Piano Concerto Research Articles

What Did Béla Bartók's Five Hungarian Folk Songs Want to Do at the 1938 Baden-Baden Festival

AbstractThe peasant music Béla Bartók first discovered in 1904 and which he collected systematically between 1906 and 1918 belongs to what he generally described as “Eastern Europe.” His career as pianist and composer was naturally oriented towards Western Europe. His contract with one of the most important publishing houses of the period interested in contemporary music, Universal Edition in Vienna, seems to have conserved a Central European network during the interwar period – a network originating in the by then dissolved Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Apart from pointing out the conspicuous contrast between Bartók's concept of Eastern Europe and his Central European position as an intellectual, this article revisits a particular historic event, the new music festival organized in April, 1938 in Baden-Baden, to examine Bartók's concept through his art and careful politics during a period of heightened tensions. Since the premiere of his Second Piano Concerto in Frankfurt in January, 1933, Bartók had avoided giving concerts in Nazi Germany. When invited to offer a piece for the 1938 festival he proposed Five Hungarian Folk Songs for voice and orchestra (1933). Despite his initial consent, however, he later tried to withdraw the work and forbid its performance shortly before the start of the festival; in the end his work did remain in the program despite his protest. His peculiar strategy on this occasion seems to have been prompted by his dispute with the German copyright office (STAGMA), which categorized his works in which he used folk melodies as mere arrangements, declaring them unoriginal. It appears that Bartók might have consciously offered such a “questionable” work to demonstrate its originality. At the same time, however, it seems that this particular set might have had a special topical message, too. Starting with a deeply-felt composition based on a song considered to belong to the most ancient layers of indigenous Hungarian folk music, it ends with a grotesque arrangement of a folk song which Bartók described as of Western, probably German, origin. One might wonder whether it was intentional to offer a narrative that contrasts the values of indigenous East European folklore with the shallowness of Western, specifically German, influence. The Appendix of the article presents an English translation of Bartók's notes about his composition sent to the organizers of the Baden-Baden festival.

“Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Concertos in the Context of Genre Development”

Aim of study is to consider Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s piano concertos in the context of genre development. To achieve this aim, the following objectives defined: 1) to trace concerto origins; 2) to identify solo concerto origins; 3) to reveal the peculiarities of the musical language of Mozart piano concertos. The thesis concept contains a comprehensive interdisciplinary approach that contributes to the multidimensional disclosure of the phenomenon of classical concert. Due to the need to determine the individual stylistic amplitude of Mozart's piano concertos, the analytical (structural-compositional, intonation) perspective of the study is updated. The problems of identifying the features of manifestations, ways and directions of development of the classical concert in Mozart's work were used by a comparative method to compare the piano concerto of composers of Mozart's predecessors and contemporaries.

Could piano music therapy alleviate high sinus rhythm in subjects with controlled hypertension?

