F. Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12: the Summa of Performance Paradigms

Abstract

The relevance of the study is determined by several factors: 1. Inclusion of F. Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12 into the number of the most performed works in the concert programs of pianists around the world; 2. Continuous development of principles of performative interpretation; 3. Emergence of new creative individuals in the art of piano interpretation, relentless changes in the understanding of content and form creation.
 The purpose of the article is to provide summa of performance paradigms of F. Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12 based on the analysis of interpretations of prominent virtuosos of the XX and XXI centuries.
 The methodology lies in the interdisciplinary interaction of general and special methods inherent in modern musicology. The historical method is applied to study of F. Liszt’s creative principles of interpretation. The genre-style method is intended to consider genre features of F. Liszt’s Rhapsody No. 12. The interpretative analysis is used to reveal the logic of performance interpretations. Comparative analysis is involved to compare interpretive versions of Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12 and motivate the degree of their objectivity, based on the specifics of their correspondence to the composer’s text.
 The results. The article is devoted to the study of the theoretical, historical, and interpretological aspects of the functioning of the summa of performance paradigms of F. Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12. For this purpose, the analytical parameters of piano interpretation, the principles of F. Liszt’s auto-interpretation of his own piano works, and the attitude of the piano genius to the performance of his own works by his contemporaries, are considered. The comparative analysis of interpretation versions of F. Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12 performed by outstanding pianists of the XX and XXI centuries, was conducted.
 The scientific novelty of the research consists in introducing into the scientific space of musicology the concept of the summa of performance paradigms, which functions as a consequence of the interpretative plurality; construction of a graph reflecting the tempo logic of the performance interpretation of F. Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12 in interpretations of O. Siloti, V. Cliburn, V. Benelli Mozell.
 The practical significance. Conducting a comparative analysis of performances of F. Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12 will be an experimental basis for determining the summa of its performance paradigms on the level of an individual interpreter. Furthermore, new vectors for the analysis of interpretative versions will be created.
 The conclusions. Consequently, the summa of the performance paradigms of F. Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12 is observed in a combination of the following aspects of its interpretation: a degree of applying tempo rubato, additional applying of melismas, variety of dynamics, articulation, pedalization, imitation of symphony orchestra instruments, folk instruments, and elements of “gypsy” singing.