two-piano arrangement of Agon

[kfw]

Tomorrow's NY Times has a review of a four hands-two pianos by Richard Goode and Jonathan Biss.

The duo also offered a witty, sharp-edged rendition of Stravinsky’s two-piano arrangement of his ballet “Agon.” A collaboration with Balanchine, the work — which blends divergent musical aesthetics — was transcribed by Stravinsky as a rehearsal score for the dancers.

I see that there is at least one recording of this piece available, by Benjamin Frith and Peter Hill, and because I love the orchestral score so much, I'll have to buy it sometime. Has anyone heard this? papeetepatrick, are you reading? Skimming the chapters on Agon in Charles M. Joseph's Stravinsky & Balanchine: a journey of inventions, I'm surprised to find no mention.

[papeetepatrick]

I don't know this, but these things in good hands are always interesting, even though not usually quite as satisfying as the orchestral originals. It made me immediately think of Glenn Gould's transcription of the 'Siegfried Idyll', which I can well understand his doing, you want to possess such a beautiful work directly. Liszt transcribed many important works, including all the Beethoven symphonies, which I played back in Fontainebleau in Nadia Boulanger's class, and they are marvelous for helping you learn to get as close to orchestral sound as a piano (and the pianist's ear) will allow. Gould probably does as well as is possible with the Wagner, although you never want to hear it quite as much as the old Toscanini recording.

[Leigh Witchel]

Those piano reductions were standard operating procedure at NYCB - part of Balanchine's process of digesting the music to choreograph was to make a piano reduction himself - and often they are still in use. When the Balanchine Foundation did an Interpreter's Archive taping of Monumentum/Movements, I'm pretty certain they used Balanchine's piano reduction.

[sandik]

Many thanks for the heads-up about this -- I'll start looking for it as well. After years of being in and watching rehearsals I've become very fond of reductions. I went to a school matinee of Sleeping Beauty here last week with a piano, a violin, a harp, a flute, and a clarinet. It was such an interesting view of the score.

(and am currently listening to a disc by Trio Diaghilev, duo pianos and percussion. I've got Petrouchka, Sacre, and Bartok's Miraculous Mandarin -- all very fresh sounding.)

[carbro]

A bit You might notice the photo credit: the multi-talented Matthew Murphy, former member of ABT's corps de ballet.

[kfw]

Thanks for the comments, everyone. I remember that Balanchine made piano scores as choreographic aids. I wish that some of his were available for purchase too.

[Jack Reed]

Years ago I was fascinated at how the seemingly inner workings of another Stravinsky score, Le Sacre du Printemps, were revealed by a two-piano performance by Michael Tilson Thomas and Ralph Grierson on an Angel LP. Paul Taylor may also have been so fascinated, as his dance uses that scoring to good effect.

Entering the search terms "Sacre Thomas Grierson" in the Amazon entry box at the top of our pages and then selecting "Music" in the drop-down menu on the first page of results brings it up, and you can listen to half-minute fragments of that; similarly for "Stravinsky Frith Hill", but their Agon rendition doesn't turn up. (Personally, I prefer the Thomas-Grierson rendition of Sacre to the Frith-Hill one.)

I was aware that Mr. B made his own reductions, and I'd also like to hear them.

[ViolinConcerto]

This is very interesting. I wonder if the duo pianists, Arthur Gold and Robert Fizdale, who were life partners and friends of Balanchine, had anything to do with the making or early performances (if any) of this work.

It sounds plausible: in the Epilogue to their book "Misia, the life of Misia Sert," they tell of a wonderful chain of events in New York, 1946 that included playing Stravinsky's "Sonata for Two Pianos" for the composer, later meeting Balanchine and listening to the first reading of Hindemith's "The Four Temperaments."

They later became good friends of Balanchine's as they shared another of his interests: cooking. I believe they also wrote a cookbook together!

[kfw]

They later became good friends of Balanchine's as they shared another of his interests: cooking. I believe they also wrote a cookbook together!

Yes, "The Gold and Fizdale Cookbook: Food for Good Living." The first chapter is entitled "Cooking with Balanchine" and consists of reminiscences and of recipes they don't quite say, but suggest, they learned from Balanchine.

Thanks for the tip, Jack.

[Helene]

It made me immediately think of Glenn Gould's transcription of the 'Siegfried Idyll', which I can well understand his doing, you want to possess such a beautiful work directly....

Gould probably does as well as is possible with the Wagner, although you never want to hear it quite as much as the old Toscanini recording.

When Canadian National Opera produced the "Ring of the Nibelungen" in 2006 to open the Four Seasons Centre, in the series of seminars and presentations, there were concerts by a young Quebecois Canadian pianist, 24 at the time, who was excellent. He played the Gould transcription and a few of his own, and they were brilliant. I don't have the program in Canada, and I cannot remember his name.

[Jack Reed]

A later Gold-Fizdale performance of that Stravinsky Sonata was issued by Columbia records, IIRC.