“Ein Prosit der Gemütlichkeit!”*) — Four famous composers at the Wiesn**).

Posted on October 1, 2018 by Wolf-Dieter Seiffert

Yesterday evening I was once again sitting in the party tent at the world famous Munich Oktoberfest with a good Mass Bier***). Facing me sat four rather odd-looking men who introduced themselves as “perennial musicians”. I didn’t really quite catch their names (for the band in the tent was very loudly playing “music”). But their appearance and their speech certainly seemed somehow weird to me, in fact, “old-fashioned” – then suddenly it hit me, WHO they were, sitting at my table. Hard to believe, but for sure!! Continue reading →

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Debussy in Urtext – Part 5: Corrections in the galley proofs for the piano piece “Masques”

Posted on September 17, 2018 by Peter Jost

Correction in the proof of Masques.

Needless to say, every editor of an Urtext edition wishes to have a source situation as complete as possible, starting from the first sketch of a work up to the authorised edition appearing in the composer’s lifetime. A particularly important link in this chain are the autograph corrections from the galley proofs, since they connect the engraver’s model with the first edition and help to account for differences between these two sources. Continue reading →

Posted in Debussy, Claude, Maques (Debussy), Monday Postings, piano solo, Sources, Urtext | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Johann Nepomuk Hummel’s Potpourri op. 94 for Viola and Orchestra – for your kind attention!

Posted on September 3, 2018 by Norbert Gertsch

To my great joy, this year and last year the wonderful Antoine Tamestit has been heard several times in concert with a work that has long been completely unknown, even to connoisseurs of the viola repertoire: Johann Nepomuk Hummel’s Potpourri op. 94 for viola und orchestra. Continue reading →

Posted in Antoine Tamestit, Hummel, Johann Nepomuk, Potpourri op. 94 (Hummel), Tabea Zimmermann | Leave a comment

Summer, sun and holidays!

Posted on July 30, 2018 by publisher

It’s vacation time and so the Henle-Blog is taking a break for summer as well.

We’d like to thank all of our readers for their interest and are looking forward to our next blog entry on September 3rd 2018.

We wish you a nice summer!

Your Henle Blog Team

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Debussy in Urtext – Part 4: Autograph corrections in chamber-music works

Posted on July 16, 2018 by Peter Jost

Claude Debussy (1862–1918)

It goes without saying that the focus would be on Debussy’s piano works from the outset of Henle editions of the French composer’s music. For one thing, because the publishing house’s self-image was based from the start on the core repertoire of piano music forming its catalogue; but also because of Debussy’s large multitude of pioneering and popular compositions in this genre – from the Arabesques to the Études. Continue reading →

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More or less – Bartók’s well-regulated markings of his piano works

Posted on July 2, 2018 by Annette Oppermann

Dénes Várjon

To continue my last blog with an overview of our Urtext editions of Bartók’s piano works, I am devoting today’s posting to a small but very significant aspect of these editions: their fingering and performance markings. And I am very happy that this time not only the great Hungarian Bartók scholar László Somfai but also the great Hungarian pianist – and Bartók specialist! – Dénes Várjon shared their opinions with me. Continue reading →

Posted in Bartók, Béla, Dénes Várjon, Fingering, Monday Postings, piano solo | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The première of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Sonata op. 36

Posted on June 18, 2018 by Dominik Rahmer

Moscow, St. Petersburg, Rostov-on-Don, Saratov, Smolensk, Voronezh – what do these Russian cities have in common? No, these are not venues of the World Cup, just starting in Russia… Continue reading →

Posted in 2nd piano sonata op. 36 (Rachmaninoff), Monday Postings, piano solo, Rachmaninoff, Sergei | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

The “Picardy” major third in Chopin’s incredibly sad c-sharp minor Nocturne

Posted on June 6, 2018 by Wolf-Dieter Seiffert

What a liberating, even redemptive impact that the unexpected major third closing a piece in the minor can have, is known above all to those of us who play and listen to Bach. To give just one example that everyone would know: The strictly and relentlessly advancing c-minor prelude from the first volume of the “Well-Tempered Clavier” bursts into bloom on the very last beat with a wonderful C-major triad. (Also, my favourite Bach prelude, the one in f-sharp minor, ending in F-sharp major, from the second volume.) “Picardy” is what Rousseau calls such a kind of replacement of the third at the end of a minor piece. Continue reading →

Posted in autograph, Chopin, Frédéric, copy, Monday Postings, piano solo | Tagged | 3 Comments

Debussy in Urtext – Part 3: Debussy’s recordings of his piano music

Posted on May 21, 2018 by Peter Jost

Debussy at the piano

Editors of Urtext editions have added a new medium as a possible source for the period from about 1890 onwards:  historical recordings, whether played by interpreters closely associated with the composer, or even by the composer himself. This is especially true of composers’ recordings of their own piano works, since most composers of the time were also good pianists who even performed in concerts. In conjunction with recordings by Debussy and Ravel of their own piano works, Peter Cossé has left us this beautiful bon mot, ‘acoustical view under the pianistic rock of music history’. Continue reading →

Posted in Debussy, Claude, Monday Postings, recording | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Confusion about Chopin’s Scherzi – episode 4

Posted on May 7, 2018 by Norbert Müllemann

F. Chopin (1810–1849)

At the beginning of the year I reported on my work on the two Scherzi nos. 2 & 3 by Frédéric Chopin. Even then I could announce that episode 4 would not be long in coming – and now I am keeping my promise! The revised E-major Scherzo op. 54 will soon be published, followed by a complete revised volume of all four of Frédéric Chopin’s Scherzi. Continue reading →

Posted in Chopin, Frédéric, Monday Postings, Scherzo op. 54, Sources, versions | Tagged , | 1 Comment