What do you consider to be essential repertoire for any serious and dedicated pianist?

I'll put in my two, as drilled into me by the head of piano at the conservatorium I attended...

1) All 24 Bach Preludes and Fugues from the Well Tempered Clavier

2) All Chopin Nocturnes

Suggestions?

For starters:

All 48 of Bach's Preludes and Fugues from the WTC

There is so much music for the piano that 50 different pianists could come up with their own lists - each enough to fill a lifetime of study - with barely a piece duplicated between them.

Oh jeez...embarassing! I was thinking 1 prelude and fugue for each major and minor key 12 times 2 = 24. You can tell I didn't take the head of piano's advice eh? I take it he wrote 2 for every key...oopsies!

You limit yourself with only TWTC by Bach and only the Etudes by Chopin.

To quote Charles Rosen from "Piano Notes":

"It would take only about eight hours to read through all the Schubert sonatas - less if you skip the repeats - and about another five to become acquainted with everything else he ever wrote for the solo piano: . . . one piano four hand would take only a little longer . . . in about 6 months of sight reading for 3 hours a day one could go through most of the keyboard music of Bach, Handel, Mozart, Chopin, Schumann, Mendelssohn, and Brahms. Another few months and one can add Haydn, Deussy, and Ravel. Another hour and a quarter would suffice for all of Schoenberg's piano muisic . . . and an hour and a half will get you through Stravinsky, including the works for piano and orchestra, and ten minutes each for the solo piano works of Anton von Webern and Alban Berg. . . not to have done this is . . . a handicap"

He is talking about sight reading, and is assuming that you are an accomplished pianist at the start of this oddessy of discovery; he does mention Beethoven elsewhere, and although he does not mention Liszt I am sure that most pianists would agree that claiming to be a serious pianist without playing any Liszt is unthinkable.

Nonetheless it is clear what he regards as the core repertoire and although you can add others from personal choice (e.g. Szymanowski, Gershwin, Ireland, etc.) it is hard to argue with his list as truly core repertoire.

Thanks for pointing that out - I'm sure ymapazagain was only going to play those two until you showed him the error of his ways...

Unsurprisingly, I disagree. Life is too short to play Liszt when there are so many other composers I like better.

Dur.
In the meantime, so interested in scoring cheap, inaccurate and irrelevant points that you missed the fact the the OP mentioned the Nocturnes by Chopin, not the Etudes. Mea culpa etc.

Clearly you are not "most pianists" but although you say you fall into the group who think that Liszt can be dispensed with completely I still stand by the opinion that MOST pianists would feel that SOME Liszt should be included in core repertoire - even if you don't, personally, play it. Or are you disagreeing with that opinion rather than the inclusion of Liszt in your own personal top 20? Or are you just being disagreeable for the sake of it? Silly question really.

Well...who'd have thought it would get so heated!

No, of course I didn't mean to ONLY play the WTC and Chopin Preludes - jeez would that get boring (even though they're great!)! But they're the two that the head of piano insisted that every pianist should be able to play so I thought i'd use them to kick off the discussion!

Of course that leaves open the discussion of IS there any piece that a pianist SHOULD have or is it entirely down to the individual and their tastes (as mad tom inferred). Of course a lot of people would agree with this, but some might not. That's what I was curious to find out!

Is there some law against being facetious on this forum? Why do you have to be so serious all the time?

You said that most pianists would agree that it was unthinkable. I felt that was rather overstating the case and so was giving a counter-example. Excuse me for not falling in with your opinion

I agree. It's unthinkable that any serious pianist can exclude greensleeves or chopsticks from their repertoire.

Seriously: I'm only a beginner player but listen to a *lot* of piano music . I love Liszt but to be honest there probably only one specific piece of his I want to learn when (if ever) I am proficient enough: Liebestraume no.3.

I can think of tonnes of other stuff I'd rather learn first I personally think that unless you aim to be a concert pianist, you should just build up a repertoire that you enjoy playing, comprising of music that you truly have an affinity with and a passion for. If that solely comprises contemporary music, for example, so be it.

I think this is good advice for concert pianists too. Who wants to hear someone playing something they don't have any passion for.

Yes I agree one should play what one likes, but to answer the original question I'll have a go at a very basic list which might be manageable Gr8 - Dip A standard.

Scarlatti: Some of his 550 keyboard Sonatas
Bach: Well Tempered Klavier or Keyboard Partitas
Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven : A few sonatas by each of them
Schubert: A couple of piano sonatas or the two sets of Impromptus. Moments Musicaux.
Mendelssohn: maybe some Songs without Words, eg 'Duetto'
Schumann: Kinderscenen, Waldscenen, or Papillons or Fantasiestucke. Or maybe Carnival !
Chopin: Some Waltzes, Mazurkas or Nocturnes
Brahms: Some of the pieces from Op117-119
Grieg: A few Lyric Pieces eg Butterfly, Nocturne, Wedding Day at Troldhaugen,
Debussy: Some of the two books of preludes.
Ravel: Sonatine, Minuet Antique, Le tombeau de Couperin
Bartok: Three Rondos, Fifteen Hungarian Folk Songs, a few pieces from later Mikrocosmos books, Sonatine
Shostakovich: Three Fantastic Dances, Preludes Op34, maybe a couple of the easier Preludes and Fugues Op87.

Nice list. But ... No Couperin, No Rameau, No Clementi, No Liszt, No Tchaikovsky, No Prokofiev, no Scriabine, No Rachmaninoff, (Chabrier, Richard Strauss, Schoenberg, Medtner, Saens-Saens, Albeniz, Dohnanyi, Ginastera, Sibelius, Stravinsky, Villa-Lobos, Martinu ... + many more)

In any case I failed! I play nothing by Brahms and only the easy Roumanian Folk Songs from Bartok

Yeah I probably should have included:-

Scriabin Preludes Op11.
Prokofiev Visions Fugitifs
Probably some Spanish type stuff like Albeniz/Granados (eg Valses Poeticos)
I didn't put Clementi is 'cos Haydn and Mozart were there.