Abstract Background/Introduction With a millenary tradition, music is rediscovered nowadays, as adjuvant therapy. The number of beats per minute (bpm) is the common factor of cardiology – representing heart rate (HR), and music – reprezentative for tempo. Purpose Our goal was the HR modulation in patients (pts) with moderate tachycardia using three piano kits: K1 – Adagio by Albinoni, K2 – Piano Concerto nr. 21 by Mozart, second part; and K3 – Liebestraum by Liszt. Methods During 1st January – 31st December 2023, we identified by ambulatory screening 288 pts adequate for our goal. As exclusion criterion, we considered any type of rhythm or conduction dysturbances. All selected pts were controlled with antihypertensive agents not altering HR, usually thiazide/thiazide-like diuretics and/or ACEis/ARBs. The study group consisted in 144 hypertensive pts controlled at least six months, without any other cardiac diseases. The control group consisted in 144 pts with normal cardiologic examination. Both groups were demographically balanced. The HR at admission was between 84 and 120 bpm, the pts being stratified in three bpm subcategories. All pts have done three visits consisting in: physical examination, ECG, lab markers, TTE for V1 at initiation and EoS at six months, and respectively, physical exam and ECG for V2 at 3 months. Results (in bpm): Inside the group with HR 84-96 treated with K1, the Controlled HTN group (CHG) and the Normal Cardiac group (NCG) alleviated HR from 85,8 +/- 12,6 to 82,6 +/- 12,2; and from 85,7 +/- 12,6 to 80,8 +/- 11,9, respectively. For pts inside the interval 97-108 treated with K1, the CHG group and the NCG alleviated HR from 94,3 +/- 14,1 to 90,9 +/- 13,7 and, respectively, from 94,4 +/- 14,1 to 89,7 +/- 13,6. In pts from HR spectrum 97-108 treated with K2, the CHG and the NCG alleviated HR from 98,4 +/- 14,6 to 95,7 +/- 14,1; and from 98,5 +/- 14,6 to 94,1 +/- 13,8; respectively. Inside the group with HR spectrum 109-120 treated with K1, the CHG and the NCG alleviated HR from 97,1 +/- 14,3 to 94,8 +/- 13,9; and, respectively, from 97,0 +/- 14,3 to 93,9 +/- 13,7. For pts inside the interval 109-120 treated with K2, the CHG and the NCG alleviated HR from 101,7 +/- 14,6 to 99,3 +/- 14,2; and from 101,8 +/- 14,6 to 97,3 +/- 14,1; respectively. In pts from HR spectrum 109-120 treated with K3, the CHG and the NCG alleviated HR from 106,1 +/- 14,7 to 103,8 +/- 14,6; and from 106,5 +/- 14,4 to 103,6 +/- 14,4; respectively. Conclusions The effect of piano music on HR seems favorable in controlled hypertensive pts without major comorbidities, probably by interfering the sympathetic vegetative nervous system. In this regard, it could be used as adjuvant in optimizing this cardiac parameter. However, a multicentered randomized clinical study will be needed.

Is There a Role for Moral Choice in a Mozart Piano Concerto?

Is There a Role for Moral Choice in a Mozart Piano Concerto?

György Ligeti: hamburgisches Konzert für Horn und Kammerorchester mit 4 obligaten Naturhörnern. Aspects of a Crystalline Microtonality

This is a study on the microtonal aspects of György Ligeti’s Hamburgisches Konzert für Horn und Kammerorchester mit 4 obligaten Naturhörnern, with special reference to its relationship with the American composer Harry Partch. The special mixture of equal temperament versus just intonation is analyzed for longer passages and adhoc chords in the concept of Ligeti. The movement “Choral” is confronted with Harry Partch’s idea of “tonality flux”. The “Hamburgisches Konzert für Horn und Kammerorchester mit 4 obligaten Naturhörnern” by György Ligeti, composed in 1998-2002, joins a long chain of exploratory forms of thought in his compositional work long years before he had pondered meloharmonics that would illuminate the great theme of tonality in a novel, personal way. In the Horn Trio (1982), melodies containing natural tones appear for the first time in the movement “Alla Marcia.” Previously, in the same work, Ligeti used the 11th harmonic as a precise quarter tone. Yet in the Horn Trio, these microtonal events are transverse to the other voices of violin and piano. Ligeti spoke of three “autists,” each living in his world of moods/tunings. In the works that followed, microtones take up an ever wider space, up to the Piano Concerto (1985-88) with 5th, 7th or 11th harmonics in trumpet, horn and trombone, and then to the Violin Concerto (1990-92), where two solo satellite strings from the orchestra, violin and viola, are retuned in natural interval relationships. The Viola Solo Sonata (1991-94) contains in the first movement “Hora lungă” a sign world new to Ligeti for natural thirds, natural sevenths and the 11th natural tone. He adopts these signs for the Hamburgisches Konzert, on which we will now focus. Keywords: Ligeti, microtonality, Hamburgisches Konzert

