Aram Khachaturian - Toccata (with score)

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Aram Khachaturian - Toccata (1932)
Rubén Yessayan, piano
From my Cd Different Perceptions (2006).
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www.rubenyessayan.com

[@symphonicpoem11]

This piece is the reason I started listening to classical music!

[@isaiahtricemusic]

This was so good!

[@tingtinghuang5840]

Nice

[@Beyond_bbb]

In my case, Prokofiev's precipitato. Now I love russian classical music.

[@NoreenHoltzen]

Wonderful, you had incredible inherent taste to have this great work appeal to you from so early on.

[@scottekim]

Agree totally. This piece is a blast to play, and is easier to perform than it sounds, unlike say some of the tricky Ravel I've played, or the more demanding Chopin etudes. Fits the piano well.

[@cameronzhao1219]

Your probably good at piano, are you amus?

[@lorenzosala9289]

This is so true! I've sadly quitted classical piano years ago but this piece is still soooo much fun. It's just satisfying to play :)

[@johnbutler4631]

True. A lot of it follows patterns that are relatively easy. There are a lot of pieces out there that may sound easier but are much more difficult.

[@sahilpatel4845]

@@johnbutler4631lists consolation 3 is one of those (repetitive pieces which sound difficult to play but aren’t that bad)

[@klondikepennys5363]

The Ravel. Gosh though.

[@egreen724]

im playing this song right now and the hardest part is 100% the andante espressivo

[@yashbspianoandcompositions1042]

Piece

[@kristinasemaschko7671]

@@yashbspianoandcompositions1042 thank you

[@willtowers1532]

really? that's interesting, that's my favourite part of the whole piece, the expression is massively difficult but not anything as difficult as playing the octave jumps during the descending triplet section. i like it when different people find different parts of the same piece difficult for different reasons

[@aidanhusk99]

@@yashbspianoandcompositions1042 literally no one cares. Get off your high horse.

[@jonenemo148]

Indeed

[@annecheng7761]

Brilliant piece. Love the contrasting middle section. As with so much Russian music, the combination of virtuosity and emotion is so enthralling.

[@박시영-f9n]

ㅖㅔㅖ

[@Dylonely_9274]

This is stunning. Khachaturian was an outstanding composer !

[@Eugeneplayz]

Hehehehaw

[@yuk_notkim7658]

You are seriously everywhere.

[@hectormackie3654]

Learning this piece for grade 8 sounds fun

[@experiFilm]

Thanks for the grade level. Is that your estimate or is it graded by one of the certifications?

[@strive0429]

@@experiFilm It's in the ABRSM grade 8 syllabus

[@ALEXEYKLEPTSIN]

Хачатуряну удалось обогнать своё время. В 2021, почти через 100 лет, слушается свежо. Великолепные ладотональные находки, неожиданно красивая лирическая середина. И блестящий финал. Потрясающий, виртуозный пианист. Браво! Спасибо за огромную работу.

[@rubenyessayan]

Many thanks!!!

[@tomtomd9875]

I really love how you show the voices in this song and I think this is a great example of how this piece should be played

[@yashbspianoandcompositions1042]

Piece?

[@dinnyxd3139]

Piece not song

[@amiapsychopat]

@@yashbspianoandcompositions1042 oh come on

[@nicolevichan]

who cares@@yashbspianoandcompositions1042

[@benlindsay6012]

Wow! I stand all amazed at this brilliant piano playing !

[@rubenyessayan]

Thanks Ben, glad you enjoyed it! You can follow me here and/or Spotify where you can find most of my work. Thanks for listening!

[@e.hutchence-composer8203]

damn, this piece is really cool. I discovered Khachaturian not long ago (a started with his 'Pictures of Childhood') and have been enjoying exploring his music. His has some really interesting textures and stark contrasts pitted right up against each other, it's fantastic!

[@iXNomad]

The last chord is brutal

[@andmar1593]

I think it's a Fab7+/Mib5 or simply a Fab7+ 4# (Mi7+5b)

[@luminousharmony4000]

@@andmar1593I did not understand a single word of what you just said

[@justaperson792]

@@andmar1593what the hell

[@HikariKrome]

@@andmar1593 It's essentially a chromatically altered Ebm chord.

