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Hi, I'm Troy McLure.

Just now struck curious if any forum members are avid transcribers. Which pieces have you transcribed? Which pieces would you like to have a go at?

I've always thought the Candide Overture would make a great virtuoso piano transcription.

I wrote a pretty sweet Freebird two-piano transcription and played it with a buddy of mine.

I transcribe everything I hear if I have time.
My next try is Mozart's Requiem only for piano solo, and perhaps some other pieces.
I really like transcribing, it's like giving something more from yourself to a certain piece.

I started transcribing Manuel de Falla's Danza y Canción de la Bruja Fingida. De Falla himself transcribed it for piano already, but its from the rivisioned second version of El Amor Brujo (in which the piece is called Danza del Juego de Amor). I like the one from the first version better, so I'm working that one out from orchestra to piano.

Q: Is transcribing in classical music simply arranging a work for another instrument? Or are you actually figuring out the notes by listening to the recording, as the term is used in jazz?

It's arranging the work for another instrument, but of course it's not so simple. As a matter of necessity we consult the orignal score.

Hi All,
I've been working on a solo piano transcription of Franck's Le Chasseur Maudit for years - it just takes so long to do!

The overture from Marriage of Figaro is a nice piece on piano, I did a transcription of it for an assignment in college.

I’m a sinner too. I deserve no pardon. Once I did a transcription of Grieg’s piano concerto for “symphonic band” (a huge band with cellos and contrabasses)! I remember that the score was two feet high. Then, with all those transposing and impossible to concert instruments, my madness began.
Transcribing is a good and exhausting exercise but a rewarding one. For a composer it’s almost mandatory.

I'm transcribing/arranging the 'In the house' music from the film "28 Days Later" - works really well on the piano, amazingly enough.

OG,

I like the idea of the Candide overture for piano solo. It was always one of my favourite pieces in my dim and distant past as an orchestral flute player. Please send me a copy when you've finished!

-Michael B.

I'm a guilty party as well. Many years ago I took an "Alman" by William Byrd and transcribed it for 4 recorders.

I also took a keyboard overture and transcribed it for strings and continuo. My score was also about 2-feet tall for this one!

It was a lot of fun, and it took a very long time to do especially since personal computers hadn't been developed then back 1974.

John

John you are not going to believe this, but I also transcribed that same piece for 4 recorders at approximately the same time! That is so weird as to make my head spin.

I did it as part of stage music for a production of "Romeo and Juliet" - my little band of recorder players had a walk-on part, and it was lots of fun.

A friend is currently transcribing Mendelssohn's "Walpurgisnacht" for me - it will be a piano and organ duet (with choir of course).

I've done the "Marriage of Figaro" as a piano duet many times (someone else's transcription). I've also modified this transcription and done it many times as an organ duet.

I had to play the Overture to "Candide" on piano a long time ago. Yes, it exists as a piano solo in the orchestral reduction. I remember it was quite challenging.

Talking about four parts writing, I remembered one excellent exercise we used to do: to transcribe orchestral scores to four playable piano parts. It’s challenging -you have to choose which voices to play and which to despise, respect the inversion and the leading voice, etc.-, but very rewarding. There’s a lot of music for which proper four part writing will do quite well.

I've transcribed Pachelbel's Canon for Cello, Violin and Piano for a wedding performance. Not that exciting - if I had time would like to transcribe some of Bach's orchestral works (suites) for one and two pianos (maybe 4-hands).

I've transcribed Franck's Third Organ Chorale.

It's surprising how much his piano music resembles organ music, and vice versa.

how bout a copy to test drive for the masses?

But of course you know that Stephen Hough has done this too. Durand Editions have published transcriptions of all three Franck Chorales, cannot recall who did them, yet I believe they date from not long after Franck's passing.

On the printed page, perhaps, Franck's keyboard music appears interchangeable between organ and piano, but looks deceive. Franck's organ music is so specifically conceived for the sound and capabilites of a French instrument, that a recent listening of the B minor Chorale on piano was a very jarring and unsatisfactory experience.

When the swell reeds enter at measure 41, the whole surprising effect is utterly lost. whippen boy would understand!

I've transcribed Chopin's Minute Waltz for choir (Christmas In A Minute), The Twelve Days of Christmas arranged for a cappella SATB divisi, and an SATB arrangement of The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting...) I've also arranged many of David Foster's famous pop songs and Josh Groban's first cd songbook for solo piano (available on PianoDisc), arranged Vivaldi's Four Seasons (for a Naxos cd in 2008), and arranged the piano part only for the Billy Joel 'Symphonic Fantasies' based on four of his solo pieces. Lots of fun, when there's time!!

I know of it, but I haven't heard it. I'm sure it's amazing. A few others have also transcribed it - Vladmir Viardo comes to mind.

I agree completely - for me, it's more of a physical thing. Things like the Chorale (or the cadenza for that matter!) from the Prelude, Chorale, et Fugue might be better negotiated on the organ because of the added dimension. I guess that's why one sees comparatively less stretches of 10ths and 11ths in his organ compositions.

But in the end, it's all about sound as you said.