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Hey,

I need a piece around 20 minutes for the final round of a competition. Unfortunately, I'm having trouble thinking of ones to play, so I decided to ask all the great pianists here.

You all would help me a lot by even just listing your favorite piece(s) in that time frame--an exhaustive list is not necessary (although it would certainly not be denounced).

Thank you!

Prokofiev - Sonatas 2, 4, and 7
Chopin - Sonata No. 2
Scriabin - Sonatas 1 and 3
Schumann - Faschingsschwank aus Wien
Rachmaninov - Corelli Variations
Beethoven - Sonatas Op. 10 No. 1, Op. 109, and Op. 110

Liszt's Weinen, Klagen Variations might be suitable, it's about 15 minutes or so. I've just finished learning it, wonderful piece & quite under-played.

Samuel Barber-Sonata (when played well it's unbelievable)
Liszt-Ballade No. 2 (more like 16 minutes, but could be coupled with a smaller piece)
Beethoven- Op. 81a
Schubert-Sonata D-784
Liszt-Reminisces de Don Juan
Rachmaninov- Sonata No. 2

Does it have to be one piece or could it be a group of pieces???

Thanks for the suggestions. Keep them coming.

phonehome: It can certainly be a group of pieces. I am, however, a little scared of the Don Juan Paraphrase .

Out of curiosity, have you learned the Don Juan Paraphrase?

I'd say do a group of etudes.

Something like this

Liszt- Wilde Jagd
Rachmaninov Etudes Tableaux Op. 33 No. 2
Prokofiev Op. 2 No. 1
a Ligeti Etude
and Chopin Op. 10 No. 3

OR (this is my favorite 20 minute group
Schumann-Toccata
Schumann-Arabesque
Liszt-Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6

Aren't competitions hilarious?

Competitions are definitely hilarious...for the audience members that get to see my hand fall off after forty minutes of pianistic heck!

I'm already learning the Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6 for the first round, but I think a collection of etudes would be a good idea.

This is what my (tentative) program looks like--I would really appreciate your advice:

Round 1: 25 Minutes
Bach: Prelude and Fugue in F#, Book 1 3:15
Haydn: Sonata in C, Hob. XVI:50, I 5:21
Chopin: Etude in G, Op. 10, no. 8 2:35
Scriabin: Etude, Op. 8, no. 12 2:30
Chopin: Nocturne in F#, Op. 15, no. 2 4:00
Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6 6:08, 23:08

Round 2: 30 Minutes
Bach: Italian Concerto 12:47
Schubert: Moment Musicale No. 3 2:28
Poulenc: Trois Mouvements Perpétuels 5:06
Busoni-Bizet: Carmen Fantasy 7:00, 27:20

Round 3: 40 Minutes
Beethoven: C- Variations on an Original Theme, WoO 80 10:40
Chopin: Sonata No. 2 22:32
Liszt: La Campanella 5:00, 38:12

Concerto Final Round:
Rachmaninoff: Concerto No. 3, Mov't I

The 20 minute piece that I'm trying to decide on will replace the Chopin sonata--my teacher says that it's a great piece to learn, but one has to play it for a few years before taking it to a competition .

What competition is this??

How about Haydn's Piano Sonata in c minor it's only 14 pages long. http://imslp.ca/images/5/5d/Haydn_-_Piano_Sonata_No_20_in_c.pdf

In general I would stay away from piece which have a certain aura around them like late Beethoven Sonatas, Chopin Sonata nr 2, Goldberg Variations etc. If you play those pieces jurors are more apt to think that you don't reach the depth they are looking for, bla-bla. A juror will not quickly say to his colleagues "wow, that rendering of opus 110 was really great". They are more apt to have strong opinions how it is to be played (probably not how you play it).

I recommend Schubert's Wanderer Fantasia as a great piece of 20 minutes. Liszt's Vallee D'Obermann is nearly that long and is only difficult near the end.

You might instead want, say, Haydn Sonata in c# minor. A fine piece, in his "Sturm und Drang" period.

This is the Minnesota Junior Piano-e-competition.

Robert: I guess that "aura" is why my teacher didn't let me play the Chopin 2nd sonata, because he said to choose something that's "not as set in stone in judges' minds". But I wonder, does the Chopin 3rd sonata also have that "aura"?

dnephi: I'm definitely considering the Wanderer Fantasy. Unfortunately, I don't think that Haydn will set me apart in a final round of this competition (perhaps I'm wrong?)

How about Reminiscences de Don Juan? 16-18 minutes . That'd set you apart, wouldn't it? Feasability is an issue .

Another very different thing you could do would be the Chopin Concert Allegro (Op. 46 I think). Underplayed but very effective.

Notice that I'm playing La Campanella right after the 20 minutes piece--If I add Don Juan to it, not only will my hands fall off, I'll fall over my bench, hit the stage, and slide down into the audience!
Yes, dnephi, you're right, Don Juan will set me apart.

Neat! I'll be doing the piano-e-SENIOR-competition (I suppose that's what it's called) in 09 if I can.

I would suggest something accessible yet unfamiliar. Dvorak's American Suite, Coleridge-Taylor's Petite Suite de Concert, or one of Dohnanyi's come to mind. Or look into some of Copland's music, which was recently more popular than it is now: his Sonata, the Four Blues, or Variations. (The Fantasy is thornier, and may be harder to bring off.) This would get you away from the rather plain vanilla pieces on the rest of your list.

Vine Sonata #1 is about 16 minutes long and is fantastic! Beyond that, there's also a spectacular Reminiscences de Norma by Liszt.
Further beyond that, there's Liszt's Totentanz in Solo version, 16-18 minutes . (Ranked M-D (IE, medium to difficult) in the Hinson Transcriptions book. Terrifically effective.)

Farther, there is Bach-Liszt Fantasia and Fugue in G minor the Prelude and Fugue in A Minor (bwv 543). (each about 10 minutes long.)

Best of luck!

Wow. Thanks so much everybody. I have to get on listening to all of these! I'll tell you what I'll end up playing.

Thank you!

How about Valses Poeticos by Enrique Granados. It's beautiful, not played much and about 15 minutes long.

Ted

Might I suggest the Hexameron by Liszt?

It's completely underplayed.