Webcast : Music for 4 hands

If anyone were concerned about the programme details they could make further enquiries. From the headline I would expect a programme for 4 hands at two pianos.

So your preferred terminology doesn't pass a test of rationality.

Everywhere in the English-speaking world in my experience. In my relatively small collection of 4-hands at one piano music all the english language editions [including Peters] are called Piano Duet. Only the French & German stuff refer to piano à quatre mains or Klavier zu 4 Händen. Some Kurtág transcriptions published by Editio Musica Budapest are described <for piano (duet and six hands) and for two pianos>.

And some violinists play chamber music and concertos. Your point?

Probably the Grand Duo. Goes on for ages. At least it prepared you for enduring forced tedium later in life at the opera and (?) Grant Park.

We've doubted this story before.

More reminiscences from your remote youth.

on 8/10/02 12:47 AM:

Must've slipped by *me* the first time. Jeezus. Why would someone play the Catalogue on the organ? For that matter, *how* would someone play it on the organ??

Ten fingers, two feet, and lots of imaginative registration.

Then he moved to Hong Kong, and except for a couple of postcards, was never heard from again.

The pedal part would require lots of imagination too, not to mention playing passages that are completely unsuited technically for the manuals.

Hrmm. I suspect the Asian mob was outraged by his butchery of Messiaen.

How much do you know about organ-playing? If there are piano passages that for some reason don't work on the organ keyboard, portions can be assigned to the pedals with couplers duplicating the manual registrations.

No idea how he did it; people at the time were saying it was a dumb

First time round Daniels stated it was the *Livre* d'Oiseaux that had been played so tediously on the organ whilst he was strapped to a chair*. He thought it lasted an hour. My suspicion is that it was actually Messe de la Pentecote.

MJHaslam

*Daniels seems to have been forced to attend many concerts.

<snip>

I think you mean Livre d'orgue, which has a oiseaux movement. You know, you really should check your pillow for a large magnet.

Does it last over an hour?

You said, in a reply to me regarding the issue of the imagined organ transcription of the catalogue: 'No idea how he did it; people at the time were saying it was a dumb idea.'

If people at the time were saying it was a dumb idea, and 'it' refers to the transcription (what else could it possibly refer to given the subject of your previous paragraph?), then you either made that up or it really was an organ transcription of a piano work.

Michael never denied there was a 'oiseaux piece' (which were your words, not 'a work comprising Oiseaux' which is your subtle backpedal).

<snips> musical student life>

Not obsessed so much as 'amused', I imagine, and, believe it or not, those of us without magnets under our pillows don't have to 'memorize' details, we just remember them.

<snip nit-picking pedantry>

Michael, Messieurs Harrington, Daniels , Hens and the other one called 'Pan'are pedants of the first order. They are the most dangerous type of Usenet trolls: those with a little knowledge. Their entire modus operandi is baiting and bashing. Don't waste your time debating these people. Do a google search on anyone of their names and reams of pages will show up with their smarmy, pseudo-research, nit-picking posts.

All we are trying to do is get to the bottom of your foundationless story. I haven't changed my story at all.

The information about the darkness tells us nothing about the duration of the concert. It can be dark at 4pm over here. If it were entire [your word] and the Catalogue the performance would have taken 2 1/2 hours. If it were Livre d'Orgue then more like 40 minutes.

Yes. One would normally put a comma after Church.

The abbreviation is Ch. Ch. (probably to avoid confusion with Corpus Christi which is C.C.C.). Charges for tourists were introduced about the time I was there (78-81). They made life much more bearable for the people that live and work there. You do get the Cathedral, the College, the Chapter House permanent exhibition of church treasures, the Picture Gallery [lots of unusual early Italian stuff] and a good whiff of the past for one admission fee! If you wish to visit the Cathedral as a worshipper or just to pray you will not be charged. Unfortunately you would have to make a special appointment to visit the marvellous library. I gather that the Harry Potter films use Christ Church as a location.

As far as organ scholars practice is concerned it is IMO very disconcerting to practise in front of an uninvited audience. Evening and early morning are best for concentrated practice in the Cathedral. At Exeter College, where I played for a year, there were far fewer tourists and practice was easier.

So you admit the charge of talking nonsense.

Not obsessed; bemused. The shame is that you have such a poor recollection of the details of your own existence. How many minor details have I memorized? You seem to bring the Les Noces stuff up at every conceivable opportunity. I wouldn't rely on the ocean if I were you <Alec Guinness-style horrific laughter>.