As a Baroque composer, Bach has become, more than most, the target of transcribers.  They go from the tasteful (as in this concert) to the ginormous, as in Henry Wood’s orchestration of the famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor.  Elgar’s orchestration of the Fantasia & Fugue in C minor is famous as the fruit of Elgar’s old age and his ingenuity – but it is hardly Bach.  The 2 piano transcriptions being performed this evening are equally famous for their clean musicianship.  No frills and spills.  Myra Hess’s famous transcription is of the chorale arrangement from Bach’s Cantata no. BWV 147.  Bach’s flowing counterpoint is set against the chorale melody by Johann Schop.  In the German Lutheran church, the chorale is the equivalent of the hymn in Anglican liturgy.  The Cantata in the Lutheran liturgy was composed and performed often as an adjunct to the text of the sermon.  In Bach’s day, Lutheran services were very long!  “Sheep may safely graze”, here transcribed by pianist-composer Egon Petri, comes from the Cantata BWV 208, where it is sung by a soprano soloist, accompanied by 2 recorders and continuo.  A very lush, but musical version for modern orchestra, is by Willliam Walton in the ballet “The Wise Virgins.”

Robert Schumann was typical of the 19th century better educated musicians.  While the composers of the Baroque and Classical periods cannot be dismissed as uneducated, the 19th Century produced men (and women) of letters.  Berlioz, Schumann, Liszt, Mendelssohn and others were products of an educated middle class; they were interested in the arts in the broadest sense.  Much of their music stemmed from literary origins.  The Faus legend was a frequent inspiration.  The young Schumann was an avid reader and his literary instincts led him to create, with colleagues, a music Journal, the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik,  the New Musical Times.  It became an important publication and introduced Berlioz and Chopin to the world.  In this publication Schumann reviewed Chopin’s Variations on Mozart’s “La ci darem la mano” with the now famous phrase, “hats off gentlemen, a genius.”

Schumann’s C major Fantasy was written in 1836, then revised before its publication in 1839, and dedicated to Franz Liszt.  It is generally recognised as one of Schumann’s greatest works for piano.  The first movement expressed his longing for Clara Wieck, later to become his wife.  A second and third were added and the complete work offered for special publication to raise funds for a Beethoven monument.  Likewise, Mendelssohn offered his Variations sérieuses for the monument fund.  

The title “Nocturne” suggests a “night piece”, but listening to Chopin’s music under this title there is a confusion.  Chopin’s 7 sets of Nocturnes are music of extraordinary variety of expression.  By turns they are lyrical and dramatic and expressive to a degree.  In his melodic style, Chopin told his pupils to think of the bel canto style (beautiful singing) of Italian opera.  The same attention to legato melodic lines is found in the composer’s “Barcarolle”, Op.60.  The title suggests the movement of the gondolas of Venice and is one of Chopin’s last major compositions, alongside his “Polonaise-Fantasie”.  

Chopin’s 3rd Sonata is the last of the composer’s composition in this genre.  In its 4-movement form, the sonata is close to its German forebears by Beethoven and Schubert.  It was written when Chopin was at the height of his powers, the music full of melodic invention and variation.  As in so many 19th century piano master works, the performer is faced with the most difficult technical and musical challenges.    Notable is the amazing Finale, written in compound time, which gallops furiously to its conclusion.  
 

Programme Notes Copywrite Alistair Jones, 2026