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Here’s a short account of the rise of the “virtuoso” school in the early nineteenth century that identifies the stylistic characteristics of the ‘virtuosi’ by referring to three works by three different composers. It includes comments on the social and musical significance of the “virtuosi” and discusses to what extent their arrival was a consequence of the development of the piano in the early nineteenth century.
Another instance of basing on Paganini’s music are Liszt’s Etudes d’exécution transcendante d’après Paganini and Grandes études de Paganini. His Etudes were described by Schumann as ‘studies in storm and dread designed to be performed by, at most, ten or twelve players in the world. To play these pieces, a pianist must connect with the piano as an extension of his own body’.[1] Liszt’s compositions pushed the boundaries of piano technique using trills, arpeggios and scales that he practised to perfection. A perfect example is Transcendental Etude No.5 ‘Feux follets’. It’s texture consists of extremely fast double-note passages accompanied by arpeggiated chords in the left hand. Moreover, the idea of creating a capricious and mysterious character and marking suggestions to play the passages pianissimo and leggierissimo make the piece even more difficult to perform.
Have you been struggling with the above mentioned pieces by Liszt? Do you need some practising tips? Do get in touch with Edyta Lajdorf and sign up for piano lessons London.
In the first half of the nineteenth century two main paths of development in piano playing emerged. One was initiated by Chopin’s Etudes op. 10 and 25 , the second by Liszt’s Etudes, which are interpretations of Paganini’s Caprices, and other cycles , especially 12 Etudes Transcendantales (e.g. Preludio, Paesaggio and Mazepa). It is important to note that there is a fundamental difference in aesthetic between Chopin and Liszt. Chopin was looking for pure beauty, inherent only in the possibilities of the piano sound. He created a piano playing deeply independent of any external stimuli. For him a piano, the instrument, was enough. On the other hand, Liszt wanted to go beyond the sound of the piano and achieve the ability to match the sound of the orchestra. In his Études pour le pianoforte en quarante huit exercises dans touse les tons majeurs et mineurs op. 6 he referred to the brilliant style, tried to expand it and transform it. The critical attitude towards this style was influenced by Czerny’s Variantions brillantes op. 14, where the idea of the style was systematized for the teaching purposes. Instead of passage techniques and superficial proficiency consisting of the usage of scales and theirs combinations, Liszt used the chord and octave playing with hands in different positions. He introduced vibrating repetitions, tremolos, wide-spanning arpeggios and big leaps. Moreover, he transferred the main melody from the top voice to the middle voice, which allowed him to depict it in all the keyboard registers. Liszt was continuously trying to find new virtuoso figures and ornaments. With the desire to bring the piano sound closer to the sound of the orchestra, he expanded the scale of dynamic levels. He enriched the articulation markings that created new sound and colour effects.
[1] A. Walker, Franz Liszt, The Virtuoso Years (Ithaca 1987)
This article was written by Edyta Lajdorf – concert pianist and qualified piano teacher. She’s available for piano lessons London in Kensington and Chelsea area.