Piano Solo pieces from the Baroque to Post-romantic era. 

Performed by Pamela Chng on the acoustic Kawai NS-15.

More pieces will be added to this set in time to come. If you have a special request, feel free to write to me. Thank you for your support.



Pamela Chng - The Best of Classical Piano

Two fast-paced Rigaudons (Rigadoons) from the Third Suite of Handel's Water Music, performed on virtual instruments: soprano recorder, two Baroque oboes, Baroque bassoon, two first violins, two second violins, 2 violas, cello, viola da gamba, 2 basses, and Baroque lute (instead of harpsichord, as scored).

Handel: Water Music, Suite III, HWV 350 - 2. Rigaudon I & II (2013.08.03)

Schubert: Moment Musicaux No. 2

Schubert: Moment Musicaux No. 2 Andantino in A-flat major

Relativity Of Simultaneity

This is only the first part of the Sonata I recorded as a teaching aid for a student who is taking her AMEB Grade Six piano exam.

Pamela Chng - Sonata K 466/L 118 (Part A) by Domenico Scarlatti

I love to read the thoughts of Einstein. 
He often does cleaning, brings order, on confusing topics.
A different gaze compared to standard thinking.
So the other night, I was reading again one of his books.
I found various parts underlined in time.
Here is the sound result of sentiments he instilled me.
I hope you like it :-)
Fivos

A human being is part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. We experience ourselves, our thoughts and feelings as something separate from the rest. A kind of optical delusion of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from the prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. The true value of a human being is determined by the measure and the sense in which they have obtained liberation from the self. We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if humanity is to survive. (1954)
To see with one's own eyes, to feel and judge without succumbing to the suggestive power of the fashion of the day, to be able to express what one has seen and felt in a trim sentence or even in a cunningly wrought word- is that not glorious? It is not a proper subject for congratulation? (1934)
When we survey our lives and endeavours, we soon observe that almost the whole of our actions and desires is bound up with the existence of other human beings. We notice that our whole nature resembles that of the social animals. We eat food that others have produced, wear clothes that others have made, live in houses that others have built. The greater part of our knowledge and beliefs has been communicated to us by other people through the medium of a language which others have created. Without language our mental capacities would be poor indeed, comparable to those of the higher animals; we have, therefore, to admit that we owe our principal advantage over the beasts to the fact of living in human society. The individual, if left alone from birth, would remain primitive and beastlike in his thoughts and feelings to a degree that we can hardly conceive. (1934)

