Quiz: Mystery scores

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Welcome, sul G! You are a worthy replacement (almost) of our dearly beloved Luke. And what a Horn of Plenty... This will take me some time to digest. 

[sul G]

Welcome, sul G! You are a worthy replacement (almost) of our dearly beloved Luke.

Thank you. I hope to fill his (surely fragrant and bejewelled) shoes fully at some point.

[karlhenning]

(who sound likes a fascinating and deeply attractive human being, I must say)

Some say, a genius!

[Mark G. Simon]

Well I'll grab the really obvious one:

415 is the Wall Street Rag by Scott Joplin.

[sul G]

@ Karl: Really? The pressure mounts!

@ Mark: Obvious and appropriate (in these troubled times^©). Correct, of course.

[Guido]

Don't think I know any of them.

[sul G]

Not even the one with one of the great orchestral passages for cellos? (IMO, of course)

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

In #402 I seem to recognise a song (to which, btw, Brian alludes in his opera The Tigers) - The Last Rose of Summer...

[Guido]

422? No idea.

[sul G]

Yes, that's the one

[Mark G. Simon]

422 is the slow movement of Tippett's Concerto for Orchestra.

[(poco) Sforzando]

How fascinating that our new member Sul G seems to know so much about our departed member Saul D - 401 and 402 both being early Mendelssohn, the Sonata in E op. 6 and the Fantasy on the Last Rose of Summer op. 15.

Some others I recognize - 403 is from the Schoenberg Variations op. 31. The earlier no 5 looks like the Dvorak Romance in F minor op. 11. I think 416 is Medtner, but will have to check. - yes, it is the Sonata Reminiscenza, op. 38/1.

410 is the ending of Janacek's piano piece Un Souvenir.

[Mark G. Simon]

I think Luke back here in disguise.

[(poco) Sforzando]

I think Luke back here in disguise.

Amazing!

[sul G]

How fascinating that our new member Sul G seems to know so much about our departed member Saul D - 401 and 402 both being early Mendelssohn, the Sonata in E op. 6 and the Fantasy on the Last Rose of Summer op. 15.

Some others I recognize - 403 is from the Schoenberg Variations op. 31. The earlier no 5 looks like the Dvorak Romance in F minor op. 11. I think 416 is Medtner, but will have to check. - yes, it is the Sonata Reminiscenza, op. 38/1.

410 is the ending of Janacek's piano piece Un Souvenir.

These are all correct, except that I'd hazard the Dvorak guess is wrong - and I see that Luke set the Dvorak Romance a long long time ago - his number 26, I think.

The Mendelssohn pieces because before registering I saw that some of you were discussing the early Mendelssohn piano sonatas. And as I'd been playing through them that day, I was keen to bring them to your attention. For all the Beethovenian shape of the recitatives in this part of the sonata, the formal idea is really quite incredible, especially for a 17 year - among other things, the unbarred recitative is treated fugally. This piece dates from the same year as the Midsummer wotsit, so it's best not to write it off too easily.

Mark's guess of the Tippett Concerto for Orchestra is also correct, of course. Tippett is a favourite of mine - look carefully and you might find some more.

And as for me being Luke in [extremely lightly worn and deliberately revealing] disguise - well, I couldn't possibly say! Though I thought clothing one's former identity with a pseudonym taken from musical terminology was pretty 'last year', eh Sforzando?

[Que]

So, as I was saying - Luke's musical interests, as exhibited here, seem like a very clone of mine. I hope he won't mind then - I'm sure he won't, in fact - if, in giving my own score samples, I pick up where he left off  - i.e. with no 401..........

Indeed... 

Welcome back, Luke.

Q

[Maciek]

And as for me being Luke in [extremely lightly worn and deliberately revealing] disguise - well, I couldn't possibly say! Though I thought clothing one's former identity with a pseudonym taken from musical terminology was pretty 'last year', eh Sforzando?

Well, you know, it's not like you absolutely have to deregister first.

[sul G]

   

No, I suppose not. Though it's slightly more misterioso if you do! I reckon we should all do it, though....


Anyway, along with

Mark's guess of the Tippett Concerto for Orchestra is also correct, of course. Tippett is a favourite of mine - look carefully and you might find some more.

I should have said that (of course) Janacek is a favourite too, and that there might be some other Janacek pieces in here. Guido knows one of them for sure. The one Sfz spotted features (at the top of the page) a typically Janacekian slip into D flat - that's the 'memory' of the title if anything is, I guess. One of the other Janacek pieces here also lurches into D flat, from A major this time. It's such a touching habit of his....

The Schoenberg Variations - well, I chose this page just because there's something appealing about a classic of twelve tone music using the flexatone. I'm not sure why I like the idea, but I do.

And the Medtner - this is the piece which Gilels made into something of a signature piece, and I've never heard anyone do it better. This opening page, which occurs again in the middle and at the end, with its suspended, static but seductive main idea 'outside' the main body of the music, is one of Medtner's finest inspirations. And another image of memory-in-music, just as with the minor Janacek piece already identified.

[Maciek]

Hm, I should perhaps take a closer look at the remaining ones but I'm off to work at the moment, so I'll let someone else upstage me (which shouldn't be difficult, since I'm sure I wouldn't know any of them anyway 0:)).

Also, I have to study for my English exam on Monday.

[sul G]

Also, I have to study for my English exam on Monday.

In which case, perhaps someone should tell you that the above would be better put:

'Furthermentioning, I must be being studied for my English exam at Monday'

Now, don't forget that, and good luck!