Author : Bela Bartok

Description

Author : Bela Bartok

Description

Author : Bela Bartok, Willard A. Palmer

Description

Author : Bela Bartok

Description

In a note accompanying the anticipated first edition of his Hungarian Peasant Songs in 1914, Bartók stated that “the melodies presented here are folksongs in the truest sense of the word; more specifically, peasant songs.” However, he initially chose to withhold this work from publication, subsequently incorporating additional pieces that he had gathered from folk music during that period. The first edition was ultimately released in 1920. László Somfai, a noted Bartók scholar, elucidates the intricate development of this work in his preface. The remarks at the conclusion of this edition provide significant insights into performance practices, informed by the two recordings the composer made of several pieces in 1927 and 1936. The musical text presented here aligns with the corresponding volume of the Bartók Complete Edition, which is currently under preparation. This edition represents yet another highly esteemed work by Bartók available from G. Henle Publishers.

Author : Bela Bartok

Tags : Piano

Description

he six dances form the final culmination of Bartók's "Mikrokosmos" (HN 1408-1410), a monumental work comprising over 150 pieces. The composer dedicated this grouping, collected under its own title, to the renowned English pianist Harriet Cohen. Inspired by the dances, this specialist in contemporary music found in them "a whole world of music" and championed the pieces. Bartók himself added the dances to his concert repertoire early on, though initially in a reduced form that omitted the fifth dance, which he composed at the end of 1939 as one of the last works in the collection. This Urtext edition of the six dances also features an early version of the concluding piece and provides interesting background details about Bartók's own recital practice. The musical text is based on the Bartók Complete Edition.

Author : Bela Bartok

Description

The two pieces included in this volume are transcriptions from Bartók's Ten Easy Piano Pieces, a collection created for educational purposes in 1908. While their themes evoke Hungarian and Slovak folk songs, they do not represent authentic folk melodies. Bartók noted in an American interview that An Evening in the Village is "an original composition" featuring themes of his own creation, yet styled after Hungarian-Transylvanian folk tunes. The piece consists of two themes: the first exhibits a parlando-rubato rhythm, while the second adopts a more dance-like quality, resembling the sound of a peasant flute. An Evening in the Village has gained popularity and is a favorite of Bartók's, who often performed it at recitals. In 1931, he also arranged it for orchestra as the first piece in Hungarian Sketches.

Author : Bela Bartok

Description

Long before the creation of his renowned "Mikrokosmos," Bartók developed an extensive anthology of small piano compositions titled "For Children." Composed between 1908 and 1911, this collection consists of two volumes that draw upon Hungarian folk melodies in the first volume and Slovakian folk tunes in the second. The pieces are arranged in a progressive manner, ranging from straightforward two-part compositions to Impressionistic vignettes, catering to the capabilities of young pianists. In the 1940s, Bartók undertook a revision of this collection, enhancing the musical content and assigning titles to each movement. The revised edition serves as the primary text for our Urtext publication, while an appendix includes movements from the original version that differ significantly from the later revisions. As is customary in Henle’s editions of Bartók, there are notes on performance practice and insights into the composer’s own interpretations of these works.

Author : Bela Bartok

Description

Author : Bela Bartok

Description

Following his composition of 15 Hungarian peasant songs (HN 1404), these Improvisations on Hungarian peasant songs represent the second instance in which Bartók incorporates the phrase “Hungarian peasant songs” into the title of his work. The way in which he engages with folk melodies, intertwining them with subtle avant-garde elements, was later characterized by Bartók himself as exploring “the outermost limits.” Furthermore, he deconstructs the song structures to such an extent that the term “improvisations” aptly reflects his methodology in approaching this folk music. The musical text of this Urtext edition, curated by Bartók scholar László Somfai, is derived from the pertinent volume of the Bartók Complete Edition. Concluding remarks in this edition provide significant insights into performance practice.