12 Grandes Etudes No.8 - Franz Liszt

[forgottenbooks]

This may be slower than the speed Liszt recommended, but faster does not always mean better.

[TheLolMenPeople]

Im not suprised that hes playing it slowed down a lot, I litterally havent heard this piece at full speed by a human being, if only liszt was here to play it at the horrendous hard speeds that they were writtin and played in. I swear liszts an alien or something lol.

[FranzLisztFerentz]

I played this piece better... Then I woke up

[toremindthose]

Piano + Liszt = Immaculate Perfection

[KBLgames]

@nazhiitoxx

No.5 is harder

[DanMarcy1]

@KBLgames No

[classicalhero7]

There are reasons why Liszt made the Transcendental Etudes, since the changes in the Piano made some of the effects he had with the older piano so different, especially the bit where the runs with the pedal to be held and he changes it to just octaves in the newer version

[TheClaux97]

4:30 O.O

[chopinpianist1991]

You have never seen Hammelin Liszt version etudies its more more more dificult than Liszt

[NathanPhungMusic]

@chopinpianist1991 Hamelin's set of etudes are inspired by different composers. Hamelin's La Campanella is just one from the set.

[liszt141]

Of all the Grand etudes, I feel this is the one that's most expressive. And the fact that it's 8 minutes makes it all the more better.

[scriabinish]

I have a feeling that Howard is not the best person to be playing these...

[SanctumZero]

@scriabinish Nah, IMO he cheats by going really slow in most of the Grandes. But he probably had a deadline with his project of recording all the Liszt compositions, "so better play some of the compositions at half speed and use half as much time practicing them! :D So I can put out twice as many cd's"

[FfSpgfLerWhd]

Maybe such a sensational piece should be played as cautiously as this

[orgelfan]

That's not the original score. I don't kwow this version. hm ??? Could it be that is a version by Cziffra?

[orgelfan]

That's not the original score. I don't kwow this version. hm ???

[vokuheila]

howard seems to be struggling at the piano on this one. All things considered... not a surprise

[aosjimzaw]

maronnasanta..

[v4liumfrance]

hardest are chasse neige and feu follet

[lottoformulier]

@v4liumfrance I find mazeppa and n°10 harder than chasse neige.. :)

[BlazeKenny]

@v4liumfrance This isnt a transcendental etude dude....He is talking about 12 Grandes etudes

[MetalNicola]

Ma minchia!

[massimiliano123123]

@MetalNicola Già! Sono molto più difficili degli studi trascendentali!

[massimiliano123123]

@MetalNicola Tra l'altro è molto più lungo del "Wilde Jagd" (Studio Trascendentale n 8)

[712Stephen]

Liszt's études sound so ... ugly and bland to me.

[despina41]

@712Stephen, probably bc this is a rather uninspired performance. Check out Arrau. He plays it in 5 minutes - definitely strepitoso!

[IDTFG]

@despina41 Arrau is awesome, and plays with far more vim and power, but he never played this version as far as I know. Just the Wilde Jagd version, which has considerably less music in it and is far more playable. This is bordering on impossible.

[bugsfan]

I love the 2 notes at 0:48, after those rapid chromatic runs, as if Liszt is just joking and being a dick. Great stuff, great playing =)

[Haeronthegreat]

This is just ridiculous. Picking out the melody from the scales first and then the arpeggios later... cruelty!

[AlexAlcyone]

Badass performance of a Badass piece! I love it. Howard himself said that Liszt demanded the impossible in this one.

Lisz's composition is so underrated, if a little strange sometimes.  The middle section from 2.10 to 3.37 is to die for... but sandwiched between what could be argued to be two areas of pure "stunt piano playing". The perfect encore?

[MasterAzunai]

so much harder than the 1852 ones hahaha but amazing

[FranzLisztian]

The intro is such bullshit

[chutdigadut]

DUDE, what the hell?! this makes the newer version look like a walk through the park on a sunny day......

[Jim341046]

Who's harder? Listz or Alkan?

[ultracoolhomies]

@Jim341046 Alkan

[SlyStallone208]

@Jim341046 probably Alkan, but I find Liszt has more music than just difficulty. Of course thats just my own opinion.

[richclayderman]

All of Alkan's works demanded virtuosity but not all of Liszt's, he kinda made an exception with the 12 etudes, though.

[robfuturemd]

@Jim341046 Liszt!! by far!! Escpecially with the Grande Etudes!!

