Two pairs of pairs

Two more pairs from each of my beloved twin peaks of counterpoint. I am not happy with the Shostakovich fugue 9, but my progress was thwarted by the Edirol going funny, I did not succeed in recording another complete track after that. Bloody thing. It's had hickups before but not so persistent as now. Maybe I should shell out - again :x - and buy an R-9.

Bach - BWV 882 - Das Wolhtemperierte Clavier II - Prelude and Fugue No.13 in F sharp major ( 6:13 )
Bach - BWV 884 - Das Wolhtemperierte Clavier II - Prelude and Fugue No.15 in G major ( 4:15 )
Shostakovich - 24 Preludes and Fugues Op.87 - 8: Prelude and Fugue in F sharp minor ( 9:31 )
Shostakovich - 24 Preludes and Fugues Op.87 - 9: Prelude and Fugue in E major ( 4:10 )

 

Nicely done on the Bach, Chris ... Just FYI, The sheet music to these two P&Fs are missing from the Bach page ... Mysterious?? How'm I supposed to nitpick all your flubs (I didn't hear any, btw) if I don't have a score to follow along with?? Maybe Scooby Doo can help me solve this mystery? (those darned kids are catching Mr. Johnson, as I write)

I'm saving the Shostakovich for later.

 

Thank you sir.
I have uploaded the sheets and put the PF's on the page. Now go and find all the flubs :wink: There are some, as always, although they are tiny.

 

Yeah I thought about that. In fact it's more likely to be that than the recorder itself. But I don't understand why it shows the same behaviour with two brand new batteries and the adapter disconnected.
Thanks for the tip, I'll check it out.

 

Shosta

As usual the Bach sounds good to me although I’ve never played those pieces before.

You played the Shostakovich very well, but I can make some comments since I’ve attempted No. 8 myself. I prefer no pedal in the Prelude. It could be a little faster to make it more spirited. There were a couple little hesitations in spots. I’d like to see more fading away in the pianissimo of the last line or so. But all in all you played this tricky Prelude cleanly and clearly.

In the beginning measures of the Fugue, you do not adhere to the rhythm IMHO. I can’t count three beats per measure until the left hand enters in the ninth measure. You played the last two sixteenths of measures 2, 4, 6, and 7 on the first half of the third beat instead of the second half. The correct rhythm is very difficult to maintain in those first few measures. When it’s played correctly, it almost sounds incorrect. It’s much easier to play correctly after the steady RH enters to maintain the three beats more exactly.

You captured the mood of the Fugue very well. There were also several spots in the fugue where you had some hesitations. I’m sure a little more time playing it will eliminate those hesitations. The big stretch in the sixth and fifth measures from the end sounded quite labored. I particularly liked the pianissimo ending of the Fugue. It just faded away beautifully. Congratulations on a job well done.

I’ve only read through No. 9 a few times, so I can’t criticize in detail. I love the beautiful Prelude IX with "double octave" melody. You played it very sensitively. Great job! You also played the difficult Fugue IX very well. Boy! That takes a lot of concentration to pull off! As in Prelude VIII, I prefer no pedal in Fugue IX. However, you did a really good job. The dynamics were excellent. Bravo!

 

Thanks for your detailed comments John, I appreciate it.

I did not rehearse the fugue 8 all that much, as I find it a bit long and tiring on the concentration. As a result it has 4 edit points in it (places where I had to restart one or more times, and cut out the muck afterwards), and some places where I needed to be over-cautious - some quite awkward stretches in this fugue ! I need to check on what you said about the rhythm - I was not aware I was doing anything wrong, and that worries me.

Fugue 9 would have been much better had my Edirol not gone wonky on me. It is rather raggedy and really needs to be redone.

About the pedal in prelude 8 and fugue 9, I use it sparingly and I do not think it causes any blurring - or does it ? I do not like completely dry playing and I like some splotches of colour where the harmonics allow it. I don't think my prelude 8 is much slower than your version. The fugue certainly is - but that is how I feel it.

