Godowsky - Study on Chopin's Etude Op. 10 No. 1 in C major

[FranKiisko]

Godowsky should have six fingers. (Compass 3, last note. Look at the finger)

[dalecampbl5]

i don't like it when people mess with what is already perfect. I'm sure if Chopin thought it proper to write his op.10 no.1 like this, he would've done so. This type of music really distracts from the musical part of the piece while adding to the technical difficulties.

[Theonedue]

Who played this piece?

[megasveco]

this one goes to eleven

[rekab7070]

To my ears, one thing that marks Hamelin apart from many of today's super-technicians: his tone. No matter how stupendous the difficulties, or brilliant the passagework, Hamelin never fails to produce a gorgeous tone. And he is capable of so many fine subtleties. I think that when he is very old and has lost some of his technical power he will be more recognized and appreciated for these most refined qualities.

[markarama23]

Who's the pianist here?

[throwaway69247]

@markarama23 I believe it's Marc-Andre Hamelin

[Chiu19931993]

Godowsky is so funny!

[PlanetReeceMusic]

I think I would drink a whole bottle of water after playing this. lol

[Theonedue]

Imagin youre a college student at a major music school and youre a performance major at studio hour (where all instrumentalists perform pieces). The first ones suck for the most part, mistakes and all, but then finally its youre turn, and youre the new kid on the block. You sit at the piano and play chopin etude 1 followed by Godowskys study version (with the skill of Pollini). Every one then CUMS IN THEIR UNDERWARE!!

[TheSoken123]

Godowsky-Chopin's Double waterful etude!!! or maybe... the NIAGARA FALLS ETUDE !!! lol

[Keytaster]

Godowsky's interpretations are difficult for me... One the one hand they give those etudes a new perspective, show them in a different light, adding flavours here and there, making them almost enchanting; on the other hand some of these changes seem to me a tad too Liszt-ian (esp. those heavy bass chords) and I don't know if this does Chopin's work justice - but, I think I have to listen to them a lot more to fully grasp what Godowsky intended...

[agniky]

@Keytaster youve heard hamelins study on paganini (commonly referred to as "la campanella").. Godowsky takes a chopin study and does his own (compositional)study based on the original (compositional) study. theyre two totally different pair of shoes. the only way to honor a great piece in this case a cycle of music, is to take it serious (which doesnt mean you cannot "play" with it). Godowsky took them serious, thats called hommage.. course it doesnt sound entirely chopinesque. its godowsky..

[Nganguenf]

I'm sure that Chopin's soul is in peace when it listens to this transcription of Godowsky!

[2hyeok]

wow i didn't know you had this video too :) But my vieo ain't yours

[xeliosphere]

Beautiful... it sounds like 4 hands playing this piece.

[sergiobantam]

Hexameron

Parabéns, só material surpreendente e de primeira linha!

[Eztoez]

Oh boy this is a difficult one to play, but beautifully played! Amazing stuff.

[DualThunder]

i love the godowsky transcriptions almost as much as the originals. so virtuosic though. some of them are absolutely ridiculous. such as the op10 no.12.

[TheSoken123]

Um.... I think I will be able to play only 1:14, RH crochet and LH two quavers.

[forgottenbooks]

So what did Godowsky do with this piece? It doesn't sound like he combined it with another etude, so I'm guessing the LH is an inversion of the RH?

[jerdawg553]

he took chopin's incredibly complicated etude...and made it more complicated...and intricate, ...incredible.

[airvarie]

Wow !!! Who is Play this version

Hamelin or anther one

[a1vocalcoachdotcom]

Ummm...Ugh... My head hurts just thinking about playing this...lol

[rationalistx]

Phew! I think I'll  stick to playing nursery rhymes.

[Eztoez]

I read somewhere that Horowitz himself said that first Chopin Etude out of ALL the original Etudes was the hardest to play. Sounds wierd cos personally I think the one in A flat (the Aoelian hap) is 10 times harder. Anyway, I digress. Horowitz refused to play Godowsky. Whether he thought he (Godowsky) was committing sacrilge by re-writing perfect Chopin, or whether he thought it too hard to play, I don't know. All I know, is that Godowsky is painfully difficult.

[openmindspace]

This looks hard,

[shadecross]

phew this is sick... i have my troubles getting the original right :(

[cedricrlongreen]

WTF!!.......I like it.

[chaz567123456789]

was the original not hard enough?!

[NoirOrchestre]

I can only imagine the beads of sweat of the pianist...

[StradAmatiViolin]

I like it.

[jegspillerpiano]

That just makes me want to quit piano. That is not possible! The original is not possible, damnit.

[nathanmidori]

anyone know sythesia??? its a program on how you play the piano easier! :p

[tratebane]

@nathanmidori Synesthesia? It is really a very easy programme!!

[aardvaark069]

Is this 'Allegro Maestoso'? Seems too fast.

[iltonjardim]

Godowski is no less genious than chopin

[anonymousQ45]

there is discussion here on whether this is harder than the original OF COURSE this is harder. that was the whole purpose of writing them, to develop left hand technique.

