I love Chopin & Liszt !
Recently, I’m so loving to listen to my old CD of Chopin which I purchased when I was still in my 20’s. ( Over 20 years ago .)
It has Chopin’s Piano concerto No.1 in E Minor, Op 11 and also his Piano Concerto No.2 in F Minor, Op.21.
Performed by
Pianist : Samson Francois
Orchestre : National de L’Opera de Monte-Carlo
Conductor : Louis Fremaux
This was recorded in 1965.
This music is so fantastic !!!
I wish some great figure skaters would perform with them also.
Seems like Chopin created both of these music masterpieces when he was around 19 years old !
How could he create such incredible concertos at such a young age ?
Except for one other music piece, these are the only music compositions he created for Piano with Orchestra .
Almost everything else he wrote was for solo Piano, except for some chamber music with piano and viola.
At the time I originally bought this CD, I wasn’t listening to it much because I was more loving to listen to another CD of his music which has his Nocturnes and Fantaisie Impromptu, Walzes, etc..
I love almost all his music but after listening to these two concertos again, they are something different from my impression of many of Chopin’s other music.
And it’s a new discovery for me !
And also I found that Rachmaninov might have been influenced by one of Chopin‘s compositions, the Piano Concerto No.2 F Minor. Op.21, I.Mov.
Because there are parts of this music that remind me of Rachmaninov’s Piano concerto No.3.
There is one part especially which is really similar to Chopin’s Piano concert No.2.
And I love both of them.
But I realized just how much Chopin was very original and unique.
I feel his music has influenced some other composers as well, besides Rachmaninov.
The first time I listened to Tchaikovsky’s piano piece called “ Valse sentimentale, op. 51/6 “ without knowing the composer of the music was Tchaikovsky, I had thought it ‘s Chopin’s composition.
But I was surprised to see it was created by Tchaikovsky !
Tchaikovsly‘s “ Valse sentimentale, op. 51/6 “ is one of my top favorite music same as Danse Macabre by Saint-Saens and Hungarian Rhabsody No.2, La Campanella, by Liszt .
A wealthy widow named Nadezdha von Meck, who was Tchaikovsky’s biggest supporter of his music, and who also loved Chopin’s music, wrote many letters to Tchaikovsky, and in one of them she pointed out that in her opinion Chopin’s music is similar to Tchaikovsky’s music.
It looked like it was reply to a letter from Tchaikovsky in which he was not especially flattering about Chopin’s music.
But in fact, there are some similarities.
For example, Chopin loved Mozart , same as Tchaikovsky, which was different from their music style.
But I can guess why they both loved Mozart’s music.
They all have in common music which is elegant and beautiful and which gives a certain bourgeois, high class impression.
Chopin and Tchaikovsky also share in common a tendency to create music which can be intensely emotional and personal.
Another of my recent favorite CD’s is “ Best Liszt 100 “ which was made for Liszt’s 200th anniversary this year.
It has 6 CD’s and there are many of his music I’ve never heard, so it‘s really new for me.
Liszt actually created over 1,000 compositions while he was alive , which is an unbelievable amount !
I’ve read that Saint-Saen’s created over 300 compositions, and this is known as an amazing number of compositions, so Liszt’s over 1,000 is so crazily incredible.
I wonder , was he not sleeping much ?
But it’s not only about time, but his focus and ability and effort to make such a large number of compositions, which no one made in history.
While Chopin created his two Piano Concerto masterpieces , when he was only 19 years old, Liszt took over 26 years to create and finish his own two Piano Concerto masterpieces, having started when he was also only 19 years old, as he kept going back to them and revising them until he was completely satisfied.
It almost sounds as if Chopin had his own music spirit guide who gave him direct access to a beautiful music universe in which Chopin could easily be inspired with ideas , so that he could hear the music whenever it came to his mind naturally.
Same as Tchaikovsky who once said
“ I sit down regularly at the piano at 9 o’clock in the morning and Mesdames les Muses have learned to be on time for that rendezvous. In the early days, sometimes they were late, but now they know the time of the appointment “.
But in Liszt ’s case sounds like he was more the effort type for the composition, he trained by himself, taking time to get the ideas for music.
That’s why some music took such a long time to complete them, I suppose.
And I’m so loving and respecting that part of Liszt, his incredible effort, amazing focus and determination.
I’m still a newbie fan of Liszt and his music and just beginning to know about 100 of his music on this CD, and haven’t listened to many of his more than 1000 music.
I also found Saint Saens quote about Liszt’s Sonata in B minor !
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16459/16459-h/16459-h.htm
" Liszt's great Sonata in B minor. With all its power and in all its delicacy, when played in a masterly way, it is one of the finest sonatas imaginable. But such a performance is rare, for it is beyond the average artist.
A perfect understanding of style in general and of the style of this composer, Liszt, in particular, are the qualifications needed to perform this work.
