Pianists corner

Asiya Korepanova in Personal Piano Project – Midnight Pieces Episode #6

Asiya Korepanova in Personal Piano Project

Midnight Pieces – Episode #6

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Midnight Pieces

“Midnight Pieces’ is a project presenting 53 beautiful works from 53 composers (originally meant as one piece for each week of the year, plus one) – music, that is just perfect for night-time listening.

The pieces follow a hidden pattern: within each consecutive 4 works one is famous, one is by a Russian composer, one is obscure work and one is a transcription by yours truly.
These categories mix and match sometimes, but overall there are iconic and less-known pieces by well-known composers, quite a bit of breathtaking pieces by obscure composers and several world premieres of my transcriptions of rare and famous works of different authors.
I felt a need to fight the general fascination of the general audience with piano pieces that are primarily virtuosic encores (Volodos Turkish March etc), and wanted to create a project that fulfills the desire for aesthetic pleasure, for beauty of the music itself. It doesn’t mean there is no virtuosity there – there is plenty, but not as the main point at all.”

Asiya Korepanova.

Asiya Korepanova and Pianists Corner offer you a weekly rendezvous. Each rendezvous will contain 4 pieces.

© Emil Matveev

Episode #6

The composers :

“Liebestraum by Franz Liszt is a timeless song of the joyful dreams of love. It is about passion and tenderness, and all those incredible feelings that fill out hearts when we are in love. I also think that it could be a nostalgic manifest as well, in which case it is even more beautiful.” A.K.

Franz Liszt : Liebestraüme S 541 (1850) – 3. Oh Lieb, so lang du lieben kannst (A-flat major)

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“Feuillet d’Album ( Leaf from an Album) by Alexander Scriabin is a marvel, because it tells a detailed and beautiful story within 100 seconds, almost like in a 5 minute sleep where we see years of life. I am amazed how transparent this music is, and yet how colorful. How fragile, and how it can sweep us away with the power of feelings.” A.K.

Alexander Scriabin : Morceaux Opus 45 (1905) – 1. Feuillet d’Album

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“A “minute waltz”, The Puppet’s Dance by Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu embodies all the elegance of the ballroom epoch. It is tender, fast, features many moods and nuances – and brilliance. I hope it will make you want to dance!” A.K.

Bohuslav Martinů : Loutky I, H 137 (1924) – 5. Puppets Dance (Tanec loutek)

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“This transcription is a part of a major work of mine, which is the complete Rachmaninoff Cello sonata for piano solo. I transcribed the entire Sonata for piano solo because I craved to play it by myself any time I want, without depending on having or not having a cello partner. This slow movement of the sonata, the Andante, gives me chills on stage each time I play it, and I hope it will give you chills, too. The entire sonata will soon come out on a CD, along with the published score of it!” A.K.

Sergei Rachmaninoff / Asiya Korepanova : Andante from Cello Sonata Opus 19

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Previous episodes :

Personal Piano Project

Lamond’s complete BBC speech about his time as a pupil of Liszt, broadcast in 1945

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Great video by David Pentecost

In this documentary you can hear Frederic Lamond playing Feux Follets by Liszt and Arthur Rubinstein the G sharp minor variation from Symphonic Etudes op.13 by Schumann

Compare Franz Liszt performances of Liszt Etudes d’exécution transcendante S 139 (1851) 5. Feux follets