The trio sonata for two melody instruments and continuo arose in Italy in the 17th century and is considered one of the most important Baroque music genres. The basic idea behind trio sonatas is the rivalry between two upper voices of equal status, over a bass line that alternately supports those voices and actively participates in the musical argument. Bach created a modified version of the trio sonata which involves only two instruments: a melody instrument and an obbligato harpsichord. The latter is not merely a continuo instrument, but takes part in the performance of the obbligato treble voices or even contributes towards the entire three-part texture. Bach’s preferred melody instruments for partnering with the harpsichord include the violin, the viola da gamba, and the flute… [280 more words]

Schubert is unusual among great composers in having composed a great deal of piano duets that were mostly performed domestically. He had written them in various forms since his early teens until the final year of his life. During his time, especially his last years, there was an increase in families that could afford to buy pianos, motivating Schubert to write piano duets remarkable in quality and quantity. They form a significant part of the composer’s output and he wrote so many that he has long been recognised as a master of the form. Schubert performed piano duets in home concerts “Schubertiades” with friends and students including Countess Caroline Esterházy. His finest duets include Fantasy in F minor, D. 940, Allegro in A minor, D. 947 “Lebensstürme”, and Rondo in A major, D. 951, all created in 1828… [319 more words]

Thalberg was one of the finest virtuoso pianist-composers of the mid-19th century. As a composer, he excelled in transcribing or reworking the works of other composers. His fantasias on well-known opera arias by Meyerbeer, Donizetti, Verdi, Weber, and Mozart were extensively performed by himself. It was his Fantasia on themes from Rossini’s Moïse, Op. 33 that brought him wide recognition because of the dazzling technique demanded. When composing piano music, Thalberg loved keeping the melodies in the centre of the keyboard and having them accompanied by fancy arpeggios and chords in registers above and below, creating the illusion of a third hand playing. Whenever Thalberg performed, the audience would stand up to observe his hands roaming from one end of the keyboard to the other… [253 more words]

Mendelssohn was one of the most gifted and versatile prodigies. Fully developed before he was 20, his musical style drew on a variety of influences. His fascination with Bach’s counterpoint, and the clearly balanced themes with symmetrical phrase structures reminiscent of Mozart are evident in his piano works in the early 1820s. Later, starting around 1823, the influences of Beethoven and Weber began to emerge. The dramatic gestures of them have become noticeable since then.

Rondo capriccioso starts with a lyrical introduction then proceeds to the main section Presto leggiero. Mendelssohn interestingly composed this work in reversed order. The work was originally conceived in 1828 as an étude, comprising only the E-minor presto part in scherzo style. Later in 1830, he reworked it by adding the song-like expressive Andante introduction in major as a present for Delphine von Schauroth… [377 more words]

The 1890s marked a turning point in Fauré’s life and career. Early in the decade, the married man fell in love with Emma Bardac, occasioning so much inspiration in composing. The much loved Dolly was created during this period of time. Dedicated to Bardac’s cheerful daughter Hélène (nicknamed “Dolly”), the six pieces that make up the suite reflect Dolly’s development. First performed in 1898 by Alfred Cortot and Edouard Risler, this suite has long been one of the concert favourites. In response to its popularity, Cortot arranged it for solo piano in 1899, and Henri Rabaud orchestrated it in 1906. The orchestral version was even transformed into a ballet… [479 more words]

Granados is best remembered for his piano suite Goyescas, inspired by Spanish artist Goya’s paintings of the majos and majas. The composer was first amazed by these artworks while visiting the Prado Museum in Madrid in 1896, and later aspired to depict in music the amorous adventures of the lower classes of Spanish society. With the success of this piano suite, Granados later turned it into an opera in 1915, creating the first operatic arrangement of a piano work in the whole history of music… [248 more words]

Debussy excelled at piano duet composition, often sketching symphonic works in a form for four hands. While some works remained in this preliminary state, some others were later orchestrated, just like Petite Suite. First performed by the composer and Jacques Durand in March 1889, this work was not exceptionally well-received by its first audience. Fortunately, it gradually gained more attention afterwards. In 1907, Henri Büsser, who was gifted in orchestration, arranged it for orchestra, further popularising the work… [201 more words]