To play it, one needs the strength of an athlete, the lightness of a bird, capriciousness, and charm. It is far too difficult for most virtuosi, however talented they may be. "
This was Saint Saens’ ( who was also a great pianist ) advice on how to play Liszt’s Sonata in B minor.
From reading about Saint Saens, his musical abilities seemed effortless, but even he said this piece is so difficult to play.
I thought in present pianists, Yundi Li was playing great with this music.
Liszt’s Sonata in B minor is very long, so it may be really hard to complete it perfectly.
But I don’t know which one is the most difficult piano piece to play.
Depending on the pianist , it may be different as well.
Liszt’s
Sonata in B minor,
La Campanella,
Hungarian Rhapsody#2, and so many other compositions.
Chopin’s Etude Revolutionary, Ballade N 1 in G minor
Also Rachmaninov ‘s Concerto #3,
I’ve also heard about that Charles Valentin Alkan’s Etudes in the minor keys are some of the most difficult as well.
While reading about many of composers who were with Chopin and Liszt, I’m also interested in Alkan and his personality and his music.
Alkan sounded like genius composer and a pianist as well but he was a hermit type of person so he wasn’t well-known except among master pianists.
He was friends with both Chopin and Liszt. Alkan started out with a promising career as a pianist, same as Chopin and Liszt.
Liszt said that Alkan possessed one of the finest piano techniques he had ever seen.
But I’ve read that Alkan lost some of his confidence as a performer after seeing Liszt’s performance, although he continued to compose.
A few years later, Alkan became very bitter after he was maneuvered out of a good job, a professorship at a music conservatory, and since then, he was living in a second floor of his apartment and never meeting with anyone.
Alkan’s concierge was instructed to tell any visitors, when they arrived at the first floor of his apartment, to tell them that nobody was home.
One of Alkan’s visitors persisted and asked the concierge
“ Well then, when will he be home ? “
The concierge answered “ Never “.
I’ve not had the opportunity to hear Alkan’s music yet, but he sounds like a very mysterious and sensitive artist.
I look forward to hearing his music someday.
So far, my favorite Piano Concertos are :
Chopin’s Piano Concerto N.1 in E minor
Chopin’s Piano Concerto N.2 in F minor
Liszt’s Piano Concerto N.1 in E flat major
Liszt’s Piano Concerto N..2 in A major
Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto 1 in B flat minor
Saint Saens’ Piano Concerto N.4 in C minor
Saint Saens’ Piano Concerto N.2 in G minor
Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto N 3 in D minor
Rachmaninov’s Concerto N 2 in C minor
For Tchaikovsky , I haven’t heard his other piano concertos, only No.1. Must hear his other two piano concertos, too.
This classical music world is so fun !
It has Chopin’s Piano concerto No.1 in E Minor, Op 11 and also his Piano Concerto No.2 in F Minor, Op.21.
Performed by
Pianist : Samson Francois
Orchestre : National de L’Opera de Monte-Carlo
Conductor : Louis Fremaux
This was recorded in 1965.
This music is so fantastic !!!
I wish some great figure skaters would perform with them also.
Seems like Chopin created both of these music masterpieces when he was around 19 years old !
How could he create such incredible concertos at such a young age ?
Except for one other music piece, these are the only music compositions he created for Piano with Orchestra .
Almost everything else he wrote was for solo Piano, except for some chamber music with piano and viola.
At the time I originally bought this CD, I wasn’t listening to it much because I was more loving to listen to another CD of his music which has his Nocturnes and Fantaisie Impromptu, Walzes, etc..
I love almost all his music but after listening to these two concertos again, they are something different from my impression of many of Chopin’s other music.
And it’s a new discovery for me !
And also I found that Rachmaninov might have been influenced by one of Chopin‘s compositions, the Piano Concerto No.2 F Minor. Op.21, I.Mov.
Because there are parts of this music that remind me of Rachmaninov’s Piano concerto No.3.
There is one part especially which is really similar to Chopin’s Piano concert No.2.
And I love both of them.
But I realized just how much Chopin was very original and unique.
I feel his music has influenced some other composers as well, besides Rachmaninov.
The first time I listened to Tchaikovsky’s piano piece called “ Valse sentimentale, op. 51/6 “ without knowing the composer of the music was Tchaikovsky, I had thought it ‘s Chopin’s composition.
But I was surprised to see it was created by Tchaikovsky !
Tchaikovsly‘s “ Valse sentimentale, op. 51/6 “ is one of my top favorite music same as Danse Macabre by Saint-Saens and Hungarian Rhabsody No.2, La Campanella, by Liszt .
A wealthy widow named Nadezdha von Meck, who was Tchaikovsky’s biggest supporter of his music, and who also loved Chopin’s music, wrote many letters to Tchaikovsky, and in one of them she pointed out that in her opinion Chopin’s music is similar to Tchaikovsky’s music.
It looked like it was reply to a letter from Tchaikovsky in which he was not especially flattering about Chopin’s music.
But in fact, there are some similarities.
For example, Chopin loved Mozart , same as Tchaikovsky, which was different from their music style.
