Godowsky plays Schumann "Carnaval" (III)

Composed in September 1834, Carnaval is a series of tableaux, a masked ball in which one character after another takes centre-stage. It was described by the composer as "Little scenes on four notes", a reference to the exercise in creative cryptography by which Schumann proclaimed his love for Ernestine von Fricken through the music.

The letters ASCH, which spell Ernestine's birthplace as well as a fragment of his own name, translate in German musical notation into the notes A, E flat, C and B. Permutations of these notes litter the entire score, generating the themes for the Carnival characters, some of them historical (Chopin and Paganini), others folkloric (Pierrot and Harlequin) and others incarnations of Schumann's various personae (Florestan and Eusebius).

It concludes with a march of the Davidsbündler, in which the Philistines are put triumphantly to flight.

PART I : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TgkOjCHjG8
- Préambule
- Pierrot
- Arlequin
- Valse noble
- Eusebius
- Florestan
- Coquette
- Réplique
- Sphinxes (It is generally omitted in performance and recording, like Godowsky's, but Rachmaninoff and Cortot included it in their recordings. This consists of three sections of one bar each, with no key, tempo or dynamic indications. The notes are in the configurations S-C-H-A, As-C-H and A-S-C-H.)
- Papillons
- Lettres dansantes (A.S.C.H. - S.C.H.A.)

PART II : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIM2MSm1jOc
- Chiarina
- Chopin
- Estrella
- Reconnaissance
- Pantalon et columbine
- Valse allemande
- Intermezzo: Paganini
- Aveu
- Promenade

PART III :
- Pause
- Marche des Davidsbündler contre les Philistins

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Category:

Music

Tags:

• Leopold
• Godowsky
• Schumann
• Carnaval
• Horowitz
• Richter
• Gilels
• Kempff
• Cortot