Man is, at one at the same time, a solitary being and a social being. As a solitary being, he attempts to protect his own existence and that of those who are closest to him, to satisfy his personal desires, and to develop his innate abilities. As a social being, he seeks to gain the recognition and affection of his fellow human beings, to share in their pleasures, to comfort them in their sorrows, and to improve their conditions of life. Only the existence of these varied, frequently conflicting strivings accounts for the special character of a man, and their specific combination determines the extent to which an individual can achieve an inner equilibrium and can contribute to the well-being of society. It is quite possible that the relative strength of these two drives is, in the main, fixed by inheritance. But the personality that finally emerges is largely formed by the environment in which a man happens to find himself during his development, by the structure of the society in which he grows up, by the tradition of that society, and by its appraisal of particular types of behaviour. (1949)
It is society which provides man with food, clothing, a home, the tools of work, language, the forms of thought, and most of the content of thought; his life is made possible through the labor and the accomplishments of the many millions past and present who are all hidden behind the small word society. 
It is evident, therefore, that the dependence of the individual upon society is a fact of nature which cannot be abolished- just as in the case of ants and bees. However, while the whole life process of ants and bees is fixed down to the smallest detail by rigid, hereditary instincts, the social pattern and interrelationships of human beings are very variable and susceptible to change. Memory, the capacity to make new combinations, the gift of oral communication have made possible developments among human beings which are not dictated by biological necessities. Such developments manifest themselves in traditions, institutions, and organisations; in literature; in scientific and engineering accomplishments; in works of art. This explains how it happens that, in a certain sense, man can influence his life through his own conduct, and that in this process conscious thinking and wanting can play a part. 
Man acquires at birth, through heredity, a biological constitution which we must consider fixed and unalterable, including the natural urges which are characteristic of the human species. In addition, during his lifetime, he acquires a cultural constitution which he adopts from society through communication and through many other types of influences. It is this cultural constitution which, with the passage of time, is subject to change and which determines to a very large extent the relationship between the individual and society. (1949)
Modern anthropology has taught us, through comparative investigation of so-called primitive cultures, that the social behaviour of human beings may differ greatly, depending upon prevailing cultural patterns and the types of organisation which predominate in society. It is on this that those who are striving to improve the lot of man may ground their hopes: human beings are not condemned, because of their biological constitution, to annihilate each other or to be at the mercy of a cruel, self-inflicted fate. If we ask ourselves how the structure of society and the cultural attitude of man should be changed in order to make human life as satisfying as possible, we should constantly be conscious of the fact that there are certain conditions which we are unable to modify. As mentioned before, the biological nature of man is, for all practical purposes, not subject to change. (1949)
It is only a slight exaggeration to say that mankind constitutes even now a planetary community of production and consumption. I have now reached the point where I may indicate briefly what to me constitutes the essence of the crisis in our time. It concerns the relationship of the individual to society. The individual has become more conscious than ever of his dependence upon society. But he does not experience this dependence as a positive asset, as an organic tie, as a protective force, but rather as a threat to his natural rights, or even to his economic existence. Moreover, his position in society is such that the egotistical drives of his make-up are constantly being accentuated, while his social drives, which are by nature weaker, progressively deteriorate. All human beings, whatever their position in society, are suffering from this process of deterioration. Unknowingly prisoners of their own egotism, they feel insecure, lonely, and deprived of the naive, simple and unsophisticated enjoyment of life. Man can find meaning in life, short and perilous as it is, only through devoting himself to society. 
The economic anarchy of capitalist society as it exists today is, in my opinion, the real source of evil. (1949)
I, too, am in favour of abolishing large cities (1934)
The population of the civilized countries is extremely dense as compared with former times; Europe today contains about three times as many people as it did a hundred years ago. But the number of leading personalities has decreased out of all proportion. Only a few people are known to the masses as individuals, through their creative achievements. Organisation has to some extent taken the place of leading personalities, particularly in the technical sphere, but also to a very perceptible extent in the scientific. (1934)
Communities tend to be guided less than individuals by conscience and a sense of responsibility. How much misery does this fact cause mankind! It is the source of wars and every kind of oppression, which fill the earth with pain, sighs and bitterness. (1934)
To inquire after the meaning or object of one's own existence or that of all creatures has always seemed absurd from an objective point of view. And yet everybody has certain ideals which determine the direction of his endeavors and judgments. In this sense I have never looked upon ease and happiness as ends in themselves - this ethical basis I call the ideal of a pigsty. The ideals which have lighted my way, and time after time have given me new courage to face life cheerfully, have been Kindness, Beauty and Truth. Without the sense of kinship with men of like mind, without the occupation with the objective world, the eternally unattainable in the field of art and scientific endeavors, life would have seemed to me empty. The trite objects of human efforts-possessions, outward success, luxury-have always seemed to me contemptible.
My passionate sense of social justice and social responsibility has always contrasted oddly with my pronounced lack of need for direct contact with other human beings and human communities. I am truly a 'lone traveler' and have never belonged to my country, my home, my friends, or even my immediate family, with my whole heart; in the face of all these ties, I have never lost a sense of distance and a need for solitude-feelings which increase with the years. One becomes sharply aware, but without regret, of the limits of mutual understanding and consonance with other people. No doubt, such a person loses some of his innocence and unconcern; on the other hand, he is largely independent of the opinions, habits, and judgments of his fellows and avoids the temptation to build his inner equilibrium upon such insecure foundations. (1954)
(On the occasion of Gandhi's 70th Birthday in 1939)
A leader of his people, unsupported by any outward authority: a politician whose success rests not upon craft nor the mastery of technical devices, but simply on the convincing power of his personality; a victorious fighter who always scorned the use of force; a man of wisdom and humility, armed with resolve and inflexible consistency, who had devoted all his strength to the uplifting of his people and the betterment of their lot; a man who had confronted the brutality of Europe with the dignity of the simple human being, and thus at all times risen superior. Generations to come, it may be, will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked on this earth.