[scriabin007]

oh dear....thats really liszt....he putt all kinde of dramatic in it....but in one way...its really trandentental!!

[Starbirdy9999]

Liszt nicknamed this piece "Wilde Jagd."

[FranzLisztian]

No he didn't.

[Starbirdy9999]

Well, at least in the Trancendental version.

[FranzLisztian]

That however, is correct.

[Starbirdy9999]

Oh. I thought were named that.

[Ray0X0]

Bravo, great, great interpretation by Leslie Howard. The twelve Liszt's etudes must be a real head ache for any musician but they are stunning.

[jackewiebohne]

i honestly doubt your judgement of technical difficulties. of course one can never be sure what exactly is the most difficult - that always depends on your own technical weaknesses. but most difficulties in this etude belong to the standard repertoire of a virtuoso pianist - being octaves, chords and fast runs.

i think there would not be one pianist who would doubt that "feux follets" (number 5 of the grandes etudes) is the hardest. in this case leslie howard himself says it, too.

[twooffour]

Sorry, your response makes no sense at all.

The syncopated passages I'm talking about are the same in both versions, and he plays them right here in a simplified way.

[AcePro]

My god, now THAT'S pianism. I don't even care about the difficulty anymore, that's a hell of a well written piece!!!!

[twooffour]

Why does he change / simplify the syncopated rhythm at the beginning?

It's not like he was unable (he does pull it off at other similar places), but I also don't understand the rationale behind it (plus I don't like it).

Anyone with an answer?

[freaky666freak]

hmm that would hurt thee fingers lol awesome piece

[hyperkeyboard91]

Wow,It's....too powerful!!!

[AlexPxr8]

It's commonly held that #5 is the hardest. However Leslie Howard said of #8 that "Liszt demands the impossible" at the beginning of this piece. In the "rumble of notes" you're supposed to pick out a clean descending scale of accented notes... Howard, though amazing, can barely do it - you can hear.

There are also other pieces of Liszt's - such as "Grande fantaisie di bravura sur La clochette de Paganini" - which are in a similar category.

[kusuna7]

I absolutely agree. This etude is played in a way which is very muddled; in most of the Douze Grandes Etudes Howard seems to be struggling at the piano.

[AminelikesStephanie]

i think 4 is the most diffucult

[jackewiebohne]

number 4 is actually easier in this version than in the third version known as "transcendental etudes". at least it was to me as i played both.

[Aul1kki]

Interesting, because I would imagine that 3 thirds are harder than 2 thirds. And I agree with you that which one is hard for somebody is easy to somebody else.

[jackewiebohne]

well that's true - 3 thirds are harder than two, but however to me at least the thirds weren't the major challenge. one of the harder parts to me was the new beginning with the pretty fast run that you need some complicated fingering for, since it kind of has jumps in it, too, if you understand what i mean.

[Aul1kki]

Yeah I know what you mean. That part doesn't even exist in GE version of 4 etude. But for me it's just a little bit more complicated scale. You will get use to that if you play liszt's finger exercises. I think the middle part of GE version is even better than in TE version. Maybe I should play the GE version too. Even though I have played only some parts of mazeppa.

[addeex1]

Did you play the GE version in right tempo then?, because it´s a bitch then :D Large jumps etc

[jackewiebohne]

but howard refers to that being impossible on modern pianos, since liszt originally intended to have the pedal held for about 40 notes or so - and then it only IS impossible to hear the melody in the right hand. but that is only a difficulty not in technicality, nor in musicality but is simply a mechanical problem of your instrument. liszt later revised his rather strange (to modern pianos) pedaling - since later pianos in his lifetime had already trouble keeping the clear melody from blurring

[twooffour]

He didn't only change the pedalling, though :)

[Gutelimpa]

Haha yeah.

I looked into the sheets of this piece of music and when I saw those "rumble of notes" I didn't know what to think, it looks impossible.

I would do anything to be able to play like Liszt.

[samyooljackson]

May Liszt be with you always.

[treskro3]

this really sounds a lot different than the transcendental no.8

[thelittleliszt]

minchia raga se è difficile!..xò lo porto al diploma!

[hda10]

This etude is rather difficult, but Grand etude #4 (and earlier version of Mazeppa) is absolutely unplayable.

[MissPianist]

Hello hda10,

I love your opinion on the Lizst Etude. I'm just curious, if you were to choose one of the Lizst etude to play for a piano competition which one would you choose and why?

Thank you!

[addeex1]

Not unplayable, I can play it? :D