Solo Keyboard

New Release: Arcadi Volodos Plays Brahms

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Johannes Brahms’ three Op. 117 Intermezzos are a mix of serene, autumnal beauty, solitary introspection, and underlying sadness. Brahms wrote these solo piano works in the summer of 1892 with his longtime friend, Clara Schumann in mind. He described them as “lullabies of my sorrow.” The score is inscribed by a quotation from a Scottish poem from Johann Gottfried Herder’s Volkslieder: Sleep softly my child, sleep softly and well ! It hurts my heart to see …

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Dusting Off Martini’s Gavotte

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This past Monday marked the birthday of Giovanni Battista Martini (1706-1784). The Italian composer and Conventual Franciscan Friar is now a mere footnote in the dusty pages of music history. But within the musical circles of eighteenth century Bologna, Martini was a respected figure. At the age of 19, he was appointed chapel-master of Bologna’s Basilica San Francesco (pictured above). He was a renowned teacher whose students included the young Mozart, J.C Bach, and Christoph Gluck. …

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New Release: Rafal Blechacz Plays Bach

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Johann Sebastian Bach is the simple but fitting title of a new album by 31-year-old Polish pianist Rafał Blechacz. The recording, released in February, features Bach’s Italian Concerto, Partita Nos. 1 and 3, Fantasia and Fugue In A Minor BWV 944, and the seldom-heard Four Duets BWV 802-805. (Blechacz offers this description of the Duets). British pianist Myra Hess’ arrangement of Jesus, Joy Of Man’s Desiring rounds out the disk. Bach’s Italian Concerto in F Major, published in 1735 as the first half or …

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Happy Birthday, Frédéric Chopin

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The Polish virtuoso pianist and composer Frédéric Chopin was born on this day in 1810. Chopin was a composer who wrote, almost exclusively, for the piano. His stylistic and harmonic innovations influenced later Romantic composers. Additionally, his music has been associated with Polish nationalism. In 1939, as Nazi troops advanced on Warsaw, Chopin’s music was played continuously on Polish radio. In a recent post, I offered a few thoughts on Chopin’s Second Piano …

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10 Musical Adaptations of “God Save the Queen”

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On Monday, Britain celebrated Queen Elizabeth II’s Sapphire Jubilee, marking her 65 years on the throne. At 90, Her Majesty is the world’s longest-reigning monarch. The milestone reminded me of the nearly 140 composers who have created musical adaptations of God Save the Queen, an ancient melody that may have originated in plainchant long before it was attributed to the English composer and organ-builder John Bull in 1619. Here are ten of the most …

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Adam Schoenberg’s “Bounce”: Radiohead Meets Copland

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This has to be some of the most playfully exuberant and joyful music ever written. American composer Adam Schoenberg (b. 1980) wrote Bounce in 2013, after learning that he was about to become a father. In an interview, Schoenberg explained, The very first word that came to mind, both for the baby and the commission, was ‘bounce.’ It felt playful, innocent, fun, light. And rhythmic. The piece, which has been described as “Radiohead meets …

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Grande Pièce Symphonique: Franck’s Symphony for Solo Organ

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On Monday we listened to César Franck’s Symphony in D Minor, a piece in which the orchestra turns into a living, breathing pipe organ. Now, let’s finish the week with Franck’s Grande Pièce Symphonique, which can be described as a symphony for solo organ. When this piece was completed in 1863, Franck had just been appointed organist at Paris’ Sainte-Clothilde basilica, where he played a brand new instrument by the master French organ builder Aristide Cavaillé-Coll. Grande Pièce Symphonique is …

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