Contemporary music in the strategies of R. Tureck’s creative activity

Statement of the problem. Rosalyn Tureck is a significant figure in the history of twentieth-century piano art, whose multifaceted activities had a significant impact on both performance and composing. Her achievements in actualizing Bach’s music cannot be over estimated. At the same time, it was R. Tureck who did much to popularize contemporary art. The pianist’s discography contains many opuses by composers of her time, including those dedicated to her. Objectives, methods, and novelty of the study. The purpose of the study is to outline the directions of R. Tureck’s creative activity as a vivid example of the consistent and successful implementation of an actualizing performance strategy. The study is based on traditional methods of musicology (historical, genre-stylistic, systemic) as well as the method of interpretive analysis. In the research process, we used works that can be divided into 3 groups: R. Tureck’s autobiography; books on the work of American composers and those who contributed to the development of the country’s musical culture (D. Kämper, E. Z. Posell, J. W. Polisi, W. Simmons, S. Swayne, V. J. Kimberling), as well as W. J. Ton’s thesis; and comments to the CD “Premiere Performances”. The performance and structural analysis of the works on R. Tureck’s CD “Première Performances” (Two Studies for Violin and Piano by L. Dallapiccola, Concerto for Piano and Small Orchestra by W. Schuman, and Sonata No. 1 for Piano by D. Diamond), is the first such attempt in Ukrainian musicology. Results. At the time of R. Tureck’s active performing career, musical life was saturated with interesting ideas, discoveries, and new names. However, the avant-garde searches of American composers often remained unheeded by performers. In this regard, the creative activity of R. Tureck, who in 1948 created a society to popularize contemporary music, is exceptional. Her album “Première Performances” with works by contemporary composers was released in 1995. It contains recordings of premiere performances of opuses by D. Diamond, L. Dallapiccola and W. Schuman, the analysis of which is presented in the article. Conclusions. The popularization of contemporary music was an integral part of R. Tureck’s creative activity, due to which many American composers of the twentieth century got a chance to be “heard”. The basic strategies of this vector of her activity are determined: - mandatory performance of new works; - rethinking of contemporary music through previous historical periods; - direct cooperation with artists.

R. Schuman's Piano Concerto Or. 92 and 134 in the Context of Biedermeier's Style Principles

R. Schuman's Piano Concerto Or. 92 and 134 in the Context of Biedermeier's Style Principles

유튜브 댓글 분석을 통한 클래식 음악 시청자 반응 연구

This study analyzed Korean-language comments on YouTube videos of pianist Lim Yunchan’s performance of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 during the 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition finals, exploring domestic viewers’ reactions and emotional perceptions of classical music. The research methodology involved selecting only Korean comments collected via the YouTube Data API from June 20, 2022, to December 1, 2023, refining the data, and conducting keyword frequency analysis, LDA Topic Modeling, and sentiment analysis using R. The analysis indicated that viewers expressed deep emotional resonance and admiration for the artistic excellence of Lim’s performance through the identified keywords. The LDA Topic Modeling yielded three themes: ‘the Van Cliburn Competition’, ‘viewer responses’, and ‘the bright future of K-Classic’. Although the sentiment analysis showed some limitations, predominantly positive responses were observed. This study provides substantive data on how viewing classical music performances on YouTube can elicit emotional resonance and admiration for artistic excellence in viewers. Additionally, it confirmed that YouTube plays a crucial role in enhancing the accessibility of classical music and serving as a conduit for appreciation and communication. This research contributes to understanding the current landscape of Korea’s classical music consumption and offers insights into the consumption patterns of classical music in the digital media era.

Between Performance and Notation: How did Carl Reinecke understand Mozart’s piano concerto No.26 K.537?

Carl Reinecke (1824-1910) was a German composer, pianist, conductor of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, and professor at the Leipzig Conservatory. His piano performances were admired by Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann and Franz Liszt, and he was reputed as "the greatest and most sincere Mozart player of his time."However, you may be surprised on listening for the first time to his performances preserved on piano rolls, since there is noticeable use of expressive practices such as manual asynchrony, unnotated arpeggiation, and rubato (flexibility of rhythm and tempo), which is quite far from the kind of performance style that is considered good today. This research clarifies the features of the performance practices audible in early piano rolls, such as those by Reinecke. It focuses on how he arranged and notated the Larghetto from Mozart's Piano Concerto No.26 K.537 for piano solo, how he performed it on piano roll (1905), and how he described the performance of the movement in his book Zur Wiederbelebung der Mozart'schen Clavier-Concerte (1891). The discrepancies between the three source materials give an insight into the implied performance practices of Reinecke’s time and his tacit knowledge. The research culminates with personal experimentation and reflection on how these performance practices can expand the freedom and possibilities of the author’s performances.

