20 min listen
21. Four Hands are Better Than Two
21. Four Hands are Better Than Two
ratings:
Length:
20 minutes
Released:
May 1, 2007
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
Schubert: Variations on an Original Theme, for piano, four hands, in A-flat Major, D. 813, Op. 35 (February 18, 2007)Rachmaninoff: Suite No. 2 for two pianos, Op. 17 (February 18, 2007)If you’ve ever taken a beginner piano lesson, you’re probably familiar with music for one piano and four hands—or two people. That’s what the first piece on our program today is: two pianists on just one piano bench, in this case a husband-and-wife team. But, the repertoire that really took off among modern composers is that for two players and two pianos, as in our second piece this week. With two instruments at his disposal, Rachmaninoff’s sound in this piece is much bigger than the Schubert. And, liberated from the shared piano bench, the pianists can exhibit much more virtuosity, given full range over the entire keyboard.
Released:
May 1, 2007
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
22. Bach's Songs…for Strings by The Concert - Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum