@@seonyonghwang I agree, and happy to find you here! After your perfect Le Preux and all those studies from Mereaux, would you consider playing op39-11? With the lack of performances available today, it would be just amazing! I can also understand that it is a great a workload to master this study ... And I forgot to mention it under your last video, but if you go to Paris, let me know it (if you want), because the doors of the CRR are open to you! If you wish we could organize a meeting with Alkanmaniacs and Mereauxmaniacs during your next visit to Paris. cordially
Truly the standard and staple performance for this piece, no one else conveys the power and emotion in this piece as much as Mr. Gibbons does, the clarity, the evenness, the tone, the tempo, and the accuracy, truly compliments the spirit of the piece, and gives the listener something more than just "mechanical noise" as they would say, superb performance and as always I appreciate what you have done Mr. Gibbons to shed light on my pieces and bring us performances that are truly in a class of themselves. And of course thank you Ronald Smith.
Totally Brilliant! It is shocking to me how underappreciated this composition is. In terms of the level of creativity, I would say it's up there with the Concerto and Symphony. I've taken a liking to this particular work, mainly because it contains strong motivs from all eras of classical music. Even though I had discoverd Alkan in late 2013, and haven't had decades of experience playing works exceeding 10 minutes, I will see to it that I play the whole thing. If there's anything to learn from playing pieces this enormous, it is that there really is no limit to how much one can remember; The more practice, the greater memory build is how I see it. I thank you for the video! You've inspired me to play it through completely!
This piece is very underrated, I would consider learning it but I am afraid since it's so long (And difficult) I would most likely lose interest. Still, I enjoy listening to it very much.
If I trust the French ewspapers from the 1830 decade, Alkan also composed a symphony and managed to rehearse it (not for the piano solo, a symphony for wide orchestra), but the score is unfortunately lost. :(
Ludwig DeLarge Maybe it was an orchestration of the piano symphony? If he actually rehearsed it it seems curious that all the player scores and the conductor's score have been lost.
The recent Bicentennial of "The Berlioz of the piano" shows that his music is finally accepted and played worldwide, and rightly so, because Alkan at his best is absolutely worth listening to: the music is robust, original and very well written for piano, often requiring a "transcendental" technique. Abundant, complex ornamentation seems to be very much part of his style. On the other hand, I don't quite agree with Busoni who said that Alkan's piano music is on a par with that of Liszt, Schumann and Chopin. From what I've heard so far, there are inconsistencies in his sometimes uneven style that are maybe caused by his character, or his very isolated way of living. It sometimes seems to me that Alkan lacked a certain inner conviction, so that in the end his music doesn't make a deep, lasting impression. Personally, I would have no problem to exchange the complete opus 35 or 39 of Alkan for only one Etude of his friend Chopin.
I think....well, I don't know you :D But I can't imagine you've fully explored Alkan; his music *always* contains conviction and says no less than he wants to...um...his subtleties are almost too subtle to notice, it's true, but they're there. As beautiful as Chopin....sometimes darker than the night. Have you listened to Op 15? I'm sure you'll keep at it; eventually you may "get" it : ) Xxx
@pianopera: Thanks for your comment. You make some interesting observations (even though I disagree with most of them!). But the main problem I have with your comment (and similar statements by others) is the underlying premise that even when praising Alkan something 'wrong' must be found in his music (perhaps a subconscious searching for an excuse for his neglect?). I know of no other comparable composer who receives the same overemphasis on the negative. As I see it it's a 'glass half full, glass half empty' argument. My view is this: since Alkan has suffered quite unjustifiable neglect over the last 150 years my policy is to concentrate on what is good and great in his music, since people have been talking about what is bad in his music (justifiable or not) for over 150 years. And it should never be overlooked that Alkan has not had the benefit of 150 years of public exposure to sort out the wheat from the chaff in the public perception of his work: so today all his works are receiving equal scrutiny, whether they be his masterpieces (such as his truly wonderful Cello Sonata, a piece that absolutely makes a "deep, lasting impression") or his less inspired works (which I won't give examples of for the reasons given above! So it's very easy to use the 'uneven output' argument with Alkan even even though it could easily be applied to almost every composer that has existed, with one or two remarkable exceptions. All I can say is having played his music for over 35 years I have found my admiration for him has only grown, not diminished, during those years, and even some works that I once upon a time might have dismissed I now appreciate in a new way. In my opinion he IS a remarkable composer, and though all comparisons are odious, Busoni's statement is not extreme in my opinion (though personally I place Chopin on a higher pedestal than almost any other composer). It should also be remembered that Busoni was in fact trying to justify Liszt's position by his statement, not Alkan's (who was already beyond criticism in his opinion).
