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    Mahler 1st Symphony - Piano Introduction

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    Mahler 1st Symphony - Piano Introduction

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    Mahler 1st Symphony - piano introduction

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    Mahler 1st Symphony - piano introduction

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    Mahler 1st Symphony - piano introduction

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    60 views6 pages

    Mahler 1st Symphony - Piano Introduction

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    fiesta2
    Mahler 1st Symphony - piano introduction

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    Gustav Mahler

    Symphony No. 1

    arranged for piano solo


    by Iain Farrington

    Aria Editions
    Copyright © 2018 by Aria Editions

    First published in 2019 by Aria Editions

    Cover picture by istockphoto.com

    All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form
    or by any means without the prior permission of the author and / or publisher.

    www.ariaeditions.org
    Symphony No. 1

    1. Langsam. Schleppend. ……….....................................................................…. 1


    2. Kräftig bewegt………............................................................................................…. 22
    3. Feierlich und gemessen, ohne zu schleppen……................…. 35

    4. Stürmisch bewegt………....................................................................................….44

    Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) composed his 1 st Symphony in 1887-8 while he


    was a conductor at the Leipzig Opera House. It was premiered in Budapest in
    1889, and was originally described as a symphonic poem, with the subtitle
    Titan, a reference to a Jean Paul novel. There was also an additional
    movement after the opening movement, known as Blumine, which Mahler
    removed in 1894. For the first performances, Mahler wrote programme notes
    that acted as a guide to the work:

    Part I: From the Days of Youth: "Flower, Fruit, and Thorn Pieces".

    1. Frühling und kein Ende - Spring without End. The introduction depicts the
    awakening of nature from a long winter's sleep
    2. Blumine – Flowers (Andante).
    3. Mit vollen Segeln - In Full Sail (Scherzo)

    Part II: Commedia humana – Human Comedy

    4. Gestrandet! (Totenmarsch in Callots Manier) - Aground! Funeral March in


    the manner of Callot. 'The Hunter's Funeral Procession' in which forest
    animals accompany a dead hunter's coffin to his grave.
    5. Dall'inferno al Paradiso – From Hell to Paradise. The sudden despairing cry
    of a deeply wounded heart.

    Mahler eventually dropped the subtitle and programme notes, preferring a


    piece of 'absolute' music without other references. However, they give a clear
    picture of Mahler's immense vision of the symphony, of nature and human
    experience. For the first and third movements he borrowed material from his
    own Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, and he was to use other existing songs in
    his next three symphonies.
    The Mahler Symphonies for solo piano

    Piano arrangements of orchestral music have been available since at least the
    time of Mozart and Haydn. They were an important resource for musicians
    and concert-goers in the age before recordings, allowing easy study of a work
    at home, as well as for the enjoyment of domestic chamber music-making.
    With the essential melodic, harmonic and rhythmic elements intact, it was
    possible for one person to learn an orchestral score at the piano. Liszt's
    transcriptions of all nine Beethoven Symphonies represent a peak of
    symphonic piano arrangements, each one a serious virtuoso study without
    unnecessary pianistic additions. The 20 th century invention of recording saw a
    decline in the popularity of piano arrangements, but their value remains
    much the same. They provide a straightforward entry to the music, by
    reading the two staves on the page as opposed to a large full score with
    multiple transposing instruments. Playing the music on the piano is a simple
    way of getting to know a piece from the inside, as well as giving the pleasure
    of being able to play great music, especially by composers who wrote little or
    no piano music. There are composers such as Mahler and Elgar who used the
    piano in their writing process, and performed their works on the piano to
    friends. There is a certain addded authenticity in recreating those piano
    performances from these composers.

    In each one of his composing 'huts', Mahler had a piano at his disposal. His
    sketches are often on two/three staves of music, and can be read directly on
    the piano. Mahler often played his latest works on the piano to friends and
    colleagues, and his early training as a pianist left him with a good virtuoso
    technique. By performing the music in this way, it enabled the first listeners to
    hear the melodies and harmonies unadorned. The idiomatic style, the wide-
    ranging content, the emotional depth, the unique structure: all these pieces of
    the musical jigsaw were presented by Mahler himself on the piano to those
    trusted friends. A black-and-white image of the Symphony was presented, a
    kind of musical X-ray.

    We are fortunate to have piano rolls of Mahler playing parts of his own work:
    the first movement of the 5th symphony, the last movement of the 4 th
    symphony and several songs. Although they are probably only loosely
    accurate representations of his piano playing, the piano rolls demonstrate
    Mahler's 'orchestral' piano technique, full in texture and tone, carrying the
    sweep and drama of the music without getting bogged down by the intricate
    details of the score. Mahler also accompanied singers at the piano in recitals of
    his songs, and published piano scores of many of them alongside the
    orchestral versions. They serve as an excellent starting point in making new
    solo piano versions of Mahler's orchestral music.
    A satisfying piano arrangement of an orchestral work requires not just a
    literal transcription of the notes onto two staves, but a transformation into
    pianistic texture of the full sonic landscape. The main bulk of the melodic,
    harmonic and rhythmic material remains intact, but the emotional sweep and
    scale of the sound is of equal importance, as it is in Mahler's own piano
    performance. Rich pianistic textures are often sought, to maintain the sustain
    and richness of the sound, although there is no unnecessary virtuosity or
    fireworks. Hearing the symphonies and songs in this way allows us to take in
    the content as 'pure' music. In Mahler's lifetime, piano duet versions of the
    Symphonies were published, but very few for solo piano. These arrangements
    allow one player the opportunity to perform and study them.

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