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Burgmüller - 15. Ballade in C Minor (from 25 Easy and Progressive Etudes, Op. 100)
Ballade is surely one of the most popular studies from the set. The form of the Ballade is ABA with coda, the A sections in C minor, and the B section in the tonic major (C major). Marked Allegro con brio we will want to feel one main beat in a bar. The title Ballade simply means story, and there is no better piece for the intermediate player to use their imagination to decide what is happening in their particular version of the story. Perhaps we are about to enter a haunted house, the right hand repeated chords representing our... Read >>
Burgmüller - 2. L’Arabesque (Arabesque) in A minor (from 25 Easy and Progressive Etudes, Op. 100)
Allegro scherzando tells us to play fast and playfully. Keep the LH chords close to the keyboard, the fingertips firm and somewhat active, the wrist loose but relatively still. You’ll need to organise a good fingering for the LH chords (I give some tips on this in my video below). RH semiquaver patterns are played using a drop-roll (down-up) movement generated from the upper arm, the arm and the wrist assisting the fingers. Lateral adjustments (lining up) in the wrist keep us free and loose and help control finger articulation in the fast notes. The first note of each RH... Read >>
Burgmüller - 14. La Styrienne (Styrian Dance) in G Major (from 25 Easy and Progressive Etudes, Op. 100)
La Styrienne (Styrian Dance) is a fast Austrian waltz in folk style, characterised by strong first beats (often featuring grace notes). The metronome mark in the original French edition is 176 for the crotchet, which is on the fast side. Whatever tempo you eventually settle on should not be metronomic in any strict sense beat by beat. The way Austrian waltzes move is very difficult to describe, but we will get a better sense of their unique style and character after listening to a few different examples of such music (Johann Strauss would be a good place to start). This... Read >>
Burgmüller - 7. Le Courant Limpide (The Clear Little Stream) in G Major (from 25 Easy and Progressive Etudes, Op. 100)
Le Courant Limpide (The Clear Little Stream) is a charming study in tonal control, evenness of touch, and using the imagination to create a vivid soundscape. The study features virtually continuous triplet motion in the right hand, the left hand crotchets providing a simple drone in the A section, and a counterpoint to the right hand’s hidden melody in the B section. The melodic element in the first eight bars is in the right thumb (you will notice these melody notes have their own crotchet stems), so for this reason it is good practice to play the thumb line minus... Read >>
Burgmüller - 23. Le Retour (from 25 Easy and Progressive Etudes, Op. 100)
Le retour (The Return) is all about the excitement of seeing a friend again after an absence. Marked molto agitato quasi presto, there is a strong sense of agitation and eager expectation; the diminuendo e poco ritenuto in the coda seems to express relief that all the excitement is over, and contentment that both parties are happily reunited. It is worth noting that the title, key and time signature are the same as in the finale of Beethoven’s Sonata in E-flat, op 81a (“Les Adieux”). The main technical challenge of the étude is how to manage the repeated notes without... Read >>
Alwyn - The Sea is Angry
This video provides a walk-through of William Alwyn's The Sea is Angry which is an excellent piece for intermediate pianists who want to play something that will expand their sound.... Read >>
Burgmüller - 5. Innocence in F Major (from 25 Easy and Progressive Etudes, Op. 100)
Beginning at a gentle p dynamic (as so many of the études do), the tempo is moderato (not too fast) and the mood grazisoso (graceful). The composer leaves it to us to decide the dynamic level at the end of the crescendo in the first half of this binary piece. My sense is that it should not rise above a mf, in order that the crescendo to f in bar 13 (where we find the highest note in the piece) marks the climax. On the final chord, also marked f, we find the lowest LH note (bass F). Play this... Read >>
Burgmüller - 4. La Petite Réunion (The Little Party) in C major (from 25 Easy and Progressive Etudes, Op. 100)
The composer paints a jolly picture of a little party in this piece. We hear laughter in the bouncy thirds (RH bars 2, 10, etc.) and perhaps a note of disappointment (the A flats in bars 19 and 20) that the party is drawing to a close and it is time to think about going home. The guests are happy and content, and enjoy each other’s conversation (listen carefully to the dialogue between the hands from bar 15). This is a study in double note playing on the white notes (mostly thirds, but also sixths), staccato as well as legato.... Read >>
Burgmüller - 19. Ave Maria in A Major (from 25 Easy and Progressive Etudes, Op. 100)
Ave Maria, literally translated as “Hail Mary”, is a hymn-like piece with delicate harmonic touches. The andantino marking tells us that, while on the slow side, the tempo needs to move forwards. In the warm key of A major, the form is A B A* plus coda (from bar 24). The opening of the piece is chordal, the returning A section developed with quaver (eighth note) movement that suggests a little more intensity and flow. The main technical challenges are chord voicing, and control of legato. We listen carefully to the tonal balance of each chord, ensuring we have a... Read >>