Sergei Bortkiewicz - 4 Piano Pieces Op. 65 (audio + sheet music)

As part of the celebration of Bortkiewicz’s 70th birthday Doblinger published these Quatre Morceaux. The first one, Lied ohne Worte, is a reminiscence of Mendelssohn. The Etude in E minor (No.2) is written in the vein of Chopin’s studies, even quoting devices of several of them. The Epithalame (No.3) or wedding song, is again in the beloved key of C sharp major. Bortkiewicz composed Epithalame for the left hand only. The dedicatee of the work, pianist Rudolf Horn, premiered the work on June 15, 1934 on Berlin radio. In its original form it was called Russischer Hochzeitsang. The Capriccio alle Polacca (No.4) has folkloristic ostinato patterns that gradually builds up into muscular chord blocks; the middle part gives a songlike contrast.
(Naxos Music Library)
Please take note that the audio AND sheet music ARE NOT mine. Feel free to change the video quality to a minimum of 480p for the best watching experience.
Performer: Jouni Somero (FC Records, 2014)
Original sheet music: imslp.org/wiki/4_Klavierst%C3%BCcke%2C_Op.65_(Bortkiewicz%2C_Sergei) (Doblinger, 1947)

[@JouniSomeroMusic]

Great!

[@kaleidoscopio5]

Great playing as usual, Maestro. 😁

[@alexanderbayramov2626]

Epic

[@user-dy7iv6nm3x]

You are too modest, maestro !

[@smb123211]

Bortkiewicz did not "progress" in style as many musicians did (Beethoven, Scriabin, rachmaninoff). He retained that ultra-romanticism to the bitter end which is a gift to the world. In this era of atonality, concertos with car parts, piano pieces with no sound, pieces with performance time of 600 years (ASLSP) or one second (You Suffer) it's important to retain beautiful music that can be admired and comprehended by normal people.

[@kaleidoscopio5]

00:07 Song without words 04:10 Etude 06:06 Ephitalame 11:15 Capriccio alla pollaca

[@IolcanPK]

Thank you kindly 💖

[@kaleidoscopio5]

@@IolcanPK my pleasure 😁

[@kaleidoscopio5]

Ah, Bortkiewicz.....the brother of Rachmaninoff, the cousin of Scriabin and the grandchild of Chopin.....lovely 😁

[@jackcurley1591]

Great way of putting it 😁

[@kaleidoscopio5]

@@jackcurley1591 thanks 😎

[@alessandropelizzoli6613]

Probably more of Lisztian ascent...pupil of Reisenauer...

[@Whatismusic123]

And the great lesser of all 3. Someone incomprehensibly incompetent.

[@kaleidoscopio5]

@@Whatismusic123 😳😢

[@pianoman1857]

Love Bortkiewicz, thanks

[@erick-gd7wo]

The third piece for LH alone is so beautiful and charming. Thank you for have introduced us to these hidden jewels

Bortkiewicz is one of my favorite composers of all time. Amazing. We definitely need more bortkiewicz.

[@Whatismusic123]

No. He should have never been a composer.

[@elegachi]

@@Whatismusic123 Are you lonely?

[@user-dy7iv6nm3x]

​@@elegachiYes, I think he has lost everything, including brain, Heart, ears...

[@chuckloner]

First time hearing bortkiewicz and now I think I know what I'll be learning next week. Really cool stuff :)

[@briansunday7099]

The first piece seemed like a hybrid of Henselt’s Poeme d’amour and Alkan’s Neige et Lave from the Chants, op. 70. Chopin pervades the second piece. A tinge of Rachmaninov in the third, but pure Bortkiewicz otherwise - some of the melodic material was borrowed from his Elegie, op. 46. A bit of Rachmaninov again in the fourth piece and, personally, I think a bit of Dvorak. - think op. 85. Bortkiewicz has become quite a favorite of mine - it fits my hands, too.

[@emilyhutjes]

Lovely 🌷🌷🌷

[@jaz_min..]

I love it❤

[@lovehinz]

12:19 this is clearly reminiscent of his op. 33 preludes no. 7 the middle section (un pocco piu mosso) -- a piece that I really love. perhaps this was a precursor to that...?

[@andrewc9643]

Thank you for this comment. I looked up this prelude because of you. exquisite!

[@bozzigmupp510]

Well spotted

[@Fred_DQ]

I think these pieces are definitely related with each other, so we should play all 4 pieces consecutively

[@lucapianist67]

10:46 Maria Maria Maria Maria Maaariaaaaaaaa

[@kuang-licheng402]

rare piece

[@AlfateS]

I can hear the Chopin Op 10 No 9 and Op 25 No 12 being quoted in that etude

[@gadielvalverde2096]

12:19 This sounds like prelude op33 no7 midsection

[@timmoneel]

There seems to be a strange similarity between No. 3 (the Wedding Song) and his Elegie, Op. 46. Not only are they both in the same key of C# major, but they both start off with the G#-A#-C#, but in the Elegie it caps off at D# whereas in the Wedding song it descends back to B#. But later on in the Wedding song (8:46), he uses the G#-A#-C#-D#. It's not a criticism, just an observation, but it's eerily uncanny that such similarities occur between a piece for joy and another for sorrow.

[@Ingegerda681]

Кто даст ответ: почему имя композитора только ныне стало популярным? Странно, ведь музыка чудесная.

[@user-dy7iv6nm3x]

Histoire life was very difficult and his works have been recovered lately. Perhaps he came too late for a romantic work.

[@tomassokol8460]

"Epithalame (No.3) or wedding song, is again in the beloved key of C sharp minor". Sorry, this is C sharp MAJOR !

[@thenameisgsarci]

yes, you're right... i forgot to edit that part when i uploaded this.

[@tomassokol8460]

@@thenameisgsarci Well... I think musicians/pianists have corrected themselves. I thank you for the quality of your channel. I discovered Bortkievicz just 1 year ago and much appreciate his compositions. The best from Bratislava/Slovensko

[@thenameisgsarci]

@@tomassokol8460 yeahhh :D