Bicentennial Celebration: Franz Liszt

My roommate (and fellow pianist) told me the other day that this year marks the bicentennial of the birth of Franz Liszt! So in honor of Mr. Liszt being two centuries old, check out his insanely difficult Hungarian Rhapsody…the real fun starts at about 5:36.

 

Seriously, insanity. I have never been able to play Liszt successfully. Any fellow piano bloggers conquered the Liszt challenge?

Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1

I thought it would be appropriate if my first post was about my favorite piano piece, so…here it is! Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1, Movement 1. The video below is old, but Van Cliburn was (and still is!) one of the best. I couldn’t resist. This is the first 10 minutes only:

Why do I love this piece so much? Several reasons, but here are a few that I can actually put into words:

1. The main theme is absolutely gorgeous.
2. The introduction of the piano with the bold, fortissimo chords amazes me every time.
3. This piece is full of delicate little intricate passages but is still exciting, passionate and loud. It’s hard to combine the two.
4. The tension pushes and pulls the listener through the entire piece.

Sometimes I like to close my eyes while I listen to this and, to be cliché, let the music take me on a journey. I paint musical pictures in my head when I listen to pieces that move me, and this one definitely does just that.