Franz Liszt \u2014 Consolations, S.172<\/strong> Franz Liszt \u2014 Soir\u00e9es de Vienne, S.427<\/strong> Liszt\u2019s Consolations<\/em> and Soir\u00e9es de Vienne<\/em> offer two very different ways of looking back. In the Consolations<\/em>, memory becomes intimate and contemplative; in the Soir\u00e9es de Vienne<\/em>, it is transformed into movement, colour and theatre. This programme follows precisely that transformation: from poetry to dance, from solitude to the salon, from the most intimate Liszt to the virtuoso capable of turning memory into spectacle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The programme opens with the six Consolations<\/em>, S.172, Liszt\u2019s Six pens\u00e9es po\u00e9tiques<\/em>. The title itself suggests something private: thoughts rather than displays, memories rather than declarations. The writing is remarkably spare, and often a simple melodic line or harmonic progression is enough to sustain an extraordinary expressive intensity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first two pieces, both in E major, establish an intimate atmosphere. The Andante con moto<\/em> of No. 1 and the more flowing Un poco pi\u00f9 mosso<\/em> of No. 2 seem almost to emerge from speech and breath. The third and fourth move to D-flat major, creating the most suspended and introspective part of the cycle. No. 3, Lento placido<\/em>, and especially No. 4, Quasi Adagio<\/em>, reveal a Liszt capable of extraordinary restraint and an almost austere expressive control. Beneath this apparent simplicity, however, one can already sense harmonic ideas and gestures that anticipate the more radical Liszt of his later years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The final two Consolations<\/em> return to E major. The Andantino<\/em> of No. 5 is lyrical and suspended, while No. 6, Allegretto sempre cantabile<\/em>, brings the cycle to a more flowing conclusion. Particularly fascinating is the relationship between the two versions of the Consolations<\/em>: the first generally features denser, weightier writing, while the later version, S.172, achieves greater transparency and intimacy. The Schubertian character of the final Consolation<\/em> also creates a natural bridge to the Soir\u00e9es de Vienne<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From this intimate world, the programme gradually opens out towards Vienna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Soir\u00e9es de Vienne<\/em>, S.427, are Liszt\u2019s Valses-caprices d\u2019apr\u00e8s Fran\u00e7ois Schubert<\/em>. They are far more than simple transcriptions of Schubert\u2019s waltzes. Liszt takes the language of Schubertian dance and transforms it through his own pianistic imagination, expanding the small gestures of the Viennese salon into something theatrical, virtuosic and, at times, almost orchestral.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first Soir\u00e9e<\/em>, Allegretto malinconico<\/em>, begins in A-flat major, but its melancholy immediately casts a shadow beneath the elegance of the dance. No. 2, Poco allegro<\/em>, continues this world with greater lightness and animation. The atmosphere changes radically with No. 6, Allegro con strepito \u2013 Poco allegro<\/em>. Its brilliance and rhythmic energy reveal the spectacular side of Liszt\u2019s imagination: the pianist as interpreter, entertainer and magician.<\/p>\n\n\n\n No. 7, Allegro spiritoso<\/em>, returns us to the warmth and elegance of A major. Finally, No. 9, opening with its Preludio a capriccio<\/em> and leading into the expressive Andante con sentimento<\/em>, seems almost to look back on everything that has come before. Dance becomes memory once again: Vienna is no longer merely a place of entertainment, but something remembered and transformed through Liszt\u2019s imagination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have chosen to perform this programme on a reconstruction of an 1830 Pleyel by Paul McNulty because this instrument creates a particularly fascinating bridge between the musical worlds evoked by Liszt and the virtuoso piano for which the composer would later become celebrated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A Pleyel of this period has physical and sonic characteristics very different from those of a modern concert grand. Its lighter action, clarity of articulation and distinctive palette of colours allow the intimate writing of the Consolations<\/em> to speak with particular immediacy. The instrument\u2019s ability to sustain a singing tone highlights the vocal character of Liszt\u2019s melodies, while its transparency allows inner voices and subtle harmonic colours to remain perceptible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The choice becomes even more significant in the Soir\u00e9es de Vienne<\/em>. These pieces look back to Schubert and to the world of the Viennese salon, a musical universe much closer, in period and sonority, to an early Pleyel than to the modern concert grand. On this instrument, the waltzes can retain something of their original intimacy and dancing character, while Liszt\u2019s virtuosity becomes a transformation of the instrument\u2019s possibilities rather than simply a pursuit of volume and power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The programme therefore asks the Pleyel to move through different worlds: from the whispered poetry of the Consolations<\/em>, through Schubertian memory, to the brilliance and theatricality of Liszt\u2019s Vienna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rather than presenting Liszt solely as the revolutionary virtuoso of the modern piano, this programme seeks to explore the composer through the instruments, sounds and memories that surrounded him. The Pleyel thus becomes an integral part of the narrative: a piano from the nineteenth-century salon accompanying the music from poetry to dance, from memory to spectacle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Six pens\u00e9es po\u00e9tiques<\/em>
No. 1 in E major \u2014 Andante con moto<\/em>
No. 2 in E major \u2014 Un poco pi\u00f9 mosso<\/em>
No. 3 in D-flat major \u2014 Lento placido<\/em>
No. 4 in D-flat major \u2014 Quasi Adagio<\/em>
No. 5 in E major \u2014 Andantino<\/em>
No. 6 in E major \u2014 Allegretto sempre cantabile<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Valses-caprices d\u2019apr\u00e8s Fran\u00e7ois Schubert<\/em>
No. 1 in A-flat major \u2014 Allegretto malinconico<\/em>
No. 2 in A-flat major \u2014 Poco allegro<\/em>
No. 6 in A major \u2014 Allegro con strepito \u2013 Poco allegro<\/em>
No. 7 in A major \u2014 Allegro spiritoso<\/em>
No. 9 in A-flat major \u2014 Preludio a capriccio \u2013 Andante con sentimento<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n