Allegro De Concierto - Enrique Granados

Serene and evocative, contrast with Granados' Allegro de Concierto, Op. 46

Epilogo, Escenas Románticas, No. 6 - Enrique Granados

Rachmaninoff - Prelude No. 6 in Eb Major, Opus 23 No. 6

Chopin - Prelude in Bb Minor, op. 28 no. 16

Chopin's 24 Preludes satisfy so many different tastes in a single opus. from the (mostly) serene A Major (no. 7) to the whimsical F Major (no. 23), elegant and moving Bb Major (No. 21), the energetic but unsettling G Minor (no. 22) and the restless finale, D Minor (no. 24), 

One could easily mistake the Preludes for being minimalistic in scope. But unlike other expansive works, whether by Chopin himself or other great composers, these preludes cover enormous territory: in traditional sonata form, the composer settles on a very limited number of themes and then expands and transforms these basic ideas into elaborate musical tapestries woven with but two or three threads. Chopin here, though, invents not two or three key themes but several dozen of them, and then let’s each one free to follow its own direction.

24 Chopin  Prelude No. 24 In D Minor (Allegro Appassionato)

22 Chopin  Prelude No. 22 In G Minor (Molto Agitato)

21 Chopin  Prelude No. 21 In Bb Major (Cantabile)

16 Chopin  Prelude No. 16 In Bb Minor (Presto Con Fuoco)

08 Chopin  Prelude No. 8 In F# Minor (Molto Agitato)

07 Chopin  Prelude No. 7 In A Major (Andantino)

04 Chopin  Prelude No. 4 In E Minor (Largo)

02 Chopin  Prelude No. 2 In A Minor (Lento)

01 Chopin  Prelude No. 1 In C Major (Agitato)

This track is from the album Chopin: 24 Preludes, Op. 28 and is available for purchase on CD Baby here: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/michaelhenryzimmerman9

24 Preludes, Op. 28 No. 4 in E Minor (Largo)

24 Preludes, Op. 28 No. 8 in F-Sharp Minor (Molto Agitato)

24 Preludes, Op. 28 No. 10 in C-Sharp Minor (Molto Allegro)

24 Preludes, Op. 28 No. 16 in B-Flat Minor (Presto con fuoco)

24 Preludes, Op. 28 No. 20 in C Minor (Largo)

24 Preludes, Op. 28 No. 21 in B-Flat Major (Cantabile)

24 Preludes, Op. 28 No. 22 in G Minor (Molto agitato)

24 Preludes, Op. 28 No. 23 in F Major (Moderato)

24 Preludes, Op. 28 No. 24 in D Minor (Allegro appassionato)

This track is available for purchase on CD Baby here: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/michaelhenryzimmerman10

Enrique Granados: Allegro de Concierto, Op. 46

The eighteenth variation of Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini is by far the most well-known of the works pieces, and it is often included on classical music compilations without the rest of the Rhapsody. The melody is based on an ingenious inversion of  Paganini's violin etude. In other words, the A minor Paganini theme is played "upside down" in D flat major. Rachmaninoff himself recognized the appeal of this variation, saying "This one, is for my agent." (Source: Wikipedia - http://bit.ly/2bgEXUd)

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Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

The Eighteenth Variation

Chopin's Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23, composed in 1831 during the composer's early years in Vienna, was a reflection of his loneliness in the city far away from his home in Poland, where the November Uprising, a war against the Russian Empire's oppression of his people, was happening. Once finished, it was not published until his move to Paris, where he dedicated it to Baron Nathaniel von Stockhausen, the Hanoverian ambassador to France.[5] Robert Schumann commented that, "I received a new Ballade from Chopin. It seems to be a work closest to his genius (although not the most ingenious) and I told him that I like it best of all his compositions. After quite a lengthy silence he replied with emphasis, 'I am happy to hear this since I too like it most and hold it dearest.'"[6]