[MrRosfordKjaerulff]

Unlike the other Godowsky studies, this one is not only interessting on a technical level - I find it very beautiful and even though Chopin's original is far superior, this one has a nice "scent" of Godowsky to it, like some new melodies and atmospheres are added. Defo my favourite of his etudes!

[anonymousQ45]

@MrRosfordKjaerulff the one for left hand is good too. i wouldnt say its "far superior" thats kind of disrespectful dont you think?? Chopin is the originator of course, but Godowsky made the etude more musical and covered a greater technical ground

[MrRosfordKjaerulff]

@anonymousQ45 Yes, you have a point :) Sry my English is not that good, and maybe I didn't express myself the way I intended to.

I like Chopin's original better, but this piece is so.. HUGE. The "fff" part at 1:14 almost brings tears to my eyes.

[anonymousQ45]

@MrRosfordKjaerulff of course, theres nothing wrong with liking the original better. i actually think if i heard the original first i would have liked it better too.

[rittelmann]

great!!!!!!!!!

[chutdigadut]

Godly

[avalanche183]

This is so beautiful.

[OceanbornSWT]

This really shows the love that Godowsky had for Chopin, awesome etudes based on Chopin's Etudes.

[chutdigadut]

Godowsky is pure MADNESS......holy crap, like is this SERIOUS right now!?

[ReclaimTheGlory]

How can this even be considered as being easier than the original? It is much harder in every way

[MrGrigor99]

Who said it was easier?? Every one of the Godowsky arrangements are at least TWICE as difficult as the original.

[debussy84]

I find the orginal much harder. Firstly, to learn and memorize godowsky's version is very quick IF you've learned the original first, ofcourse. Also, godowsky gives some leniency with the speed at 144. The problem with orginal is the right hand has no "breaks", and is completely outstreched, and at lightning speed for the entire song, which is not the case with godwosky's. The original is waaay more physically demanding. Cziffra's live version is a good example.

[mgager06]

@debussy84 this version essentially plays the right hand from the original with the left, and makes the new right hand even more difficult. In what way is this easier than the original.

[debussy84]

@mgager06 Well, i'm by no means stating this as a fact for everyone, just my opinion in my attemps at both. For me, the right hand is made easier in this "remix". Firstly, kicking up the metronome by a single notch makes these pieces noticeably harder and the original is drastically faster by comparison. Also, the remix is the same melody in 3/4, so the original actually requires 4 most 16ths per EACH bar, and yet the original is still completed much sooner.

[debussy84]

@mgager06 Also, the stress that develops from the right hand being out-stretched at lightning speed with no chance to breathe for the entire original is prevented by the chords and short intervals that appear regularly throughout godowsky's

[MrGrigor99]

If I tried to learn this thing, I would never have time to date! Or anything else!

[itsanthonyhere]

Being a musician has nothing to do with trying to date. That shouldn't even be an issue on your mind.

[Eztoez]

What can one say ? Staggeringly difficult to pull off,. but then again we're talking about Hamelin, one of the greatest living pianists. Makes my fingers ache just reading the music lol. Godowsky must have been some pianist.

[Troybeallad]

What would Chopin say?

He might be rather snooty, or perhaps enjoy it.

[blueberr1]

Wow, this Is more intense than his Revolutionary Etude!! I guess this is one of those songs that can actually hurt you...

[deathbymunkey]

I just had an aneurysm keeping up with the sheet music.

[rvn10rvn17]

really? i think hamelin never plays ossia.. he always sticks to the original..

[OrangeSodaKing]

Oh, well we are both half correct. Some ossias he did take, and some he didn't take.

[lhc89]

this is a superb performance by Hamelin

[Jim341046]

It's a real barn stormer.

[yattaw]

this version is easy to learn after the Chopin version because the left hand part in this is the original's right hand part

[Jim341046]

If you can play this you DO NOT need to practice your arpeggios!

[mdeonx16]

Once you master this etude with your fingers, the next step is to master them with your feet. Both are equally difficult xD

[SingHouse]

this is fucking crazy. I love it.

[warddavis]

I actually find it rather crude and tastless - maybe a good exercise in contrary motion arpeggios. Is this supposed to be an improvement on the original?... if so it has failed big time in my book. I agree with musician 2958 above that this is easier than the original ( and IMO musically quite inferior )

[afertyus1000]

no, it is obviously a more demanding piece than the original and therefore comes under technique,i play the original and this is harder

[wayneredhart]

@warddavis No. It isn't supposed to be an improvement. You "failed big time" by making such a small-minded assumption.

[warddavis]

@wayneredhart I asked a question - does anyone know if Godowsky mean't it to be an improvement. I didn't make an assumption. Look, in short its a very demanding piece played excellently by Hamelin. On its own terms I cannot knock it...but I much prefer the original as a " piece of music "...thats all!

[wayneredhart]

@warddavis Well, that's certainly a question that's heavily loaded with implication. Adding an "if" hardly makes your comment anyway less damning. Anyway, for you information, Godowksy stated in the most specific terms possible that none of his studies were intended to improve on the originals. So, he didn't "fail big time".

