Michael Kaykov plays Franz Liszt Danse macabre – Poème symphonique de Camille Saint-Saëns, S.555
The unaltered Liszt transcription (composed c. 1876) of this famous orchestral masterwork is played (and recorded) far less often than the celebrated 1942 Vladimir Horowitz reworking of it. Liszt expanded the Saint-Saëns tone-poem considerably, adding in transitions between sections and writing an extended coda. Those interested in the art of piano transcription can learn a great deal by examining this masterpiece.
All-Liszt Recital
September 2, 2023
Klavierhaus (NYC) 790 11th Ave, New York, NY 10019
Sarabande und Chaconne aus dem Singspiel Almira, S.181
Impromptu, S.191
Toccata, S.197a
Hungarian Rhapsody No. 19 in D minor, S.244
INTERMISSION
Csardas macabre, S.224
In festo transfigurationis Domini nostri Jesu Christi, S.188
Mephisto Polka, S.217
Trauervorspiel und Trauermarsch, S.206
Mephisto Waltz No. 3, S.216
Polonaise from Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin, S.429
LIVE STREAM also archived on the Klavierhaus Youtube Channel
All-Liszt Recital
March 30, 2024
Klavierhaus (NYC) 790 11th Ave, New York, NY 10019
Hungarian Rhapsody No 17, S.244
Toccata, S.197a
Elegy No.2, S.197
Transcendental Etude No 4 “Mazeppa”, S.139
Chapelle de Guillaume Tell, S.160
Sonetto 123 del Petrarca, S.161
Aux cypres de la Villa d'Este. Threnodie I, S.163
Bagatelle sans tonalité, S.216a
Impromptu in F-sharp major, S.191
Grand Galop Chromatique, S.219
In festo transfigurationis Domini nostri Jesu Christi, S.188
This scherzo, composed in around 1831, features an ABA form. The A section is dramatic and blazing, while the mellow B section quotes a Polish Christmas carol. The work, written during the 1831 uprising against the Russian empire, was dedicated to Thomas Albrecht, who convinced Chopin to stay in Vienna.
This remarkable piece, composed c. 1885 and published only by 1956, does not have an identifiable diatonic “key”, hence the title. However, there work is centered around the B-F tritone which is fleshed out into the diminished seventh chord: B-D-F-G#. Liszt’s use of the octatonic scale and unusual chord in versions predates many of the harmonic developments more closely associated with early 20th century music.
The 6th Sonata, Op. 62, composed in 1911, is Scriabin’s first sonata featuring a new principle of tonal organization, one which completely avoids the use of diatonic scales and “traditional” bass motion by fourths and fifths. My published articles (click here to read) may provide some theoretical background necessary to delve into Scriabin's late-period works (starting from Op. 59).