Quote, yes. Copy, no. We like to be our bios as least a little different from other ones, otherwise we would rip them from wikepedia ourselves and not ask members to help out.

Alexander Nikolajewitsch Tscherepnin was born on 21. january 1899 in Sankt Petersburg, Russia. He was a composer and pianist.
He was teached first by his father, Nikolai Tscherepnin, then he studied on the conservatory of Petrogrand and in Tiflis and got also lessons from Isidore Philipp. After having toured as pianist, he moved to Shanghai in 1934 and married to a chinese pianist, Lee Hsien Ming. From 1938 to 1945, he was teacher for russian Music at the Conservatory in Paris, from 1949 to 1964, he had a professorship in Chicago, and after, he lived as a pianist in New York City.
Tscherepnin died in on 29. september 1977 in Paris.
Among other works, tscherepnin composed four operas, five ballets, four Sinfonias, six piano concertos, to pianosonatas and liturgical pieces.

Hi jlr43!


Imagine, I wanted to make more ritardando there, but I wouldn't have played the little notes of the right hand slower, only the pauses between.
But several piano profs told me that this would be confusing and strange, and I should either play tones AND pauses slower or I should stay in tempo. And I didn't like to slow down this little murmurous frazzles, so I didn't make a ritardando (almost)...
This doesn't make it better to you, it just explains

To the Brahms: This was (is) really a very difficult piece to me, maybe the most difficult, although I admit that the etude maybe is harder to play, but also this brahms is for me MUCH more difficult than it sounded to me before. It doesn't sound much more difficult than a Chopin-Nocturne, does it?
I talked to another piano student who told me that for her it is just the other way around: For her, Chopin is much more difficult than Brahms, she loves brahms and it is easy for her to play. I really can't understand that. We found out, that she is thinking in harmonys (she is studying this also) and I am thinking rather in melodys. And Chopin is very melodic, brahms isn't in that way, but it helps very much to know and remember the harmonys, what I can't very good.
And the other thing is, that the atmosphere and message of this piece is gloomy and gray and very discontent and nervous, with a big uneasiness.
The mood is changing, and one has to decide wether its a good ending or not, or what sort of ending it is.
And last but not least, what is "agitato" in this case? Does it mean "fast" or "hectically" or is it maybe an allusion to this interior imbalance (this is what I think)?
And this piece doesn't really fit to my fingers, I don't know... It was my teacher who told me to absolutely play brahms, and she also wants me to continue with it. I will see how this will end
Maybe the missing balance and thickness you heard belongs to this piece? I don't know.

Mozart: My teacher also tells me all the time that I have to work on my staccato. I'm doing, but it still isn't perfect
To the underlying rhythmic pulse - do you have an example?

You see I try to think a lot about what I'm playing, and anyway it is difficult enough to play really good. I always try to do better.

Anne

Thanks for the bio, Anne. I did some editing and it's up now.

Hello Anne,

Sorry for the delay in response -- been fairly busy these past couple of weeks. But I think you raise some very interesting points, so I thought I'd still reply



Though personally it doesn't convince me, I've heard many other pianists do it this way too. I definitely think it's a valid interpretation, and you certainly maintain the tempo very fluidly from beginning to end.



Interesting discussion about Brahms vs. Chopin. I think the two composers are difficult in different ways, as you suggest. Part of sorting out Brahms's complex harmonic modulations lies in orchestrally balancing his rather lush textures. I think Brahms wrote exquisite melodies too, although in this regard he was perhaps not quite the equal of Chopin and arguably this aspect of Brahms is even better exhibited in his symphonies and chamber music.



I think you're right, definitely the latter. "Agitato" pieces are unlikely to be really slow, but I think the term refers to an inherent flexibility tempo-wise. Two examples of "agitato" that immediately come to mind are Chopin preludes 1 and 8. The passion of these pieces is in the rubato and rhythmic fluctuations.



Yes. Brahms, unlike Chopin, was not a great virtuoso, making the writing a bit more clumsy and difficult for the pianist to tackle; I too find that some of his figurations can be awkward.



I listened to the Mozart again. I guess a couple of things I noticed are toward the end of the first section, the ritards seemed a bit too extravagant. I liked your general idea to rein in, but it seemed that it could have more subtlety. Some of the runs gushed forward a bit, and some of the melodies sounded a little mooned over IMHO. I personally like Mozart to have a bit more rhythmic bite. The return to the recapitulation also seemed slightly rushed to me, particularly the thirty-seconds leading into it. Taking more time might make it come across more elegantly.

Just a couple of quibbles really. Overall, everything you play in these performances is very cleanly and masterfully executed.

Joe