Composer Eduard Brylin: Universal Nature of Creative Activity

The purpose of the research is to examine the creative path of Eduard Brylin, focusing on the factors that became the foundation for forming his professionalism and ensuring the universal nature of his creative activity. The research methodology is based on the biographical method and the model of a universal creative personality in the aspect of activity universalism (according to O. Komenda). The scientific novelty of the research lies in studying the life chronology of the composer Eduard Brylin as a universal type of musician, namely a universal composer. Conclusions. The basis on which the universal creative figure of E. Brylyn was formed was laid at the initial stage of his life. The musical environment of the family, rooted in national traditions, shaped Eduard’s musical and aesthetic preferences. Hard work, support and assistance from his parents, the professionalism of his teachers and mentors, and his dreams ensured his rapid growth in the piano field. Performing skills enabled the musician to present his work and be a concert performer. His thorough piano training allowed him to create methodical and highly artistic examples of piano pedagogical repertoire for children and youth and to try himself in the piano concerto genre. In the composition E. Brylin continued the traditions of his mentors, choosing to rely on folk song sources, appealing through A. Shtogarenko to the works of M. Lysenko. His intelligence and natural introversion led him to gravitate towards chamber genres, in which the lyrical facets of the composer’s personality were fully revealed. We define the 2000s as an acmeological period of the musician’s creative work because this time was fruitful in the implementation of various types of musical activities, which emphasises the universal nature of the artist’s creative activity. Loyalty to his musical and aesthetic ideals became the starting point for the realisation of Eduard Brylin’s creative potential as a universal composer.

The genre of the piano concerto in John Adams’s work on the example of “Must the Devil Have All the Good Tunes?”

Statement of the problem. The genre of the instrumental concerto is an important part of the famous American composer John Coolidge Adams’s oeuvre. This is evidenced by the popularity of his concertos among performers and the ongoing interest of researchers in them. However, the composer’s piano concertos, especially the Third Concerto titled “Must the Devil Have All the Good Tunes?”, remains largely unexplored, which prevents the elucidation of the principles of interpreting the genre. Objectives, methods, and novelty of the research. The purpose of the study is to reveal the specifics of the genre and stylistic interaction in J. Adams’s Third Piano Concerto, “Must the Devil Have All the Good Tunes?”. For the first time the genre, stylistic, structural and dramaturgical features of this composition become the subject of analysis. The methods of structural and functional, genre and stylistic , and comparative analysis are used in the study. Research results and conclusion. The analysis of J. Adams’s Third Piano Concerto, “Must the Devil Have All the Good Tunes?” indicates a combination of classical principles with features of minimalism and elements of jazz (ragtime, swing and other) and rock and roll. The classical principles are evident in the three-part structure of the cycle, the use of sonata form in the first movement and variation form in the second, and the orchestration that predominantly adheres to academic traditions. At the same time, there are the features of music poem genre, an openness of forms that appeal to the late-Romantic tradition, alongside with fragmentation inherited in contemporary compositional approaches. These aspects are counterbalanced by timbre dramaturgy, which embodies the idea of continuous development through the gradual addition of new instruments and registers, from the lowest to the highest. Minimalist features are evident in the repetitiveness, the significant role of ostinato rhythms, in the structure of the theme of the second movement, and the use of variation form with the addition of new episode. They also interact with baroque stylistics, as evidenced by the use of short trill-like motifs reminiscent of ornaments found in French harpsichord music. Jazz features are embodied on the genre basis of ragtime, funk, and swing as the extensive use of syncopated formulas, accents, polyrhythmic combination of parts, quasi-improvised elements and the walking bass in the piano part, as well as the ensemble techniques borrowed from jazz-bands. The inclusion in the orchestra the bass guitar and the piano sampler with “Honky Tonk” timbre refers to the rock music, to the ragtime tradition and the honky-tonk bars’ music-making. The programmatic aspect of the Concerto is realized through the stylistic interaction between the Classical embodying tradition, balance, and restraint, and the “diabolical” embodying fearlessness, freedom, and boldness associated in the Concerto with jazz, rock, and pop elements. Therefore, these aspects define the stylistic and dramaturgical uniqueness of J. Adams’s Third Piano Concerto, “Must the Devil Have All the Good Tunes?”.

