If we want to play a concertpeace, we’ll play for sure the Liszt’s one.īut if we want to study Beethoven’s composition we will find there too much Liszt’s and it will be much better to use Singer’s trascriptions. The Liszt’s “arrangement” is the re-composition of the musical idea of a symphony. The Singer’s “arrangement” is a tipical good piano reduction of an orchestral score. When we compare the piano “arrangements” of the Beethoven’s symphonies by Franz Liszt (Breitkopf & Haertel, Leipzig 1840 and Haslinger, Wien, 1840: I didn’t notice differences between these edition and those by Breitkopf 1871 and the Durand 9618-20 (1919) I’ve got) and Otto Singer (Peters, 1905), we notice first of all two different purposes.īoth of them were very good pianists, but whereas Singer tries to semplify the orchestral score so much as possible, just to show what the melodies and harmonies are, Liszt wonts to realise with the piano his own idea of the Beethoven’s symphonies.
This is the first article of the project I was writing about in the article “Piano arrangements from 19th century and interpretation”. I'm eagerly awaiting that release, and fans of great piano playing should do the same.Some ideas after the collation and comparison of some piano reductions of Symphonies by Beethoven. 125) will doubtless conclude the cycle in the years ahead. The final installment, the "Choral" Symphony (Symphony #9, Op. Even if you aren't a huge fan of the period-performance movement – and I am certainly not – there is great art on display, and that's enough for me. In the final analysis, I believe that Martynov's musicianship and commitment to these scores trumps any odd interpretative choices that may raise eyebrows. The sound is clear, and never overly resonant. The rest of the work is much the same, somewhat personalized themes, somewhat harsh climaxes, and rapt, chill-inducing pianissimos. Attention to dynamics is excellent, with a stunning conclusion to the opening movement. Indeed, the softer the playing is, the more I am drawn into the hushed and supremely dramatic lines that Martynov draws with his playing. The quieter moments are again wholly captivating and mannerisms aside, there's tremendous attention to detail. But despite these complaints, I still find myself impressed.
#Beethoven liszt symphony 5 full
Those curious pauses between transitions are also back in full force. That in turn seems to convince him that he can do some odd things with phrasing and simply milk the phrase later. Martynov resists the temptation to milk the initial "Fate" theme, which is fine by me. In the famous 5 th Symphony, there is also much to admire.
On the whole, I lean toward Konstantin Scherbakov on Naxos for his fuller, less pulled-about reading, but this issue has plenty to satisfy listeners. Predictably, the tone of the instrument hardens as the volume increases, but it's not a significant problem. However, the quieter moments throughout the 4 th are genuinely impressive, and mostly very beautiful. Martyov does seem to have a habit of pausing a hair when adjusting tempo, something that tires upon repeated hearing and more importantly interrupts the music's natural flow. The slow movement of the 4 th gains a poetic intimacy that I had not yet encountered, while the bigger moments come off with such pianistic thrills that most listeners will simply marvel.
Though his instrument naturally lacks a "symphonic" sound – something that is especially magnified by his choice of a "period" approach and choice of a fortepiano – there are some moments that work wonderfully. While some may find his playing mannered in places (a criticism I've read regarding previous installments), there is also much to savor.
Playing an 1867 Blüthner fortepiano which apparently took some 1000 hours to restore, the pianist clearly believes in these transcriptions and brings tremendous gusto to both works. Fiendishly difficult but quite rewarding, it's obvious that Martynov has the technical abilities to make this music work. This is the fourth volume of Yury Martynov's period-piano cycle of the Beethoven Symphonies as transcribed by Liszt.
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