Jack Gibbons First of all, I have to thank you for all the work you did to bring back to the limelight many of Alkan's piano pieces; you are a great advocate of his music and your performances are superb! With all respect for Alkan's output, but it's exactly *because* of this unevenness in style and quality that it's impossible for me to *only* write positively about his music. For example, the Cello Sonata you mention has wonderful passages and contains exquisite writing and mastery of form -- but in the end, as a whole it is not satisfying because it lacks a certain divine inspiration, it often sounds like a mixture of Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Brahms but without the melodic genius of these composers... again for me no "deep, lasting impression" because the musical material is simply not of the same quality and there are too many passages that sound a bit "empty". Perhaps Sacheverell Sitwell, in his biography on Liszt, was not far off when he wrote about Alkan: "Alkan will remain one of the curiosities of music, but a curiosity whose extraordinary qualities place him on a level with the great masters." I would rank Alkan with composers such as Saint-Saëns or Chabrier.
pianopera Thanks for your kind words. Obviously we will just have to agree to disagree on this subject but different opinions make life interesting and I am glad and grateful to have your thoughts.
Great recording! I find myself listening to Alkan more than any composer yet there's something definitely lacking in his musical style. I think he has issues with congruency and consistency, as well as a tendency to employ quite superficial melodies. Having said that, the musical ideas he gets right makes it so worthwhile for someone who has a passionate ear for this type of music. His technicality and interesting ornaments and texturing usually compensates these shortcomings however until he inevitably stumbles upon a few moments of musical magic. It seems other composers are more in tune with a musical truth, being able to deliver exceptional consistency and emotional depth across compositions. However, of everything I have listened to, Alkan has given me the greatest moments of musical bliss.
![C. V. Alkan - 12 Etudes in All the Minor Keys 'Overture' [Op. 39 No. 11] (Gibbons)](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/NYOnq14Kmv8/mqdefault.jpg)
I *LOVE* this piece.
Me too
One of my favourite from Alkan. 39 4 still takes the cake though.
This piece is amazing
Mee too, mee too...
same
This is a rare, respectful interpretation of serious music.
this piece is extremely underrated
@@seonyonghwang I agree, and happy to find you here! After your perfect Le Preux and all those studies from Mereaux, would you consider playing op39-11? With the lack of performances available today, it would be just amazing! I can also understand that it is a great a workload to master this study ... And I forgot to mention it under your last video, but if you go to Paris, let me know it (if you want), because the doors of the CRR are open to you! If you wish we could organize a meeting with Alkanmaniacs and Mereauxmaniacs during your next visit to Paris.
cordially
Oh, I guess I know about what part are you talking... Answer me and I will tell you, I'm hearding it now. Is about easiest notes, ok?
jack gibbons you re a legend
Indeed
indeed
14:14 so beatiful, wow
the most underestimated piece in Minor Etudes.
Totally Agreed. Even though georgous melodies.
Truly the standard and staple performance for this piece, no one else conveys the power and emotion in this piece as much as Mr. Gibbons does, the clarity, the evenness, the tone, the tempo, and the accuracy, truly compliments the spirit of the piece, and gives the listener something more than just "mechanical noise" as they would say, superb performance and as always I appreciate what you have done Mr. Gibbons to shed light on my pieces and bring us performances that are truly in a class of themselves. And of course thank you Ronald Smith.
You're right. Mr. Gibbons performace truly induces life into this piece.
Hearing recordings of this quality always makes me want to play the piece... and none more so than this.
Феноменальный композитор и великолепный исполнитель.
Браво
Totally Brilliant! It is shocking to me how underappreciated this composition is. In terms of the level of creativity, I would say it's up there with the Concerto and Symphony. I've taken a liking to this particular work, mainly because it contains strong motivs from all eras of classical music.
