programme notes

Trinity College of Music London

ATCL RECITAL

SHANNON JACOB Solo Piano

Thursday 9th December 2010 at 2.30pm

PROGRAMME

I. JOHANNE SEBASTIAN BACH

PRELUDE AND FUGUE IN D MINOR

II. WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART

SONATA IN F MAJOR I. ALLEGRO II. ADAGIO III. ALLEGRO ASSAI

III. FRANZ SCHUBERT

IMPROMPTU IN G FLAT,OP 90 NO.3 I. ANDANTE

IV. JOHANNES BRAHMS

INTERMEZZO IN A MAJOR,OP 118 NO.2

JOHANNE SEBASTIAN BACH (1685-1750)

PRELUDE AND FUGUE IN D MINOR

PRELUDE It is a beautiful prelude with a very tense and dramatic atmosphere right till the very end. Best results are achieved when given a legatissimo touch throughout, with constant grip of harmonic detail and melodic outline in all three notes of the triplet. The climax is built up with great boldness and subtlety by means of a pedal point.

FUGUE The fugue is mellow, relaxed and serene. The Subject, which is treated by Inversion and in various kinds of Stretto, is also brought out distinctly even in those entries which represent merely its first figure, or which come in a new part of the scale and alter its intervals. The Countersubject; which is sometimes shared between two parts, demands an expressive cantabile tone and quite as much distinctness as the Subject.

Timing:

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART

SONATA IN F MAJOR

(1756-1791)

I. ALLEGRO The first movement of the sonata is hymn-like and melodious. The seemingly innocent opening compliments the wealth of ideas and constantly changing textures of the music. At least nine such textures can be counted in the exposition alone. The aim is for continuity and not dissection. This first movement moves smoothly throughout, with the tune being played by the right hand while the left hand offers accompaniment.

II. ADAGIO The Adagio may be analyzed as a sonata-form movement without development. Though one mood pervades the movement, the difference is noted between the first theme; which is vocal in character if not in tessitura, and the string-trio texture of the second group, with more participation of the left hand. This movement is comparatively slower than the first and third movements, and has a slow, sweet melody entwined through the movement. This slow movement is a prologue to the brilliance and finale of the third movement.

III. ALLEGRO ASSAI The rapid finale is in 6/8 time. While it starts out with a forte chord and passagework, it concludes with a pianissimo cadence. This full sonata-form finale demands brilliance in the passage-work, starting at the first bar, but a tender lyricism in the themes of bars 15, 50 and 112. Similarly the minor-key theme at bar 50 depends on a sudden change of dynamics, not of tempo. It is a brilliant finale to the whole Sonata; full of character, rhythm and dynamics.

Timing:

FRANZ SCHUBERT (1797-1828)

IMPROMPTU IN G FLAT, OP 90 NO.3

I. NO.3 ANDANTE The melody flows above the accompaniment in singular notes in the right hand. It is a romantic piece of music and has a wide range of dynamics; built up crescendos and decrescendos that are a wealth of emotion through the whole piece. This serenade is a classic example of Schubert's outstanding lyrical facility, as well as his penchant for long melodic lines. There is little interruption in the fluttering harplike broken triad accompaniment, creating a tense contrast with the spacious and languid melody.

Timing:

JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833-1897)

INTERMEZZO IN A MAJOR,OP 118 NO.2

The Intermezzo in A-major is a diminutive but irreplaceable masterpiece which quietly encompasses a world that is in turns nostalgic, mysterious and melancholy. Every moment of it is intensely personal and almost heartbreakingly beautiful. Brahms subjects his themes to inversion and to redistribution within the texture; deft touches of imitation, double counterpoint and canon.

Timing: