LO4- BBC/'Pianist' magazine article

What are you playing this Christmas?

As the winter pulls in, Olivia Dance discusses what possibilities await us this Christmas…

Pianists today have one of the largest repertoire lists out of all musicians, and it is for this reason that I inform you all about what possible routes you could turn down and what still lies in store for us all.

Too often I hear the same repertoire chosen for festivals, the primary-aged will play Bach’s ‘Minuet in G’, the teenager will opt for something fiery but still too Romantic, perhaps Grieg’s ‘Wedding Day at Troldhaugen’ and the mature adult will attempt a Chopin Nocturne, imagining that they were playing his Second Piano Concerto instead but with technique that fails to come close to what is required for either the concerto or the nocturne. Many still wishing that they had practised harder when they were young.

Well, don’t fear! There are hundreds of repertoire possibilities out there that will continue to build your stamina and technique up from whichever level you happen to be at.

It is important for us pianists to diverge into different areas of music which are less well known to us. Of course, it is always beneficial to play the most popular pieces by composers such as Bach, Beethoven and Brahms, as it is relatively easy to find reliable recordings to guide us when in the process of learning. However, how exciting would it be if you were the one to discover a new work; set the boundaries for everyone else’s interpretation? Realistically, I can’t guarantee that you will be the first person to play a piece, or even the hundredth person, but I can almost assure you that your audiences, be it a family recital in the living room or a fully-fledged concert tour, will be grateful in return for the new music that you have brought to life.

How many of us know thoroughly the names of composers Carl- Heinrich Döring, César Cui, or Theodor Oesten for example? Their music can be just as rewarding as either Mozart or Beethoven if we just give it a chance. Signing up to online websites, such as ‘Piano Street’ or ‘Music Notes’, can be very beneficial for the musician who is seeking new and unknown repertoire.  There is usually a scroll-down list of composers’ names in alphabetical order on these types of sites making it easy for us to choose a name that we do not recognise. On particularly good sites they give a general level to the piece, gaging it for both the teacher and the student.

Starting with the beginner pianist, I must draw attention to composer Carl Heinrich Döring. Döring, a German- born composer who wrote many scores for male choirs during his life, writes a collection of pieces aimed at the beginner pianist. Number 1, 2, and 10 of this collection adopt the key of C major and explore the major degrees of the scale, whilst developing hand coordination. The first out of the collection has a slow moving left hand part which lets the beginner focus more on their legato technique in the treble. There are modulations to the dominant (bars 14-16), and relative minor (bars 21-22). This piece shows much sensitivity to the melodic line which is rather unusual when dealing with this level of piece. No.2 deals with the left hand fluidity whilst the right hand plays sustained notes. Once No.3 has been reached, it is expected that the pianist is of a standard to incorporate two melodies to create music which is polyphonic in texture. All of the pieces end with V-I perfect cadences, although the lead-into bars and inversions help keep interest till the end. For instance No.2‘s resolution begins with a supertonic degree (II) unlike that of No.3’s which is the subdominant degree (IV). No.2’s cadence is much weaker than No.3’s as Döring at no point uses left hand notes in root position; V is in 2^nd (bass note D) Inversion whilst I is in 1^st (bass note E)^. Whilst all of No.3’s resolution chords are grounded in root position, and the doubled bass chord along with the fermata creates further emphasis.

 

 

A problem that occurs early on in the beginner stages of piano is that many pupils start to play mechanically. I put this down to there not being music from the Romantic era in their repertoire already. There is a common thought that unless a pianist reaches a certain level they will not be able to convincingly play Romantic music. For me, personally, Romantic music is the most rewarding as the harmony is not as predictable as music from the classical genre. Until the teacher does issue music from the Romantic period, the pupil will not be able to understand later on why, for instance, they cannot produce a broad range of dynamics, achieve a firm legato line, or tackle the melodic decorations in music. I feel strongly that Romantic music can improve one’s own artistic interpretation whilst Classical music is reserved for improvement in technique. The sooner that we grant our students the right kind of music, the easier it will be for them in the long run.

There is a shared feeling amongst beginner and amateur pianists that a composer, such as  Chopin or Liszt's work is impossible to play when at this standard. This is often the presumption of many teachers too. ‘Chopin’, a name that regularly occurs in concert recitals, competitions and festivals, is usually reserved for the “highest calibre”. Yet many people tend to forget that Chopin was a piano miniaturist at heart writing numerous mazurkas, waltzes and nocturnes. He is a well-known composer therefore I will not discuss him in much detail but I urge teachers to research his easier piano pieces (not adapted, original!), ones such as the ‘Prelude opus 28 no 7 in A major’ which can improve the student’s melodic awareness yet at the same time develop their technique for legato thirds and sixths.

