Today’s post features a short masterwork by Fanny Mendelssohn. For a long time she was mostly famous as Felix Mendelssohn’s sister, and as the composer of a few beautiful songs that were published under her brother’s name—but in recent years, as the full extent of her enormous compositional oeuvre Continue Reading
Cole Anderson
Hello, my name is Cole. I've been playing the piano for most of my life, and I love sharing my passion for music and the piano with all music lovers.
Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 1, 1st mvt
Today’s post features Rachmaninoff’s great 1917 revision of his Piano Concerto No. 1. This piece was originally written in 1891, when Rachmaninoff was only 18 and still a student at the Moscow Conservatory. I talk a bit about the differences between the original and the revision and also about some Continue Reading
Selim Palmgren: Snöflingor
In today’s post I talk about an exquisite miniature by Selim Palmgren (1878-1951), his “Snöflingor” or “Snowflakes” Op. 57 no. 2. Palmgren was a highly regarded composer, pianist and conductor in his time—he was one of the generation of composers after Sibelius who made some mark with his hauntingly beautiful Continue Reading
Mompou: Canción y danza no. 6
In today’s video I talk about Federico Mompou’s Canción y danza no 6. Mompou’s 15 Canciónes y danzas were a career-long project—the first was written in 1921, and the last in 1979. Unlike the majority of the other Canciónes y dances, no. 6 (written in 1941) is entirely original, and Continue Reading
Tchaikovsky: Valse sentimentale
Today’s video is a performance of a lovely little miniature that Tchaikovsky wrote in 1882—the Valse sentimentale op.51 no.6. I first heard this piece in a performance in an old documentary by the wonderful cellist Gregor Piatigorsky—and I was surprised to learn later that the usual way that string players Continue Reading
Glenn Gould thought Mozart was a bad composer??
Today’s video is a little bit of a departure from my habit thus far—I stumbled across a brilliantly fascinating and slightly infuriating video of Glenn Gould criticizing Mozart the other day, so I decided to do a reply in which I directly address Gould’s points. Mozart is one of Continue Reading
Schubert: Wanderer Fantasy
Today’s video is about Schubert’s Wanderer Fantasy. Written in 1822, this piece was a very influential work for the next generation of composers. In particular, Schubert’s use of cyclic form in this piece enormously influenced Liszt’s Piano Sonata in B minor. The way Schubert handles the melodic material in Continue Reading
Schubert-Liszt: “Der Wanderer” Song Transcription
Today’s video is our first song transcription. Song transcriptions are a fascinating genre in the piano repertoire, and in this video, I go into some of the dangers and possibilities of song transcription. This song is a work of genius that Schubert composed when he was only 19 years old—it Continue Reading
Schubert Hungarian Melody
Today’s post is a remarkably beautiful miniature from Franz Schubert—written in supposed Hungarian style! I talk a bit about the ways that Schubert tries to suggest a Hungarian idiom as well as beginning to discuss some of the special qualities that I love about this composer. We will be having Continue Reading
Schubert: Hungarian Melody
Today’s post is another shorter piece: Schubert’s Hungarian Melody. This piece encapsulates in miniature all the things I love about Schubert: The spacious calmness of his forms, the brilliantly subtle touches in the piano writing, and the pure beauty of his melodic and harmonic genius. I’ll be posting more Continue Reading