The piece begins with a brief introduction which, contrary to popular belief, is not unrelated to the rest of the piece. Written in first inversion of the A-flat major chord, it is a Neapolitan chord that implies a majestic aura, ending in a dissonant, questioning left hand chord D, G, and E-flat that is not resolved until later on in the piece. Though Chopin's original manuscript clearly marks an E-flat as the top note, the chord has caused some degree of controversy, and thus, some versions of the work – such as the Klindworth edition – include D, G, D as an ossia.[2] The main section of the Ballade is built from two main themes. The brief introduction fades into the first theme, introduced at measure 8. After some elaboration, the second theme is introduced softly at measure 68. This theme is also elaborated on. Both themes then return in different keys, and the first theme finally returns again in the same key, albeit with an altered left hand accompaniment. A thundering chord introduces the coda, marked Presto con fuoco, to which the initial Neapolitan harmony re-emerges in constant dynamic forward propulsion, which eventually ends the piece in a fiery double octave scale run down the keyboard. As a whole, the piece is structurally complex and not strictly confined to any particular form, but incorporates ideas from mainly the sonata and variation forms.

A distinguishing feature of Ballade No. 1 is its time signature. While the other three are written in strict compound duple time with a 6/8 time signature, Ballade No. 1 bears deviations from this. The introduction is written in 4/4 time, and the more extensive Presto con fuoco coda is written in 2/2. The rest of the piece is written in 6/4, rather than the 6/8 which characterizes the others.[7]

Ballade No. 1 is one of the more popular Chopin pieces. It is prominently featured in the 2002 Roman Polanski film The Pianist, where an approximately four-minute cut is played by Janusz Olejniczak. It is also played in the 1944 film Gaslight and heard in the 2006 satire Thank You for Smoking. It is the music for the "Black" pas de deux, the final, climactic pas de deux in John Neumeier's staging of the ballet The Lady of the Camellias, based upon the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils.[citation needed] The piece was the subject of the 2012 BBC documentary Chopin Saved My Life.[8] It is quoted in Mieczysław Weinberg's Symphony No. 21 ("Kaddish").[9] It was featured in the final episode of anime Your Lie in April.[10] The piece was also included in Fallout 4's in-game classical radio station.

In 2010, the editor of The Guardian, Alan Rusbridger, dedicated a year to learning Ballade No. 1 and produced a book about the experience, Play It Again: An Amateur Against the Impossible.[11]

Source: Wikipedia

The Chopin Ballades

Ballade No 1 Op 23 in G Minor - Frédéric Chopin

Chopin Ballade No 1 Op 23 in G Minor - Frederic Chopin

Beethoven Sonata No. 23 in F Minor, Opus 57 ("Appassionata") December 2012

Beethoven Sonata No 23 Op 57 - II. Andante con moto

Beethoven Sonata No 23 Op 57 - I. Allegro assai

Beethoven Sonata No. 23 Op. 57 ("Appassionata") December 2012

Beethoven Sonata No 23 Op 57 - III. Allegro ma non troppo - Presto

Chopin's second Ballade is at one moment eerily placid and another frighteningly catastrophic: imagine a quiet waterfront suddenly engulfed by a horrific storm. It eventually passes, leaving hope for renewal in the wake of its utter destruction and havoc.

Chopin Ballade No 2 in F Major, Opus 38

Brahms Intermezzo in A Major, Opus 118 No.2

Brahms Intermezzo in A Major, Opus 118 No. 2

Michael Henry Zimmerman studied piano with Anne Koscielny, Raymond Hanson, Morton Estrin and Louis Nagel. He is an alumnus of Interlochen Arts Academy and Deerfield Academy, and a graduate of Hartt College of Music (Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance). He was fortunate to have been born to musically discerning parents who wisely encouraged him to pursue graduate studies and a career in business instead of the piano. When not studying classical music, he consults to Fortune 500 businesses on matters of Business Intelligence and Data Warehousing. To this day, his passion for great music survives even when his listeners do not.

Michael Henry Zimmerman

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