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Grieg, Edvard Hagerup : Lyriske smastykker No.5  "Notturno" Op.54-4

Work Overview

Music ID : 21017
Instrumentation:Piano Solo 
Genre:nocturne
Total Playing Time:4 min 30 sec
Copyright:Public Domain

Commentary (1)

Author : Ooi, Kazurou

Last Updated: March 12, 2018
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Note: This article is automatically translated from the original Japanese text. The author of the original work did not supervise this translation.

Nocturne in C major

The key to performing this piece, above all, lies in balance. The degree of perfection will differ entirely depending on how well you maintain this balance. The trick is to play the eighth-note accompaniment figures as softly as possible (ppp). If you examine the score carefully, you can divide it into several voices based on the different musical materials. For example, at the beginning, in the first measure, the dotted quarter note C on the first beat functions as a bass instrument, while the suspended third entering on the off-beat of the first beat is another distinct voice. Then, from the second beat, there is another bass voice: H, B, A, G-sharp, G. In the second measure, the singing melody line appears in the treble clef.

In such situations, the repeated thirds tend to come out the loudest. However, these notes increase in number in measure 5, making them even more prone to being played too loudly. In fact, these repeated eighth notes are precisely the material whose volume must be reduced the most. Please look at measure 11. The eighth notes in the melody line are duplets. Below them, there are eighth notes that divide one beat into three.

When dealing with two voices with conflicting rhythms, such as 2 against 3, 3 against 4, or 3 against 5, the piano, due to its attack, tends to sound harsh. In such cases, by reducing the volume of one voice to the absolute minimum, the polyphonic order is preserved, the voices sound independent, and the harshness can be avoided.

Therefore, you can be confident that there will be no mistake if you control the dynamics by prioritizing them in the following order:

  • Melody
  • Bass
  • Inner voices

Furthermore, rubato should always be applied; the tempo should always fluctuate.

The section changes from measure 15. For the melody line in measures 15-16, which is in the upper staff of the treble clef, try to imagine the sound of birds singing in a forest.

From measure 21, you enter a different world. Use the soft pedal to create a fantastical atmosphere. In measure 25, change the color. From measure 29 to measure 33, the author's score indicates to keep the pedal depressed without changing it, and this author agrees. Even if some blurring occurs, the aim is to leave a fantastical resonance.

Writer: Ooi, Kazurou

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