Tchaikovsky Op 72 No 3, Strauss Op 9 No 5

These are members of two sets that I'm working on as long-term projects and they're both short. I hope no one minds my putting them up together.
The Tchaikovsky is named "Tendres Reproches", which translates to "Tender Reproaches". The Strauss is "Haidebild", which is listed in English as "On The Heath", though I'm not confident of that translation.

Piano 5'10" Petroff with lid all the way up. (I decided to try this and I like it.)
The Strauss has some mild reverb from the engine "GVerb", settings posted by Robert some years back. Before editing the Tchaikovsky, I downloaded Audacity 2.0.4, which was released yesterday, to find that they don't use gverb any more, and I just previewed a few light settings before picking one. (If anyone else is using this, I use the "25%" setting for the reverberation level.)

There are a couple of inaccuracies, for which I apologize. I had to limit each of these pieces to only a few 'takes' in order to keep the instrument in tune for the larger effort of a Clementi sonata which I hope to be submitting soon.


Strauss - Stimmungsbilder, Op. 9, No. 5 "Haidebild"

Tchaikovsky - 18 Pieces, Op. 72, No. 3 "Tendres Reproches"

 

They use another tool, but reverbation is there all right:

Audacity 2.0.4 replaces all previous versions, with these improvements:

New Effect > Reverb (based on Freeverb), that replaces GVerb.

 

Thanks Monica.

I was downloading the new Audacity in hope that the tag editing was better, and did not realize that I would be subjected to a totally new reverb feature. (Real men don't read release notes first .) So you're right - the Tchaikovsky's a little dry, especially for Romantic era. I've played with it a little more and the Clementi sonata will have more reverb even though it's Classical.

Yes. I'll try to remember that, especially as I'll be doing more pieces from both of these sets.

 

Hi Stu,

This was the first time I had heard these pieces, but I believe your renditions are certainly convincing. Writing for the piano was not likely the favorite activity or medium for either of these two composers, but I believe that you put your interpretations across to the listener very well indeed which is most important. Thanks for posting your recording!

David

 

I particularly like your rendering of the Strauss. Coming from whom it does, I was not too surprised to hear that it is a mini-tone poem and, had it been longer, you could have got away with saying it is a piano trancription of a newly-found tone poem of his: The Tamimg of the Screw, the Turning of the Shew or what have you! I find that you made a piece that might be a bit disjointed sound convincing, even pleasant.

The Tchaikovsky impressed me less I must say.

 

Yes, certainly a convincing job on the Strauss piece. I find this piece oddly quaint and endearing with its insistent drone. The final flourish, like a not-too-distant flash of lightning, is very well done. Yes, please record more of this set. Strauss is an underrated piano composer. Of course his best work is not found here but he does remarkably well.

The Tchaikovsky is a piece a much like and know well. It is securely played but has it issues here. Apart from the too-dry sound, I find it a bit too bumpy and 'notey'. I'd have liked more articulation, fluidity, and dynamic gradation. For example, in the 3-note groups at the start, the accent should be on the middle note, in fact all 3 should be different in dynamics (last one softest). Also I find your tempi a bit erratic, you slow down ostensibly for the second subject, and speed up drastically for the coda. I believe you can do better
on this one, making it more of a lyric and wistful unity.

 

The translation is fine, if a little free. Haide (more usually spelled Heide) does mean heath or heathland, and Bild means picture, as in landscape or view or setting. I suppose they could have called it Heathscape, but that would have sounded a bit silly.

 

I quite liked the Strauss. Interesting and expressive bell-like sound, and overall nicely brought out. If you want nitpicking there are some parts in the middle where the melody could perhaps be brought out more by playing the other voices a bit softer. Tchaikovsky sounds confidently done but it is not my type of music - I adore his orchestral pieces but for some reason his piano works leave me cold.

Joachim