[warddavis]

@wayneredhart Well thats me well told then! ha ha...just not a fan of listening to technically difficult vacuous music (more than once) ....fun to play for those with a big technique though - I can just about get through Chopins at a reasonable pace and I do have immense respect for Hamelin and anyone who can do this. I assume I am allowed to have an opinion. I am not advocating banning it!

[wayneredhart]

@warddavis You're more than welcome to dislike it. What I objected to your strong implication that Godowksy might have produced this because he thought he could do better than Chopin had. Personally I'm not a great fan of most of these studies, but I do find this particular one to be an interesting (and largely successful) experiment, musically as well as technically.

[wayneredhart]

@warddavis I don't see how you could call this "vacuous", when it has exactly the same harmonic foundations as Chopin's original, coupled with greater variety (both musically and technically) in the figurations. Chopin's original uses one single figuration with virtually no variety. So how can you refer to a more contrasted version as vacuous, but not the original? I don't really follow the logic of that statement.

[afertyus1000]

what a ridiculous comment this man would be a better pianist than you even if he had a 1 finger

[mdeonx16]

I can't blame him, look at that horrendously difficult manuscript @_@

Hamelin is better than any other contender, no exceptions.

[Rickykwun]

good!

It sounds quite funny, rather I like Chopin etude one!! It;s a good challenge!!!

[musician2598]

I have Berezovsky as my favourite Chopin/Godowsky pianist. If you really really master this one, you can make it spacious, staccato, or whatever. Just a question of taste.

Would be interesting to discuss here techniques and methods of learning to play it.

[aardvaark069]

For spacious grandeur in this piece you can't beat Bolets performance. This Hamelin performance is superb too, I think.

[musician2598]

I find the Godowsky version of this one much more easy to play than the original, but it might be individual I guess. It will take quite a time to master it, but it will be worth it :)

[wayneredhart]

@musician2598 If you haven't mastered it then you're not in a position to say that it's easier than the original.

[Webarton]

LOL this is sooo much harder than the other one.

[anonymousQ45]

i have the studio recording this is my favorite godowsky etude in faCT THE ONLY ONE I LIKED BETTER THAN THE ORIGINAL CHOPIN ETUDES sorry for those caps lol no emphasis on them. its well put together and is very magical

[danedaworld]

....yea my ears are inversed now lol

[jasonextreme]

I literally downloaded all these Godowsky etudes on IMSLP. org. The same goes for all Alkan etudes, Chopin, Liszt etc. God, I love the internet.

[SilentViolins]

@jasonextreme It's a really convenient site... but good luck playing those pieces!

[scriabinwasmydad]

interestingly Hamelin omits the optional octaves in the right hand the first time around but opts for them the 2nd time. The choice is great, although even for me the choice is weird since he didn't use it the first time around. I would've thought if he chose it once, then he might as well use it wherever the option is given.

M-A Hamelin's performance is superb!

[JohnJiren]

@scriabinwasmydad I think he chose to do the octaves the second time only to make it more intense instead of keeping it the same.

[123eldest]

@scriabinwasmydad I would think it was weird if he chose to play the octaves the first time and not after that. The other way around does kind of make sense.

[MichaelHTillman]

There's something to be said for asymmetry.



[DualThunder]

@scriabinwasmydad perhaps because it occurs twice, doing it in octaves the second time not only restates that figure, but also elates it to a more profound statement? The change in texture and volume brings it further to the fore..... maybe. lol

[talonboy5432]

Thanks for the uploads of Godowsky's Chopin Etudes...They are awfully hard to play which makes a lack of it on Youtube.

[Egide0]

GODOWKSY WAS A GENIUS.... PERIOD.

[ReclaimTheGlory]

I think this version is considerably easier... but thats just IMO

[aewanko300]

Are you going to post more of these? Godowsky's reworking are very interesting.

[Hexameron]

Yes, I'll upload more in the future.

[Egide0]

THANK YOU! WHERE DID YOU GET THESE??

[UKpiano]

Is the original op10/1 by Chopin more difficult? This may appear to be a dumb question....but op10/1 as it stands is exceptionally difficult anyway.

[vkdlano]

I think this piece is more harder than original by Chopin.

Because of left hand.

[Androslav]

I agree. It's the left hand.

[SCOREdom]

wow! i have heard Libetta, Hamelin, Madge, Berezovsky, and Grante in these ...

I was planning to post all the etudes but its so much work. as you can see, i havent posted much, very very busy. thanks for the dedication. I'll throw something your way too! :)

gH

[sparkape91]

jerk.

[francescaemc2]

Beautiful reading. Great post.

Bravi.

[MarasVeil]

I am so thrilled to find this posted here. Thank you for paying attention to interpretations and also composers rarely heard. Hamelin is suberb.

[fatherwkd]

Thank You So Much for posting .

[Reaper978]

Thanks for posting, I've wanted to hear this.

[gjeacocke]

It amazes me that the critics who first heard these way back when it first appeared hated these and thought it to be overshadowing Chopin and his works. Such a progressive change in sound like the gears changing in a car