[@tfpp1]

There is a touch of his piano concerto writing within this piece.

[@musicforkids0150]

Спасибо за исполнение и ноты!

[@hotshot4512]

Definitely my favorite recording out of all of them for this piece! Starting this piece, performing in December 🤞

[@luminousharmony4000]

Wow! I love it! Very interesting and powerful! You played so well! I am playing this and this video helped me so much! Thank you and have a great day! ❤❤

[@α11ε]

this song is so jazzy

[@KrissVEctor-yg4kj]

Bro what

[@LucasPianoSalon]

This is such a stunning interpretation of such a amazing masterpiece! Bravissimo!!!!

[@LucasPianoSalon]

Thank you so much for liking my comment!!

[@2009grifin1]

This is a great piece. I remember learning it years ago so I could teach it to my students.

[@arksoundtek]

this recall me ARMENIAN VOICES..... so wonderful!

[@bowlerrollercoaster]

So OMEA, (Ohio Music Education Association) for Ohio high schools holds an event every year called "Solo & Ensemble" where we get judged from a personally selected piece on a list of repertoire. And I can't believe that this incredibly challenging piece is on the list! I don't know if any high school student has performed it. So I'm going to attempt it for Solo and Ensemble senior year of high school. Last year I played the Solfegiatto in C Minor by C.P.E. Bach, this year I am playing Prelude Op. 12 No. 7 by Prokofiev. I very well might be the first person to soon perform it for Solo and Ensemble.

[@rubenyessayan]

Enjoy learning such a fantastic piece!

[@JonLeungpiano]

Beautiful! 😍😍

[@michaelhiggins7365]

One of the most interesting pieces of music I've ever heard. I just watched Robert Estrin play this piece for a piano he was demonstrating and to me, it sounded a bit like something I would hear in a Clint Eastwood movie, like Dirty Harry. There is so much tension in this song and it is alive with so many variations.

[@Ar1osssa]

It isn't song

[@jing-taizhao4350]

*PLAY AS IF BRINGING KHACHATURIAN BACK TO LIFE*

[@min-h4i]

I learn this it It is very hard.. You are great! I from South Korea

[@rubenyessayan]

Ohh, thankyou so much!

[@spainfeelsgood7658]

Me too, it's hard and beautiful and full of emotions, 💖

[@HikariKrome]

I'm from South Korea too!

[@JazzySpazzy103]

Beautifully played!

[@rubenyessayan]

Thanks!!!

[@asian504]

Thank you very much! Your video helped me a lot in studying this piece!

[@rubenyessayan]

Im glad it was useful! Thanks for listening!

[@marlenemeldrum7382]

EXTREMELY DIFFICULT, Wonderful and INSPIRATIONAL Music ....

[@ВалентинаСвирина-м6л]

На самом деле., эта пьеса очень удобная для исполнения, в ней нет никаких сложностей для пианиста. Я её играла в молодости. Главное в настроении. Хачатурян придумал много технических новинок для фортепиано благодаря которым пьеса звучит, действительно эффектно.

[@MrRicksStudio]

The big run starting at 2:01 is incorrect, as well as in every other place it occurs. The C should be C flat. Many “Professional” pianists miss this. The answer is on the printed page, and Lev Oborin, who GAVE THE FIRST PERFORMANCE, played C flat.

[@a-trainstudios2360]

Looks like a fun piece to play, but the Andante expresivo section looks quite scary with the syncopation and some of the parts with the right hand jumps.

[@thomasthompson6378]

The most interesting and wonderful thing about it is that, in reality, it's not really all that difficult -- it just sounds like it.

[@aayeshazafreenshanavas5593]

@@thomasthompson6378 HA no i’m struggling to play it but i think thats just because i struggle with 4 against 6

[@yazzerino]

i could never play that section right

[@danal81]

This is really a good performance.