 

  A composer that, with regret, is virtually unheard of these days is Theodor Oesten. He composed lyrical pieces for piano, including polkas, waltzes and polonaises. What I admire about his compositions is the way in which he engages both the listener and performer. There are certain technical demands that the performer must overcome first before they can play it convincingly, but once they can the music is very rewarding to listen to. Polka-Mazurka op.155 No.2 is a particularly good piece for the progressing pianist. I would estimate it is around grade 3/4 standard and addresses triplets, staccato technique in the left hand, and has a wide range of dynamics. The piece is split into three sections- the opening which is in the tonic, then 2 development sections; the first modulates in to the relative minor through the addition of G # in bass whilst the second development section is in the subdominant key F. D.C al Fine indicates to recapitulate back to the tonic section to conclude the piece. Like the Döring piece discussed previously, Oesten only includes perfect cadences at the ends of his sections. Once Oesten modulates to A minor in the first development section, he must return back to the tonic to commence the second section in the key of F (the IV of C). He does this by adding yet another sharp, F #, to indicate to the listener that we are about to change into G (the V of C). Once G is in the bass, the music gradually returns back to the tonic through a descending scale from G to C.
 

Cesar Cui, once a member of ‘The Mighty Handful’ (a group of Russian composers who all shared very similar cultural beliefs), although it is surprising that these days we don’t hear his name as often as his other counterparts: Balakirev, Borodin, Mussorgsky and Rimsky-Korsakov. His pieces for piano are undoubtedly influenced by Romantic composers such as Schumann and Chopin, who feature prominently in many pianists’ repertoire. Specifically his preludes need to be paid extra attention. Cui wrote numerous preludes, and one in particular caught me. His prelude op.64, No.17, published in 1903, really has Russian Romantic flair to it as octaves and chromatics are in no way limited here. In the key of A flat major, Cui opens the piece with a series of repeated tonic chords in the left hand whilst the right hand travels up and down various degrees of the scale. There’s a magical part of the prelude where Cui moves through the key of D flat minor, highlighting the added C and F flats whilst progressing upwards in an arpeggio. With the cancellation of D flat in the next bar, Cui progresses in to the key of G flat major, once again the left hand ascends up a major arpeggio. I urge any aspiring pianist who is interested in the Romantic era of music to incorporate Cui’s prelude op.64, No.17 into their repertoire, even better if you can play all 25!

 

The concert pianist should consider Schoenberg as a possible composer to explore. Atonality places in a major part of Schoenberg’s work, and many pianists
are either exhilarated or completely put off by this- much like a pot of Marmite! His ‘Six Little Pieces for Piano’ are an excellent example of a work that is not usually performed and which one could gain a lot from. Once the pianist has tackled these pieces, they will never be afraid of atonality again. The first of the ‘Six Little Pieces’, published in 1911, commences with a 7^th chromatic variation chord in A minor when the bass notes are A, C, G and then G#. However, we are not in this key for long as already in the 2^nd bar, there is a Bb and Db in the bass, whilst there’s an A in the treble. This piece moves on through certain keys (not usually harmonically related) to give a sense of confusion about the whole tone ad mood. There’s a left hand tremolo in the middle of piece 1, combining the notes of D, Eb, G and B, creating a very close and compact sound. The difficulty with this piece is to achieve the sound that Schoenberg demands. He is very precise with dynamic markings, making it clear when we should be playing pianissimo and when pianissimo possibile (ppp) is required. The resolving chords are admirable at the end of Schoenberg’s 1^st piece of 6 little pieces. In the second beat of the last bar Schoenberg enters the key of F and chromatically travels to the sub-dominant degree to end, a truly interrupted cadence, yet at the same time the right hand plays notes from the G# minor scale! An excellent example of atonality as well as polytonality! 

I hope at whatever standard you are with the piano that you have been inspired to adopt lesser well- known composers’ works into your ever expanding repertoire, as they have so much to give. Not only will we get recognition that we play someone different, but from a personal perspective our interpretive style can only improve, as exploring a relatively un-known composer’s history enables us to discover more about the composer and their music and from that we form our own interpretations.  Good luck with upcoming performances, and I hope you all have an interesting holiday exploring our unknown music.