robison@eosp1.UUCP (Tobias D. Robison) (05/04/84)
References: It was "quite the rage" to transcribe music for 4-hands when recordings and record players were nearly unavailable. Imagine this now: Many people born before 1920 learned MOST of their music by PLAYING it, not listening to it. My father played over 100 classical symphonies 4-hands, a lot, and numerous pieces of chamber music, that he rarely heard in concert. In the late 40's he started to build a real record collection. When you learn the music by playing, it is completely different from learning by hearing. You understand much more about the styles of individual composers, and it is much easier to learn the harmonies. You also develop your own ideas about the music because you learn to interpret it, rather than to accept someone else's interpretation. This is still a great way to learn music, and it enables you to enjoy recordings more. Brahms did not exactly make a "transcription" of the f-minor piano quintet. It started out as a piece for strings only (I forget how many), that his friends judged too weak. He then transcribed it for 2 pianos, in a form judged powerful but too cold. (I've heard it performed; it is too cold). The piano+quartet form is the last transcription, and Brahm's friends were very happy with it. - Toby Robison (not Robinson!) allegra!eosp1!robison decvax!ittvax!eosp1!robison princeton!eosp1!robison