Henselt - Etude Op. 5 No. 2

Etude No. 2 in G major from the Douze Etudes de salon Op. 5 (1838)

"No 2 is an arpeggio study for the right hand, somewhat after the manner of Chopin's Op 10 No 1, adding to the stretch of a tenth with further notes on the second half-beat of each group of semiquavers, thus enriching the texture, a feature of Henselt's and of later Russian music."

Nicknamed the "Northern Chopin" by Schumann, Adolf von Henselt (1814-1889) was a stellar 19th-century piano virtuoso and composer once as famous as Chopin. In his early virtuoso career, he was respected by many of the early Romantics, and his two sets of etudes received ebullient praise from Schumann, who said they were some of the best piano music being written in the 1830s.

In 1838, Henselt moved to St. Petersburg and was one of the first great pedagogues to teach music in Russia before any conservatories existed. His presence and his compositions arguably established the foundation of the Russian piano school and influenced many Russian composers from Balakirev to Rachmaninov.

Henselt's performing career had a short lifespan. He was notoriously shy and suffered from severe stage fright that eventually terminated his ability to perform in concert. Although his earliest compositions, namely the two sets of etudes and the monumental Piano Concerto in F minor were successful, he composed a relatively small output compared to other pianist-composers of the time. Out of his 45 published works, the two sets of etudes (Op. 2 and 5) must rank as the greatest of their kind, sitting comfortably alongside Chopin's, Liszt's, and Alkan's.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• chopin
• liszt
• alkan

[morvensky]

I sense influence of Chopin etude op.10 no.1. Henslet's etudes are much underrated, I like his solo music a lot but I do not see why everyone loves the piano concerto so much.

[tommy9882]

I think Henselt can rise one to two level in popularity

He is even lesser known than Alkan,Alkan was getting known more nowadays :P

[orreguin]

Whose version is it?

[robertslistening]

This reminds me of Chopin op 10 no 1 with more some contemporary alterations.

[123eldest]

@morvensky because it brilliant!

[paopaomanalansan]

This sounds like Chopin's etude op 10 no 8 in F...

[rvn10rvn17]

chopin can file a lawsuit against henselt for plagiarism..

good work though..

[lio689]

Variation of Chopin etude op.10 n°1 in F major mixed with op.10 n°8 lol

[f1f1s]

I love your tags to this video: "Chopin, Liszt, Alkan" - truly, they paved the way the others followed. I love your sense of humour...

[massimiliano123123]

...This etude is a beautiful variation of the Chopin's etude op 10

[Snafuski]

@morvensky Actually a mix of the 0p. 10 no. 1 and the feel of the Op 10 no. 8... The f-minor piano concerto, in my ears, has the heavy drama of the 19th century in it. And it simply has a great deal of energy to it. It is also one of the very difficult pieces (I used to have a score), and so people like it for the acrobatics. ...

[Lukecash12]

It also sounds like something alkan would have composed, minus the trademark thematic developments and Alkan's own brand of counterpoint and rhythmic device in general.