[@한별-b6l]

This song is beautiful and you are amazing 👏 it's so hard.^_^

[@rubenyessayan]

Thankyou so much!!!

[@mattklammer5232]

Excellent piece- great performance

[@nadejdabeloconi5177]

Amazing!!!!

[@rubenyessayan]

Thank you Nadejda!!!! Feel free to subscribe to the channel if you like. Happy new year!!!

[@PointyTailofSatan]

It's obvious that Khachaturian's music had a major impact on Keith Emerson.

[@giorgiociomei5030]

Infatti Keith Emerson è stato suo allievo di composizione

[@InkarUmbetiar]

2:50 my one of my favourite moments🥹

[@martinjimenezcano8440]

Nice work, congratulations!

[@ГлебМаматов-у4ы]

Очень человечное исполнение

[@HikariKrome]

Jazzy

[@adriandanailaclassicalguitar]

Beutiful !

[@fedlech]

¡Muy bueno Master!

[@rubenyessayan]

Gracias amigo!

[@fryderyckchopin484]

The middle section reminds me of Rachmaninov

[@arismp2780]

And a little Scriabin

[@emmaa1850]

WOW 🤩

[@송인규-o3b]

Excellent♡♡♡

[@k123ason]

2:00 I noticed the pianist played C instead of C flat for the runs. It completely changes the color 😆

[@klondikepennys5363]

I didn't even think of that, on listening at first!

[@黃士東]

I love this

[@wendellpinheiro9633]

Muito abstrato para o meu gosto, só martelada...essa peça me irrita, mas tenho que concordar que está muito bem tocado, interpretação magnífica.

[@listenandbelieve]

At a certain point, you can tell where the inspiration for “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway” and its famous piano intro comes from.

[@RobertPenner]

2:01 Missed the C flat in the key signature

[@paulgering7703]

We need an orchestral arrangement.

[@birdismygod]

I LOVE your performance I don't mean to nit-pick, but shouldn't you be playing a Cb in bar 72 (ascending sixteenth notes top of page 7)?

[@harryarmitage6056]

Interesting. I learnt this piece 53 years ago and now realise I misread it. Agreed they should be C flats.

[@shadowduds]

Im starting to learn this piece and now im afraid

[@user-rika-marsh]

Для какого класса или курса она больше подходит?

[@서빈-d1b]

2:49

[@可愛姐妹花]

Throughout the whole piece,dynamic control was the hardest part for me

[@TomásPinedaBenítez]

I’m studying this song right now, it’s really hard 🤣

[@slash58anilyo]

Bruh he play a C instead of C-flat.... 2:35.

[@AnnaNersesyanlight]

Խոսքերն ավելորդ են 😮

[@stephenpastena8583]

Damn, just realized I've been playing those upward arpeggios at 2:00 wrong (I always play Db).

[@commentingchannel9776]

Nope! It's you who has been doing it right :)

[@MemePiano69]

@@commentingchannel9776 Db or D natural?

[@69Morganas69]

❤

[@botboy-5679]

His music sound like modern PHONK

[@armentsirunyan6937]

That C natural instead of C flat at 2:02 makes me cringe, otherwise an excellent rendition

[@user-by2lh6xo1t]

It is a C flat because of the six flats🙈

[@brettdolphin9168]

It’s a mistake but I like it better ngl

[@charlottewhyte9804]

A##

[@vincentcaliendo6402]

Totally agree, changes the entire vibe of that section from Minor to Major and it definitely doesnt fit the rest of the piece.

[@zgart]

@@HopeXiClassicalPiano oh wow you're here too!

[@rajbajaj8225]

I'm learning this rn and the rhythms during the andante are such a bitch to play. My poor small left hand is crying.

[@cameronzhao1219]

This is such a good performance. Do you think you could do Fantasie Impromptu by Chopin?

[@rubenyessayan]

Thanks for listening Cameron, unfortunately the piece you mention is not included within my next projects.

[@min-h4i]

It's so fast... and hard..

[@vickiehorowitz1934]

Not really a hard piece.- only ABRSm grade 8. It sounds really difficult but it is really pretty easy and lays under the hands really well.