But I can guess why they both loved Mozart’s music.
They all have in common music which is elegant and beautiful and which gives a certain bourgeois, high class impression.
Chopin and Tchaikovsky also share in common a tendency to create music which can be intensely emotional and personal.
Another of my recent favorite CD’s is “ Best Liszt 100 “ which was made for Liszt’s 200th anniversary this year.
It has 6 CD’s and there are many of his music I’ve never heard, so it‘s really new for me.
Liszt actually created over 1,000 compositions while he was alive , which is an unbelievable amount !
I’ve read that Saint-Saen’s created over 300 compositions, and this is known as an amazing number of compositions, so Liszt’s over 1,000 is so crazily incredible.
I wonder , was he not sleeping much ?
But it’s not only about time, but his focus and ability and effort to make such a large number of compositions, which no one made in history.
While Chopin created his two Piano Concerto masterpieces , when he was only 19 years old, Liszt took over 26 years to create and finish his own two Piano Concerto masterpieces, having started when he was also only 19 years old, as he kept going back to them and revising them until he was completely satisfied.
It almost sounds as if Chopin had his own music spirit guide who gave him direct access to a beautiful music universe in which Chopin could easily be inspired with ideas , so that he could hear the music whenever it came to his mind naturally.
Same as Tchaikovsky who once said
“ I sit down regularly at the piano at 9 o’clock in the morning and Mesdames les Muses have learned to be on time for that rendezvous. In the early days, sometimes they were late, but now they know the time of the appointment “.
But in Liszt ’s case sounds like he was more the effort type for the composition, he trained by himself, taking time to get the ideas for music.
That’s why some music took such a long time to complete them, I suppose.
And I’m so loving and respecting that part of Liszt, his incredible effort, amazing focus and determination.
I’m still a newbie fan of Liszt and his music and just beginning to know about 100 of his music on this CD, and haven’t listened to many of his more than 1000 music.
I also found Saint Saens quote about Liszt’s Sonata in B minor !
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16459/16459-h/16459-h.htm
" Liszt's great Sonata in B minor. With all its power and in all its delicacy, when played in a masterly way, it is one of the finest sonatas imaginable. But such a performance is rare, for it is beyond the average artist.
A perfect understanding of style in general and of the style of this composer, Liszt, in particular, are the qualifications needed to perform this work.
To play it, one needs the strength of an athlete, the lightness of a bird, capriciousness, and charm. It is far too difficult for most virtuosi, however talented they may be. "
This was Saint Saens’ ( who was also a great pianist ) advice on how to play Liszt’s Sonata in B minor.
From reading about Saint Saens, his musical abilities seemed effortless, but even he said this piece is so difficult to play.
I thought in present pianists, Yundi Li was playing great with this music.
Liszt’s Sonata in B minor is very long, so it may be really hard to complete it perfectly.
But I don’t know which one is the most difficult piano piece to play.
Depending on the pianist , it may be different as well.
Liszt’s
Sonata in B minor,
La Campanella,
Hungarian Rhapsody#2, and so many other compositions.
Chopin’s Etude Revolutionary, Ballade N 1 in G minor
Also Rachmaninov ‘s Concerto #3,
I’ve also heard about that Charles Valentin Alkan’s Etudes in the minor keys are some of the most difficult as well.
While reading about many of composers who were with Chopin and Liszt, I’m also interested in Alkan and his personality and his music.
Alkan sounded like genius composer and a pianist as well but he was a hermit type of person so he wasn’t well-known except among master pianists.
He was friends with both Chopin and Liszt. Alkan started out with a promising career as a pianist, same as Chopin and Liszt.
Liszt said that Alkan possessed one of the finest piano techniques he had ever seen.
But I’ve read that Alkan lost some of his confidence as a performer after seeing Liszt’s performance, although he continued to compose.
A few years later, Alkan became very bitter after he was maneuvered out of a good job, a professorship at a music conservatory, and since then, he was living in a second floor of his apartment and never meeting with anyone.
Alkan’s concierge was instructed to tell any visitors, when they arrived at the first floor of his apartment, to tell them that nobody was home.
One of Alkan’s visitors persisted and asked the concierge
“ Well then, when will he be home ? “
The concierge answered “ Never “.
I’ve not had the opportunity to hear Alkan’s music yet, but he sounds like a very mysterious and sensitive artist.
I look forward to hearing his music someday.
So far, my favorite Piano Concertos are :
Chopin’s Piano Concerto N.1 in E minor
Chopin’s Piano Concerto N.2 in F minor
Liszt’s Piano Concerto N.1 in E flat major
Liszt’s Piano Concerto N..2 in A major
Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto 1 in B flat minor
Saint Saens’ Piano Concerto N.4 in C minor
Saint Saens’ Piano Concerto N.2 in G minor
Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto N 3 in D minor
Rachmaninov’s Concerto N 2 in C minor
For Tchaikovsky , I haven’t heard his other piano concertos, only No.1. Must hear his other two piano concertos, too.
This classical music world is so fun !