A Different Gaze, Noct 17 Jan (To my son) - Piano Solo(find me on spotify: spoti.fi/1Awll3h )

Bruckner Symphony No.8 in C minor
ブルックナー　交響曲第８番ハ短調
Hans Knappertsbusch
ハンス・クナッパーツブッシュ
Münchner Philharmoniker
ミュンヘン・フィルハーモニー管弦楽団
1963 Live recording
1963年ライブ音源
Monoral
モノラル

Pre-performance 00:35

I. Allegro moderato 15:19

II. Scherzo. Allegro moderato; Trio. Langsam 30:04

III. Adagio. Feierlich langsam, doch nicht schleppend 56:01

IV. Finale. Feierlich, nicht schnell 1:21:29

Applause 1:22:52

Bruckner Symphony No.8 in C minor / Hans Knappertsbusch / Münchner Philharmoniker

Composer: Modest Mussorgsky
Title: Pictures at an Exhibition: III. Tuileries
Composed: 1874
Performer: Justin Towson – piano

Mussorgsky - Pictures at an Exhibition: III. Tuileries

Played by Phil Best.

You can also follow me on Spotify at https://spoti.fi/2MRR1lV and stream the albums I have released there.

Prelude in Eb minor Op. 23 No. 9 - Rachmaninov

Andante moderato from 8 pieces breves Op. 84 No. 5, by 19th-early 20th French composer Faure. Originally written as a sight-reading piece for the Paris Conservatoire.

Pamela Chng - Andante moderato Op. 84 No. 5 by Gabriel Faure

Pamela Chng - Buntes Blatt Op. 99 No. 1 by Robert Schumann

This is perhaps my all-time favourite Bach composition. Played on the Kawai NS-15.

Pamela Chng - Sarabande from French Suite V in G major (BMV 816) by J.S. Bach

My submission for The Piano Cloud July Classical Challenge. Pachulski (1859 - 1921) was a Poland-born composer who lived in Russia. This Prelude in C minor is the first of six preludes from Op. 8. Here's the link to the sheet music if you're interested in learning this piece. http://javanese.imslp.info/files/imglnks/usimg/0/07/IMSLP10668-Pachulski_-_Prelude.pdf

For other interpretations of this piece, see also:
Andrew Eales - http://soundcloud.com/keyquest-music-2/pachulski-prelude-in-c-minor
Brad Stark - http://soundcloud.com/bradstark/prelude-in-c-minor-by-henryk
Luke Freeman - http://soundcloud.com/freemondo88/henryk-pachulskis-prelude-luke


Pamela Chng - Prelude in C minor Op. 8 No. 1 by Henryk Pachulski

"Pièce en forme de Habanera" by Maurice Ravel

Violin: Lelie Cristea
Piano Instrumental Accompaniment: Tamilla Guliyeva
Sound Recording by Arthur Jogerst

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTT_HLOb9g0

Maurice Ravel | Pièce En Forme De Habanera

First preview taken from the album "Birth, Life and Death".


--

If you like this track, do not hesitate to visit my web site where you can find the links to iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Spotify and others.

www.michaelmathy.be/music/birth-life-and-death/

Bandcamp

This is No. 14 of J.S. Bach's 15 Inventions. It is an AMEB (Australian Music Examination Board) Piano Series 18 grade 5 exam piece.

My first recording on my Kawai K-25EA professional upright. It's been a long time since I last recorded. Glad to be back :)

Pamela's Album

Pamela Chng - Invention No. 14 by J.S. Bach

In a world of appearances, music is the only thing-in-itself. It is an expression of my metaphysical being, and though it cannot be understood, it must surely be felt.

To all my friends on SoundCloud, and those I have yet to meet, thank you for connecting with me through your music. If you have music you want me to execute, I will be honoured to do so. It is a pleasure to know you.

About Me:
Had my first piano - a Yamaha C108 acoustic upright - and piano lessons when I was seven. Six years later, I was made to quit, so I left the piano and went on to mix records with a mobile disco I co-founded as a teenager. Became a school teacher, and now teaching classical piano privately. My focus is on music interpretation, tone production and technique. 

My other interests and areas of studies are philosophy, sociology, writing, cosmology, quantum mechanics, and reading. My greatest inspirations are J.S. Bach, Kant, Nietzsche, and Einstein (wow, I just realised they're all Germans).

Thank you for your comments and for listening.

My current recording setup comprises:
Acoustic piano - Yamaha C108 (pre-2010), Kawai NS-15 (2010-2014), Kawai K-25EA (2020-present)
External mic - Blue Yeti
Software - Logic Pro X / Garageband

Pamela Chng - Invention No. 14 by J.S. Bach

Pamela Chng

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