[@min-h4i]

@@vickiehorowitz1934 I learn it but, my hands is slowly

[@min-h4i]

@@vickiehorowitz1934 so,I think is fast and hard

[@lisztomaniac2718]

It's pretty easy and fast doesn't mean hard

[@avemflamma]

i was learning this piece before I stopped taking piano lessons 😔

[@avemflamma]

sike im taking piano lessons again lets goooooo

[@ragestacker]

LETS FUCKING GOOO

[@ArmanMinassian15]

I'm 9 years old and piano grade 2 I played the 4 notes into 3 notes because my hand is to small I play 4 pages(:

[@rubenyessayan]

Keep up the hard work Arman!!!

[@scarelec6989]

This is using augmentation right?

[@mariaizmaylova9097]

Wtf why are you playing the part before the middle part in major when its minor?

[@stacia6678]

that E octave tho 2:45

[@KatM26]

wild

[@KatM26]

alright I've finished learning this, and it's ridiculously fun to play, would recommend 👍

[@min-h4i]

이 gu 되게 au렵..

[@vincewang7243]

Is 12 a good age to be playing this piece?

[@rubenyessayan]

Hi Vince, any age is good if you're willing to work hard and you think you can manage. Try for a few days and then decide if you want to keep going. Cheers!

[@vincewang7243]

@@rubenyessayan I tried this piece our and it’s super fun! I love the way the piece fits my hand and the parts right before the Andante Expressivo is one of my favorites. Thank you for the suggestion!

[@ronb6182]

My keyboard wont work for this piece the keys dont come up fast enough. This is best played on a grand or baby grand piano. Some uprights will work if the action is fast enough. 73

[@dianasalim7127]

6... FLATS !!?!?!?!?

[@emmaa1850]

LOL 😂

[@bo1932]

ok so you are telling me im going to have to learn how to fast. okay i shall

[@phaglov]

Like debussy so beautiful

[@rubenyessayan]

Thankyou!!!

[@aarontravers6411]

I have to say, after having played this piece as a teenager and having absorbed vast amounts of contemporary piano music since then, I realize now what a mess this piece is. The performance is quite good, aside from the repeated mistake of using C-natural in place of C-flat in the upward arpeggios (already mentioned in comments). But the toccata doesn't hold together. Khachaturian seems to take up an idea and abandon it without reason, well before the idea has been fully developed. In short, the entire piece seems like one long chain of non sequiturs. It's weird and captivating at times, but it is not a good piece.

[@alexa174]

The way I understand it, the main purpose of a toccata piece is to show off the composer's technical skills on the instrument. I am not very good at keyboards, so I cannot really judge the difficulty, but the point is that toccatas are not inherently supposed to be musical. That said, it certainly is nice if it does have some sort of proper musicality, and I agree with your point about it being too disjointed to enjoy listening to. But then again, I heard that this was written in just 8 hours, in which case we absolutely cannot expect it to be perfect. It's flashy, unique and at least non-trivial to play, it does what it is supposed to.

[@losetheforestinlose6526]

It all depends on what criteria you use to judge a piece of music.

[@raulperez2308]

idk, i find it really enjoyable, if anything the textures are nice to listen to. it's a good source for new voicings as well

[@nandoflorestan]