Even though I had discoverd Alkan in late 2013, and haven't had decades of experience playing works exceeding 10 minutes, I will see to it that I play the whole thing. If there's anything to learn from playing pieces this enormous, it is that there really is no limit to how much one can remember; The more practice, the greater memory build is how I see it.
I thank you for the video! You've inspired me to play it through completely!
I discovered alkan last year lol.. still better late than never. thanks to pianotv
did you ever learn it?
@@Swirrenttv I did a long time ago. There are parts that make me not want to perform it. Maybe I'll try again.
@@collinbachet9263 lol
@@aakarshitsingh1535 I still can't lol. Not in the way I want to anyway...
13:39 my favorite part
0:00 - 15:19 my favourite part
This performance always blows me away, particularly the last 5 minutes or so - the virtuosity is stunning!
アルカンはこの様にCodaを最後の見せ場として良く印象付ける作品を幾つか残しています。
私がパッと思い出せた作品としてはop29やChapeau bas!、op16-6、op35-2などがあります。
ソナタ形式がソナタ作品に多く見られたのでそう名ずけられた様に、この様な作品達をアルカン形式とでも名付けちゃいますかね😂
@@AlkanLove それは素晴らしいアイデアですね！😅
Bravo Jack! last several minutes thrill the pants off of me, and I've been an Alkanhead since the mid '60's.
1:16 damn, look at this come back to the main theme, divine
Damn
dem
I love this video
Are you still teaching? How much do lessons cost? Have you gotten over the imbecile Conservatoire rejecting you for Marmontel?
You are an Alkan specialist ! Wonderful ideas in your playing of this .
Also many thanks to Jack for introducing me to his music. It really was a revelation! Happy New Year Jack!
What an amazing piece! I love it so much^^
I'm thinking of writing an opera for this.
@The Chicken King jajajajaja
Did you?
9:04 makes such a shocking but beautiful contrast with what came before. I also love 2:10, 4:59, and 13:23.
I learned "easily" up to 6:16...from now on it is a nightmare!!!
Im learning it too, its such a master piece, so beatiful yet hard
Does anybody find the same theme used at 2:48 in Alkan's Le Legatissimo?
Awesome!!
What a masterpiece, his set of douze etudes dans les tons mineurs is just divine. Sounds really like Chopin and Liszt in some parts, beatiful played !
jack gibbons is awesome :D. he made me wanna lern this ouverture.
i uploaded a little preview ^^
i went to your channel and cant find it
NoIcE
I love finale- finale is best.
This piece is very underrated, I would consider learning it but I am afraid since it's so long (And difficult) I would most likely lose interest.
Still, I enjoy listening to it very much.
Porque cuando más busco Piezas así, menos me salen, y cuando menos busco me aparecen.
I am very much considering learning this
so far i have the first 8 pages, but thats not even a third of the way
精確なtempoでの演奏、これを求めていました。
And you've found it.
ta da da da da da da da
If I trust the French ewspapers from the 1830 decade, Alkan also composed a symphony and managed to rehearse it (not for the piano solo, a symphony for wide orchestra), but the score is unfortunately lost. :(
Ludwig DeLarge Maybe it was an orchestration of the piano symphony? If he actually rehearsed it it seems curious that all the player scores and the conductor's score have been lost.
@@SpaghettiToaster no it was an original score
It was a full orchestral symphony in b minor if memory serves, from reading Ronald Smith's Alkan book.
is that a metronome on a background?
agreed :)
6:36 nokia tune?
barely 30,000 view.
ikr wtf
10:09
Why in God’s name is this INTERRUPTED for a damn ad!
Which ad?
@CarlMariaWeber Hmm, I would say that neither are better, they're just stylistically different.
The recent Bicentennial of "The Berlioz of the piano" shows that his music is finally accepted and played worldwide, and rightly so, because Alkan at his best is absolutely worth listening to: the music is robust, original and very well written for piano, often requiring a "transcendental" technique. Abundant, complex ornamentation seems to be very much part of his style.