Schumann’s publications up to around 1840 were almost exclusively for the piano, and they include some of the most beloved piano music. Aside from the several large-scale keyboard compositions he composed, he is best remembered for his beautifully wrought character pieces. Such pieces are often portraits of friends, popular dances, mood pictures and psychological delineations, customarily grouped in colourfully named sets such as Papillons (Butterflies)… [471 more words]

Shostakovich’s interest in preludes and fugues dates back to when he was one of the jury members of the Leipzig International Bach Competition 1950. Whilst there, Shostakovich became captivated by Well-Tempered Clavier Books I and II, especially Tatiana Nikolayeva’s interpretation. He was exceedingly impressed with her playing that upon his return to Moscow, he plunged into the composition of his own cycle of 24 Preludes and Fugues (Op. 87). During the four-month compositional process, he communicated with Nikolayeva daily and played the piece he had just written to her, developing an intimate friendship. With much of his music absorbed, she undertook the cycle’s public premiere in 1952 and has championed it ever since… [301 more words]

Many keyboard sonatas of Haydn were custom-made for the dedicatees, usually female students. This work is not an exception; it was dedicated to two of his talented students who owned excellent techniques - Katharina and Marianna von Auenbrugger. When composing this sonata, Haydn was mindful of their high abilities, it therefore presents considerable virtuosic demand. The work sounded very advanced to Haydn’s contemporaries, perhaps suggesting why he did not see fit to have it published until 1780, nearly ten years after the date that the autograph bears… [343 more words]

Lionised as a pianist and feted as a composer, Grainger had written about ninety solo piano music. Among these works, one-third of them, including Country Gardens, are based on music composed by others. The Morris Dance tune that this piano setting is based on was provided by Cecil Sharp in 1908. Upon receiving it, Grainger roughly sketched it for two whistlers and a few instruments for accompaniment. It had not been worked out for piano until ten years later… [345 more words]

The original of this consoling piece is the last movement from Bach’s Cantata No. 147, Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben. The underlying chorale melody was extracted from Johann Schop’s Werde munter, mein Gemüthe (1642). Bach harmonised it for chorus, with trumpet doubling the melody, and strings, continuo as well as oboes accompanying… [135 more words]

During the interwar period, certain composers revived the Classical aesthetics to replace the exaggerated emotionalism and formlessness of the late Romantic era. Whilst they drew inspiration from music of earlier centuries, they often employed twentieth century tonal and rhythmic devices, resulting in the Neo-classicism. Some of these composers, such as Viderø, were found particularly influenced by Baroque traits; hence, their compositions are called neo-Baroque music… [126 more words]

Grew up in an environment surrounded by intellectuals such as ecclesiastical professionals, Stanford was devoted to the Anglican Church and wrote a substantial number of church music. Interestingly, he often wrote these music symphonically thanks to his proficiency in combining his skills in orchestrating and symphony writing. His talent had yielded movements of structural imagination and a symphonic thinking, particularly apparent in compositions written in his later years including this Postlude… [449 more words]

The close relationship between music and literature was a hallmark of the 19th century. A striking example is Liszt’s Bénédiction de Dieu dans la solitude, No. 3 of the piano cycle Harmonies poétiques et religieuses composed between 1847 and 1852. This cycle, which contains 10 pieces, bears the exact Alphonse de Lamartine literary title. Among these 10 works, four of them use titles directly from Lamartine, including Bénédiction de Dieu dans la solitude, the most expansive of the cycle… [377 more words]

Bach’s ability to combine French, Italian, and German essences in one composition is beautifully demonstrated in his six English Suites. The title is misleading as these suites do not display any English qualities. Johann Nikolaus Forkel, Bach’s first biographer, claimed that they were known by the name of the English Suites simply because Bach composed them for an Englishman of rank… [390 more words]

These fifteen songs are based on authentic folk tunes, but go beyond simple harmonisation in approach. To preserve the peasant songs’ original rustic ambience, Bartók remains faithful to the original song by refraining from adding any introductions or endings to these pieces despite their brevity… [171 more words]

Cavaillé-Coll was a distinguished organ builder; he brought technical innovations into organ building and ultimately built nearly 500 pipe organs, including the three-manual organ at Basilique Ste-Clotilde where Franck was the Church Organist. Franck’s huge interest in exploring this organ had eventually inspired him to compose six pieces including Prélude, Fugue et Variation, Op. 18… [269 more words]