I played this piece in a recital when I was 18. Almost 29 years later, as a composer myself, I have come to regard Khachaturian's Toccata as a weak composition. There's something arbitrary about the sudden changes in figuration in the main part, they do not convince me. Part B is anemic, not long enough, needed 2 more pages, needed more time to make a real impression. As it is, part B has no chance to explain itself, therefore it can't create enough tension. You remember the scene in "Amadeus" in which Mozart gets advised that his opera had "too many notes"? Well, Khachaturian here needs the reverse advice. His Toccata has too few notes. I think this Toccata wants to be Chopin's f# minor Polonaise when it grows up. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gnWakJ1ojd1qiq8 (By the way, Harasiewicz's is the only good recording.) Contrast the formal balance between these 2 ABA pieces. Notice how long the mazurka inside the Polonaise is. The Polonaise has perfectly balanced durations between A and B and back to A; the Toccata doesn't. Yet in this Toccata there's something good and interesting in part B. Part B seems to be trying to be lyrical but doesn't manage to quite get rid of the dirt of part A. This is a really interesting idea in itself, a new and interesting relationship between the parts in the traditional ABA form. I think the piece could have been great, but somehow Khachaturian didn't develop it enough. The relationship between the parts of the Polonaise is equally intriguing. Chopin puts an idyllic mazurka just after... how to put it... I had better borrow from Monty Python to make my point... "blood, devastation, death, war and horror". The juxtaposition of these 2 opposites is so jarring that the idyll doesn't persuade. But the dream goes on, maybe you almost forget its context. And then, just when the innocence has lasted long enough for you to believe it, that terrible transition comes, drawing from the introduction! The form of this Polonaise is masterfully crafted! The Toccata screams as loud as the Polonaise, but doesn't convince. The Polonaise, armed of an introduction, an amazing transition from B back to A, and an incredibly moving coda, is evidently much more polished -- clearly, much more thought went into it. As a composer, I can tell you the transition and the coda are much more difficult to create than anything in the Toccata, especially its straightforward figurations. The toccata is about as hard to compose as the introduction of the Polonaise plus the first page of the central mazurka... I think this Toccata could be composed in 2 to 4 days without much inspiration, while Chopin's Polonaise would require at least 4 weeks, maybe more, with the muse really singing in one's ear. I still really like Khachaturian as a composer; I just think this Toccata isn't one of his best executed compositions.

[@nandoflorestan]

That's all I have to say about the Toccata; but I can't shut up in my enthusiasm for Chopin's Polonaise op.44. Here are other things I notice in it: - The introduction expresses the approximation of something terrible. - The emotional meaning of part A is that of a tremendous, relentless struggle, probably a military one. However, it gets balanced by a phrase that is a bit more lyrical, for contrast. This foreshadows the form of the entire piece: a peaceful dream framed by war. - Although previously I said the form is ABA, it really is an ABCA. Part B is a visionary depiction of relentless mechanical warfare, composed when none of this nightmare existed or could have been predicted. It is such an original thing that no other piece contains anything like it -- not in Liszt, not in Chopin... I am only reminded of a surprising savage section in Beethoven's Appassionata which has no basis in the surrounding material: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gojEep6Zgc6reKM - The B section again includes the same almost-lyrical phrase from before, for contrast and context. This grounds the robotic war in comparison to something "normal". And again it foreshadows the form of the entire piece. - The mechanical pattern dies down and part C, the playful, childlike dream, starts. The 3 parts ABC have roughly the same length each; part C is the longest of all 3 by a narrow margin. Chopin tries to make you forget the war, which is impossible. - Peace was always a rare state in the history of Poland. - The transition from the mazurka back to A is based on the introduction (creating a sense of fatality), but it includes a terrible upwards scale that wipes clean all of the magic of the idyll, like war wipes everything that is good. - Evidently the meaning of the Polonaise is "war is why we can't have nice things". - The coda arises from a sudden development during part A, just when enough of it has been re-exposed. (The point where the coda is inserted is itself genius, it's a composition class.) The main point of the coda is an irate, expressionistic scream (the culminating point of the whole piece) which then is tragically rounded down. As the thing dies down the motive from the main theme is heard in the bass.

[@hesterphu2631]

Apparently he wrote it in 8 hours only so perhaps that is why it seems so unpolished.

[@luminousharmony4000]

What a long comment…

[@ilmaritorma5948]

Im playing the song and I am 12

[@rubenyessayan]

Good for you!!! Best wishes!!!

[@rubenkandikian5373]

same!!

[@rubenkandikian5373]

I am also 12

[@rubenkandikian5373]

good luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@Eugeneplayz]

Same, I am also 12!

[@mattporter1692]

what a chaotic and rather horrid piece.

[@flowertea9884]

2:50

[@diamantecristalino]

2:47