 

i love Shostakovich's fugue No.8. like wandering around in sadness... sometimes a little bit too much as in bars 88-95 where you play G nat. instead of G sharp in the r.h. also, you forgot the D nat. on the 3rd beat of bar 48 (in the following bar you play it with a slight delay). this fugue is indeed very difficult to play! and, apart from these things, i liked your tempo and the way you bring out the voices. as for the recording, i can hear a strange resonance, at a certain point i checked wether my phone was ringing in the next room
bye, Mr Duffy

 

Good job on these, Chris. I finally got to download them - usually my connection's not fast enough to listen to music. I haven't even read through any of these that I recall, so I'm not going to go all commenty on you.

I'm working on a Bach gigue, and the Shostakovich prelude from 87/16 and a couple of other Op. 34 preludes (6 and 24), and that's enough for me at the moment. :lol: Oh, and a Chopin etude I've played (badly) before...

<--- is in the slow learner club

 

Aftyer listening back, it doesn't seem to be quite as bad as that, but I agree it is not very stable rhythmically, especially in bar 8 where I shorten the a for no good reason. I could try and pass it off as rubato, but you guys would never buy that I fully agree with your other points. Even a relatively easy fugue like this needs more rehearsal for a proper recording. Will I never learn ? :roll:

Dammit, yes ! Thanks for pointing that out - I hear other's read mistakes but not my own :roll:
Sounds really plangent, doesn't it ?

Hm, yes, got a bit wimpy and sloppy there. There seem to be too many flaws in this recording, also some awkward hesitations as John pointed out. I'll have to redo it, preferable in one go.

Thank you. I like it too, interpretation-wise, but it is not good enough all the same. Not sure what resonance you heard, I did not hear any :?

 

I have re-recorded the two Shostakovich pairs (except for the prelude no.9, I used the version of yesterday). Both fugues are much better now, I believe, as well as a fraction faster. Thanks all for the helpful suggestions.

Shostakovich - 24 Preludes and Fugues Op.87 - 8: Prelude and Fugue in F sharp minor ( 9:13 )
Shostakovich - 24 Preludes and Fugues Op.87 - 9: Prelude and Fugue in E major ( 4:04 )

 

Very well done of both the Bach and Shostakovich p/f. I really enjoyed the famous 8:th of Shosta. At least I think it is famous. Is it? At least I have heared a lot. I have been thinking of playing this wonderful and delicious pair but never got down to the piano with it.

 

Thanks for the comment I am reasonably happy with these, though the Bach G major prelude could be a bit more supple still.

Not sure if this fugue is famous. I never used to like it much, but now after recording it, and listening back, I love it. It is very deep and meditative. The ending is another example of a wonderful turn to major key from a non-weenie composer ( take that, demonic_advent )

 

Well, i finally got around to listening to the Shostakovich ... and really liked them both. I listened to your retakes and thought they seemed well done and witty. #9 prelude sounds like it quotes from his 2nd piano concerto ... I'm fiddling with it right now, well, to be truthful ... it's on my stack by piano of to be frequently played. Thanks for keeping these coming!

 

Thanks Nathan. I am already working on the next pair and will he half way after those

 

If you're looking for a replacement portable recorder you could look into the recently-released Zoom H2.

 

Thanks, I know about that one and have it on the radar. Much cheaper than the Edirol and probably just as good.

However, it is likely to be my power adapter being the culprit (see recent post in 'Useful Resources') and I will try replace that first.

 

Forget what I said about Bachian technicality in the Schumann post...Your Shostakovich Fugues show more Bach than the former. Again, well done. They are not as interesting or pleasant to the ears as Bach's works are (will there ever be a composer whose works could rival that of Bach??) .

Thanks for sharing.


Another thing, have you moved your recorder for these recordings? It sounds a little different than your other recordings. If not, then when was your piano tuned? Did you move anything large in your room?

later.
-jg

 

Probably not. But of all composers who wrote in this genre, Shostakovich comes closest. And I would not say these are any less interesting than Bach's. Less easy on the ear, definitely. But that is a matter of letting them grow on you.

The usual answer - nothing at all changed. Except that the piano is not optimally well in tune even though it was tuned not so long ago (2 months I think).

Thanks for the feedback