On the other hand, I don't quite agree with Busoni who said that Alkan's piano music is on a par with that of Liszt, Schumann and Chopin. From what I've heard so far, there are inconsistencies in his sometimes uneven style that are maybe caused by his character, or his very isolated way of living. It sometimes seems to me that Alkan lacked a certain inner conviction, so that in the end his music doesn't make a deep, lasting impression. Personally, I would have no problem to exchange the complete opus 35 or 39 of Alkan for only one Etude of his friend Chopin.
I think....well, I don't know you :D But I can't imagine you've fully explored Alkan; his music *always* contains conviction and says no less than he wants to...um...his subtleties are almost too subtle to notice, it's true, but they're there. As beautiful as Chopin....sometimes darker than the night. Have you listened to Op 15? I'm sure you'll keep at it; eventually you may "get" it : )
Xxx
@pianopera: Thanks for your comment. You make some interesting observations (even though I disagree with most of them!). But the main problem I have with your comment (and similar statements by others) is the underlying premise that even when praising Alkan something 'wrong' must be found in his music (perhaps a subconscious searching for an excuse for his neglect?). I know of no other comparable composer who receives the same overemphasis on the negative. As I see it it's a 'glass half full, glass half empty' argument. My view is this: since Alkan has suffered quite unjustifiable neglect over the last 150 years my policy is to concentrate on what is good and great in his music, since people have been talking about what is bad in his music (justifiable or not) for over 150 years. And it should never be overlooked that Alkan has not had the benefit of 150 years of public exposure to sort out the wheat from the chaff in the public perception of his work: so today all his works are receiving equal scrutiny, whether they be his masterpieces (such as his truly wonderful Cello Sonata, a piece that absolutely makes a "deep, lasting impression") or his less inspired works (which I won't give examples of for the reasons given above! So it's very easy to use the 'uneven output' argument with Alkan even even though it could easily be applied to almost every composer that has existed, with one or two remarkable exceptions. All I can say is having played his music for over 35 years I have found my admiration for him has only grown, not diminished, during those years, and even some works that I once upon a time might have dismissed I now appreciate in a new way. In my opinion he IS a remarkable composer, and though all comparisons are odious, Busoni's statement is not extreme in my opinion (though personally I place Chopin on a higher pedestal than almost any other composer). It should also be remembered that Busoni was in fact trying to justify Liszt's position by his statement, not Alkan's (who was already beyond criticism in his opinion).
Jack Gibbons First of all, I have to thank you for all the work you did to bring back to the limelight many of Alkan's piano pieces; you are a great advocate of his music and your performances are superb!
With all respect for Alkan's output, but it's exactly *because* of this unevenness in style and quality that it's impossible for me to *only* write positively about his music. For example, the Cello Sonata you mention has wonderful passages and contains exquisite writing and mastery of form -- but in the end, as a whole it is not satisfying because it lacks a certain divine inspiration, it often sounds like a mixture of Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Brahms but without the melodic genius of these composers... again for me no "deep, lasting impression" because the musical material is simply not of the same quality and there are too many passages that sound a bit "empty".
Perhaps Sacheverell Sitwell, in his biography on Liszt, was not far off when he wrote about Alkan: "Alkan will remain one of the curiosities of music, but a curiosity whose extraordinary qualities place him on a level with the great masters."
I would rank Alkan with composers such as Saint-Saëns or Chabrier.
pianopera Thanks for your kind words. Obviously we will just have to agree to disagree on this subject but different opinions make life interesting and I am glad and grateful to have your thoughts.
Great recording! I find myself listening to Alkan more than any composer yet there's something definitely lacking in his musical style. I think he has issues with congruency and consistency, as well as a tendency to employ quite superficial melodies. Having said that, the musical ideas he gets right makes it so worthwhile for someone who has a passionate ear for this type of music. His technicality and interesting ornaments and texturing usually compensates these shortcomings however until he inevitably stumbles upon a few moments of musical magic. It seems other composers are more in tune with a musical truth, being able to deliver exceptional consistency and emotional depth across compositions. However, of everything I have listened to, Alkan has given me the greatest moments of musical bliss.
Plus que Liszt comme changement de notes continuele!
Hélas pas bon en Français pour m ‘ exprimer et n’ étant pas musicien. Quand même grand merci pour mêtre sur “You Tube”!
6:36
6:53