The Repertoire Strategy of the Kyiv Modern Ballet after the Full-Scale Russian Invasion to Ukraine: Tomorrow, DiscrimiNATION, and One Minute Before Christmas Ballet Productions

After the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion to Ukraine in February 2022, the Kyiv Modern Ballet Academic Theater stopped its activities for several months. However, already in 2023, the renewed company under the direction of choreographer Radu Poklitaru presented first performances of three ballet productions. Poklitaru’s ballet Tomorrow, set to the music of the second movements of Chopin’s First and Second Piano Concertos, continues the tradition of ballet Chopinianas: a twenty-minute-long, plotless composition tries to capture the sense of the future, of tomorrow, which in the first months of the Great War seemed lost forever. Twice as long and generally bigger, the ballet production DiscrimiNATION, set to music by George Frideric Handel (fragments from oratorios, operas and instrumental works) and piano Bagatelles by Valentyn Silvestrov, explores through dance various forms of discrimination, e.g., bullying, ageism, homophobia, social and media pressure, shrinking private space and rising social inequality. Developing the line of socially engaged theater, DiscrimiNATION, directed by Radu Poklitaru, is far from moralizing or direct political statement. The third production of the Kyiv Modern Ballet in 2023 was directed by Serhii Kon. One Minute Before Christmas is a family-friendly production, which, in the form of a ballet fairy tale, very close to today’s war reality, interprets the nature of evil and at the same time parodically reinterprets the previous productions of the theater, in particular, the ballets The Nutcracker and Swan Lake set to Tchaikovsky’s music (after February 2022, Kyiv Modern Ballet suspended all performances set to music by Russian composers, including those based on Russian literary works). The 2023 productions revealed three promising and at the same time contrasting trends in the repertoire strategy of the Kyiv Modern Ballet: “ballet essays,” plotless performances that reinterpret the neoclassical tradition of the twentieth century; social dance theater that sets itself specific tasks and tries to influence current public debates; and artistically persuasive and commercially successful productions for young audiences.

Comparative Analysis of The First Movements in Beethoven's and Mozart's C Minor Piano Concertos

This paper compares the first movements of Beethoven's and Mozart's piano concertos in C minor, exploring the similarities and differences between these two seminal works. By examining various aspects, including the key, composition background, form, motifs, harmony, orchestral arrangements, dialogue between instruments, and piano writing, the study reveals Mozart's profound influence on Beethoven while highlighting the latter's unique innovations. The analysis delves into the significance of the C minor key for both composers, their use of the double exposition form, and the structural design of the movements. The study also investigates the composers' employment of similar motifs and materials, demonstrating how they maintained unity throughout their respective works by deriving most elements from the first exposition. Furthermore, the paper examines the intricate dialogue between the piano and the orchestra, showcasing how both composers utilized the orchestra for harmonic support, melodic enhancement, and imitative counterpoint. Particular attention is given to the way Beethoven paid homage to Mozart through his treatment of the cadenza and the coda. The comparison of piano writing reveals similarities in texture and general structure, with both composers employing arpeggios, scales, and trills as central themes, contrasted with lyrical sub-themes. However, the study also highlights Beethoven's more dramatic and extended treatment of the contrasting sections. Through this comprehensive analysis, the paper illuminates the profound influence of Mozart on Beethoven's compositional style while also showcasing the latter's innovative approach, which helped usher in a new era of musical expression at the dawn of the Romantic period.

“Nuit Persane” by C. Saint-Saëns: Oriental Story from a Frenchman

“Nuit Persane” by C. Saint-Saëns: Oriental Story from a Frenchman

GETTING TO KNOW THE ARTISTIC IMAGES OF BALLETS BY S. PROKOFIEV AS A TOOL FOR COMPREHENDING THE MUSICAL IMAGERY AND PERFORMING FEATURES OF HIS PIANO CONCERTOS

This article examines the similarities between the artistic images in S. Prokofiev’s ballets and piano concertos. This comparison can help pianists perform piano concertos. The authors of the article identify the most typical images in Prokofiev’s works and draw general parallels with ballet music and piano concertos.

