting work, which I did not know before. Very fine (and dramatic) performance.

37. lyricmudra - Venetian Boat Song No. 2 (Song Without Words Op. 30, No. 6)
Excellent. The trills blow my mind.

36. tyschoco - Sonatina in F Major, Op 20 No 3
A very nice performance, and apparently fully memorized. All highly impressive.

35. Serge88 - Air on the G string
One of my (few) favourite Bach works. Played really well, it sounded as dignified and melancholy as I like it to be.

34. sandalholme - 4 Mazurkas Op24
Beautiful, and played with great sensitivity.

33. jamiecw - Prelude in A Major Op28 No7
I've never worked out how this piece should sound, but your choice works well, and it was played beautifully.

Another batch of comments:

44. selfishplayer - Variatio 8 from Goldberg Variations That's tough! Well done! My experience with Kawai is that the actions have all been too heavy for playing something like this - a real workout.

45. bSharp(C)yclist (Dan) - Invention No. 8 In F Major, BWV 779 This has always been my favorite invention. Well done - loved it!

46. Agrajag - Jesus bleibet meine Freude - BWV 147 You did an excellent job of bringing out the hymn tune and the other moving voices, and not just the familiar melody. Excellent!

47. facdo - Nocturne in E flat Major, Op.9 No.2 Excellent left hand - that's always what I listen for first in this piece - yes, we hear it a lot, because it is so beautiful. But many players overpower the right hand with the left. Well done!

48. Rachtoven - Piano Sonata in C Major K.545 1st Movement You are braver than I am to try this. I always failed at the first Alberti bass figure in the LH, so I never got far. But you have the style and flair that is needed for this. Well done! My only suggestion is not to rush the tags at the ends of the phrases. Listen at the beginning, clap along, and see what happens when you get to measure 12. Recordings can reveal so much! But well done and keep up the good work!

49. Pathbreaker - Nocturne No. 3 - Op. 33 Excellent work! You kept it from getting muddy (nice pedal work) and I can hear all the different climaxes as they come and go. Well done!

50. Coati - The Setting Sun Welcome to the recitals! They are a great way to improve. You did great with this. I guess it is sort of a little prelude - there are a bunch more by his father, of course. Try some of the little preludes, which are similar.

51. RudolfRSK - Sonetto 47 del Petrarca Well done, especially for such little experience. Don't tell us where the errors are - of course I was watching the timer to hear the memory problem. I wouldn't have been the least bothered by it if you hadn't pointed it out, since I don't know the piece - you recovered well.

52. P Westberg - Bagatelle Op. 119 No. 1 This is one of my favorites! Well done!

53. Moo - Rondo in D K485 Loved it! I always thought this sounded like an opera overture, with each character getting their own melody. I like how the camera finally focussed about 2 minutes in! It went well with the music! An ambitious and long piece to tackle - well done!

More to come!

Sam

29. Flygbladet - Sonata Pathetique Mov. 1

I love this piece and would love to play it, but you do it so much more justice than I could. Very enjoyable to listen to. Thanks

So here is my first batch of comments. This recital has so many exciting entries that I cannot wait to listen to them all,

Thank you selfishplayer and peterws for your lovely comments on my piece. I am happy you enjoyed it I am with you @peterws, I also love seeing the hammers in action when I start working on my videos. Piano are such interesting machines.

01. Greta99 - Two Baltic Waltzes -"Tallinn" and "Vilnius" from "Reflections in Waltz" Lovely Waltzes Greta! I specially enjoy the second one, it had more textures and variations and felt in general also more rewarding to play. I am wondering now what kind of impressions do both pieces represent from both cities based on their titles. It seems that Vilnius might be the less quiet place of the two . Lovely playing as usual. How did you know about those pieces?

11. Ido - Invention 11 (BWV 782) Great job with the invention Ido! this one was also on my list of favorites from the entire set and would love to tackle it in the future. I think you gave very good movement to the piece and you always seemed in full control of it. I could recognize your intentions when bringing up one voice above the other specially towards bar 7 when the theme is found again on the left hand. I think voicing in baroque music is a long-term learning project and these inventions are beautiful pieces to improve on that. In certain spots perhaps the right hand voice could have been quieter to allow the left hand sing more, but you did a very good job. Here the recording might be playing a role in my impressions. From all inventions I have worked on, I found No. 8 the hardest but mostly because of the tempo I wanted to achieve. I am glad you are finding it an easier challenge. Looking forward to listening to it soon

21. ranjit - The Madman's Circus This was very cool ranjit! so much drama and variation in this. I loved how you switched ideas constantly but at the same time made them work together as a whole. It is very nice how you start to add textures here and there. At times it felt like listening to a Liszt Rhapsody but then it changed to a Rach or a Prokofiev Sonata :P very cool stuff (please excuse me in case you do not like these comparisons to composers' sounds. I understand improv showcase your individuality, I am just trying to put into words what I experience through your recording ). I cannot even imagine the amount of time you must have spent at the piano to get to this level of improv skills. Amazing! but mostly very inspiring. I read you are taking lessons. Are they targeted for improv skills?

31. thepianoplayer416 - Christmas Oratorio #2 - Sinfonia in G (BWV248) What a big effort to came out with your own arrangement!. I agree with you on the cantatas. I started listening to them recently when reading about Bach's life and some of them are now on my playlist of favorite tunes. I enjoyed your submission very much. Will you still be working on the arrangement?

51. RudolfRSK - Sonetto 47 del Petrarca Congratulations on your effort so far with this challenging piece. I think I have only listened to this sonetto once so I was not very familiar with it. I have listened mostly to the companion sonetto 104. Liszt music seems always very challenging to me (confirmed after following the score while listening). You did a very good job and it is cool you have continued working on the piece. The fact you have pointed out the list of things you would like to improve form the recording already shows how serious you take piano playing and how aware you are of the benefits of listening to your own playing. I am very much looking forward to a future updated version of this piece Keep us updated!

20. winterflower - The Night is Too Long and So Deep
Beautiful, nothing more to say really. The musical power of your improvisation gathers momentum with each recital. Such profound effect with such simple means is a lesson to us all, probably to me in particular. Ha ha ! I like those notes at 1:25. You could easily transcribe this into a written nocturne were you so inclined, or use AnthemScore or similar to do it. Then again, I suppose why bother ?