Edward MacDOWELL: To a Water Lily, Op. 51 N° 6 - Geert DEHOUX, piano - Bangkok, August 2007

[shanny2115]

This is a great piece for piano, i love the sound off it. I have actually found the piece which goes for the flute to. At the moment im studying it, the contrast between the flute and piano is quite shocking when it starts changing key. I'm playing this song on my flute for my exam :D <3

[geertdehoux]

@shanny2115

Hi, Shanny!

Hope you'll enjoy it!

Have a good exam, too!

Regards,

Geert.

[clooaan]

Bubbling water might evoke arpeggios but a water lily is usually seen in still water ponds so the solid almost inaudible chords as written do it for me. MacDowell knew his way around nature and we should be hearing more of his work. His poems aren't too shabby either.

[geertdehoux]

@clooaan

Interesting about the chords.

Actually, I prefer to play arpeggios, because - in my opinion - they just sound better.

Let's not forget in MacDowell's era performing musicians had much more freedom in using the written scores than they have now. I consider myself a more 'old-fashioned' interpreter than a 'modern' performer.

A cordial greeting,

Geert Dehoux.

[aaronchocolateface]

First time I've heard this piece played & It's definitely one of my piano favourites!

I plan to spend the afternoon practising on the piano with this one! Thanks for sharing!

[geertdehoux]

@aaronchocolateface

Thank you very much!

If you like this beautiful piece of music, you might also like some other pieces I put onto Youtube.

Enjoy your practising, but I hope you'll find your own vision and interpretation.

Success!

Geert Dehoux.

[kentaro154]

wonderful sound. luvin it so much

[geertdehoux]

@kentaro154

Thank you very much!

A cordial greeting,

Geert Dehoux.

[Speedbird177]

Absolutely beautiful! This work adapts beautifully for harp, too.

[geertdehoux]

@Speedbird177

Thank you very much.

For harp ? Sounds like a good idea!

On guitar it might sound nice, as well.

Or flute and guitar.

Cordially,

Geert Dehoux.

[geertdehoux]

@Speedbird177

And flute and harp, of course.

[jimbowimbo1]

Very good playing! I love all of Edward MacDowell's pieces :D

[geertdehoux]

Thank you very much!

I think these four pieces put onto Youtube express unbearable loneliness...

Kindest regards,

Geert Dehoux,

[vibraharp226]

Like the other pieces I've heard you play on YouTube, you play with great soul and feeling (though perhaps a tad slow for my taste, but as you say, there's no "right or wrong," but a matter of interpretation). By the way, I don't have the sheet music for Woodland Sketches - should those chords be arpeggiated, say if I don't have a large "wingspan?" Warmest regards!

[geertdehoux]

Thank you very much for those kind words!

Well, no 'right' or 'wrong'... seen from a certain - limited - view, an interpretation can also be 'wrong...

This is not an easy issue.

About the chords: no, they're not written arpeggiated.

But partly following the 'old' tradition, the Romantic Masters didn't consider the score as strictly (too strictly, in my view) as we do nowadays.

For I think they sound better this way + they remind us of 'water', I took the freedom to arpeggiate them.

[vibraharp226]

Hi,

You're most welcome.

Speaking of evoking the sound of water, I'm sure you've heard - or even played - Mac Dowell's "Of Salamanders" from his Fireside Tales. Mac Dowell was such a great tone poet, one can really visualize those little critters darting about in some pond.

[geertdehoux]

Hello, again!

No, I don't know this piece!

Was it written for piano ?

You know, while living in South America, I actually discovered several MacDowell pieces 'by co-incidence'!

So, not so long ago, I decided to record four of them: those one can hear on Youtube.

Thanks for the suggestion!

I'll try to find the score of Fireside Tales and 'll let you know.

Kindest regards from cold Belgium,

Geert.

[geertdehoux]

@vibraharp226

Hello, again.

I did have a look at the Fireside Tales and I'm happy to say there are several nice pieces I might play, one day!

Thanks for the suggestion!

A cordial greeting,

Geert Dehoux.

[geertdehoux]

About the slow tempi: in my younger years, when living in South America, I was focussed on very high tempi.

It was my friend Arcadi Volodos who gave me the wisdom "Music can sound even better when not played so fast!" and from then on I started, little by little, playing 'slow' music as well.

Cziffra, Horowitz, Friedman, Lhévinne, Hofmann are one thing, the older Gilels, Kempff, Horzsowski are another one.

I think a good musician should be able to do the one and the other, as well.

[geertdehoux]

And then, aren't we all just SEARCHING for the 'truth', whatever that might be, all our life ?!

So, certain things I used to do before, I dislike now, and I'm sure I'll dislike certain recent elements of my piano playing in the future!

This makes good music alive and always interesting!

Thanks again and kindest regards,

Geert Dehoux;

[geertdehoux]

@vibraharp226

Hi, again.

A few days ago, I heard this lovely piece played by the great Australian musician/pianist/composer Percy Grainger.

Nice to hear Grainger, who belongs to 'the old school', preferred to arpeggiate the chords, as well!

Regards,

Geert.

[lilythepink123]

A definite favourite! This is beautiful, excellently played too. Very atmospheric, as I'm sure McDowell intended. I played (and uploaded) "To a Wild Rose" and am off to find the notes for this!

[geertdehoux]

@lilythepink123

Thank you very much for your very kind words!

Hope you'll enjoy the other pieces I recorded some years ago, as well.

All the best to you.

A cordial greeting,

Geert Dehoux.

[qcages]

very nice! lovely!

[geertdehoux]

Thank you very much!

For me these four short MacDowell pieces (At an Old Trysting Place, A Deserted Farm, To a Wild Rose and To a Water Lily) are real jewels.

They deserve fame!

A kind greeting,

Geert Dehoux.