I was aiming at Gr8 - Dip A level (sort of stuff I play myself), not much by Liszt/Rachmaninoff/Medtner to include there ! Anyway it was just a starting suggestion.

I rather take my life in my hands in disagreeing with Maledictis, but until fairly recently I was more or less in the anti-Liszt camp. That is, until I saw this fragment of "Totentanz", which softens even my hardened cardiac object.

a bit off topic, sorry... but I really hate it when little 5-year-olds come to the piano and play chopsticks, as their 'party piece', when I've been playing for 6 years and never learned it. Not that I regret it!! I like to show them up (and their generally pushy parents!) by then playing a piece by Debussy, or Mozart, or Scarlatti! The looks on their faces... brilliant!

Yes, you do, but luckily for you, I like you

(although I cannot get your link to work...)

EDIT: S'working now - very beautiful (the beginning bit, not so keen on the rest)

I want to learn the Les Dawson version of Scott Joplin's "The Entertainer"

You just can't help lowering the tone can you Sol...

Slightly off topic, but this is an amazing piece, and i've been obsessed with it ever since I heard it in concert the other week when Richard Meyrick played it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IimaCataHDY...feature=related
The pianist isn't Richard Meyrick, but Ivo Pogorelich, who i've never heard of, but he's obviously very good!

This should be on the list! Although, I have a feeling this piece is on the LRSM list, so might be a little difficult.

Jacob.

I am sort of being serious, I think everyone should have at least one light-hearted "party piece" to make everyone laugh once in a while

Actually, you are right

(I can't believe I just typed that )

I understand Maledictis plays that particular version very well indeed. Apparently she has such an affinity with the Les Dawson version that she uses his arrangements for most of the pieces she plays....

And you can shut it HG
(someone has voted for you and me for best couple *rofl*)

If only they knew, eh...?

Hahahah! Trust you to come out with that

Ooops! Have I let the cat out of the bag?

Oh, for goodness sake you two - you are so childish

*throws rattle at Carol's head*

The Chopin Scherzos are not easy pieces but they would be would be included in many people's "essential repertoire".

Ivo Pogorelich became famous when Martha Argerich walked off the jury of a competition in which he had played because the otehr judges did not agree with her judgement of him as a genius. He went on to have a major career. He once subsidised/sponsored a piano competition with a huge prize fund, but unfortunately it did not carry on.

That is a very old photograph of him on the YouTube link!


When I (proudly!!) played the opening of Tottentanz for Mrs MT she dismissed it as "sounds like silent film music!"


I think maledictis is wonderful

I'm quoting that - just in case you come to your senses and try to edit it

My mates plays the Thomas the Tank Engine Theme...it's brilliant and it always get's a laugh!

Full arrangement? Can you ask them where they got it from? That would probably be quite fun to play (isn't there a tricky, quickly repeated note in what I think would be around the 3rd bar near the beginning?)

Amongst others I have "Teddy Bear's Picnic", "Black and White Rag" (the theme to BBC"s Snooker programmes) and Felix Arndt's "Nola" as fun pieces, but the Simpson's theme would be a nice one to add.

I used to play a special arrangement of Chopsticks which was reserved for occasions where the potential audience did not realise I could actually play. It started very hesitatingly and badly, then - once people had stopped the sympathetic comments and chuckles - progressed gradually to all sorts of flashy variations, arpeggios, twiddly bits and cross hands stuff. It was great for a laugh, but I only really got to use it properly on a couple of occasions!

Mole

I firmly believe that "The Stripper" by David Rose is a must.

I dread the day when I turn up at my piano teacher's house and announce that I have a new piece that I'd like to work on - she is a nice church going woman.




Was it you who played it at Chetham's once?

Do you know "Dizzy Fingers" by Zez Confrey?
It's ace

(also "Russian Rag" by George L. Cobb "interpolating the world famous prelude by Rachmaninoff" )

I'm afraid not

He's a jazz muso and was able to work it all out by ear (a skill i'm lacking in unfortunately!). It is loosely based upon the jazz tune Take the A Train if that helps!

I settled for something a little easier and worked out the Rugrats theme

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-HvDAnN7Xw

A bit fast, but I just remembered what that was! They used it in the Morecambe and Wise Breakfast sketch.

You g*t! I really want to learn this now!!! This is on my ever-increasing "to do" list now I think as you say, my teacher might give me some odd looks if I say I want to learn this, she'll probably think I'm going for a part time job in a strip joint or something

It'd be hilariously ironic to play this on a proper church organ Should get some raised eyebrows!

I'll teach it to you next time I see you

(No, HG or Solari - not with the actions )

You're no fun anymore

(sorry to the OP for somewhat having hi-jacked this thread!)

You should be so lucky!

Aye, but I'm quite happy that my point about having a "comedy" piece has been accepted by so many I think it's pretty much an "essential" part of a repertoire. How many times do people say "play something I know!", then you think that it'd be great to put a huge smile on their faces?

back on topic...

I actually bought the music yesterday and had a little look last night. Needs good co-ordination between right and left hands but doesn't look too hard. May play it at a forume concert soon......

Excellent - make sure it is one that I am attending!

Aye, don't make it too far a drive for me as I'd love to be there too

Sol will do the actions for you

That would give everyone a good laugh

I'll go to the joke shop to get some fake boobs, a wig and a feather boa...

You are a class act