The Collective Memory Construction and Political Function of the Piano Concerto Yellow River

The Collective Memory Construction and Political Function of the Piano Concerto Yellow River

The Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in the Works of Scandinavian Composers (1890–1900s)

t. The article is devoted to the historical fate of Austro-German musical Romanticism in the musical cultures of the Scandinavian region of Denmark and Norway, where Romantic traditions found their viability in the piano concerto genre. The research material was the works of the Dane Emil Hartmann and the Norwegian master Halfdan Cleve, highly valued by the authors’ contemporaries. The article traces in detail the concertos’ belonging to the traditions, in the fi rst case, of early (Mendelssohn, Schumann, Chopin), and in the second case, late Romanticism (which was indicated by reminiscences and allusions of musical material and musical composition techniques). The undoubted artistic value, originality and national peculiarity of the works are postulated, worthy not only of research attention, but also of sensitive, careful performing interpretation and revival in the conditions of the multipolar world musical culture of our days.

The Refl ection of the Timbre Characteristics of Chinese Folk Instruments in Piano Works by the Chinese Composer Chu Wanhua

The article discusses Chinese piano music and the refl ection of the timbre features of Chinese folk instruments in it. The author of the article focuses on the work of the outstanding Chinese composer Chu Wanhua as very revealing regarding the refl ection of the timbres of Chinese folk instruments in the piano sound. In his research, the author focuses on the composer’s three piano works. As a result of the work, the researcher comes to the conclusion that the refl ection of the timbre features of Chinese folk instruments in the piano works of Chinese composers is a way to preserve and enrich the piano music of the Celestial Empire. Chu Wanhua managed to create such works for piano (fi rst of all, “My Homeland” piano concerto), in which adherence to traditions is organically combined with modern composing techniques. The composer masterfully “weaves” the achievements of Western European pianistic art into the national musical tradition, demonstrating brilliant imitation of the timbres of Chinese folk instruments and outlining the ways of development of Chinese piano art.

Beethoven’s Italian Concerto (Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58)

We know that composers from all times have found inspiration sources in either popular music or in music written by their predecessors or their colleagues and that no music has been completely isolated within a geographical boundary because the whole purpose of it was to be shared with the public and to convey a wide range of emotions and interesting reactions from people who were more or less familiar with the performing side of this art. There were times, from the 15th to the 18th and even the 19th century in Europe, both Western and Central, when even the news of the day was brought in through music, being sung and performed in front of ordinary people by different versions of minstrels or troubadours who also used very basic instruments in conveying their messages. Is it possible that Beethoven used Vivaldi’s Four Seasons as an inspiration source when writing his Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58? I will endeavour to show some similarities between the works which could be credited for such an act of translation or transforming existing musical material into innovation.

The Multidimensionality of the Harmony in Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Compositions Written in Large-Scale Forms: The Experience of Analysis of the Third Piano Concerto

The piano concerto was one of the genres that accumulated important stylistic traits in Sergei Rachmaninoff’s music. The significant compositional scale, the breadth and the multidimensionality of the musical content make it possible to observe within its limits the diverse phenomena of the harmonic language. The author of the article examines the peculiarities of the composer’s thinking by the example of the Third Piano Concerto, laying emphasis on the specificity of the organization of the tonal plan, the harmonic functionality, the chordal structure, etc. The innovative features of the composer’s harmonies discussed in the article are connected with the processes of differentiation within the large-scale sound model. Extended tonality appears through a multitude of local tonal states (a term coined by Yuri Kholopov) that make it possible to determine its inner dynamics. Along with the extended functional tonality of the majorminor mode, the other types of states of tonality marked out are the multivalent, the wavering, the dismounted, and a few additional types of states of tonality. These most important particular features make it possible to look anew at the style of Rachmaninoff’s large-scale compositions.