{"id":94,"date":"2017-06-11T20:14:00","date_gmt":"2017-06-11T20:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/seanchenpiano.com\/pianonotes\/?p=94"},"modified":"2017-06-11T20:14:00","modified_gmt":"2017-06-11T20:14:00","slug":"doing-your-due-diligence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seanchenpiano.com\/pianonotes\/2017\/06\/11\/doing-your-due-diligence\/","title":{"rendered":"Doing your Due Diligence"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hey all! I wanted to do a short post today on examples of why it is important for\u00a0pianists to consult many sources when they’re learning and studying a new work. We are so fortunate in this day and age to have relatively easy access to so many forms of media, whether it be open-source first edition scores, recordings, secondary sources, or even manuscripts. All from the computer of our computer desk! Yes, sometimes even after all this studying you may still not have conclusive evidence about certain things, but at least you are more informed in the choices you make regarding interpreting the text.<\/p>\n

Throughout the years studying and listening to different people play these following works, I’ve found some interesting misreadings. These are just a few that have been fueled by what I’ve heard most recently, but there are definitely more. Misprints in editions also often occur (the B\u00e4renreiter Brahms Horn Trio and the Universal Edition Strauss Violin Sonata have been the most egregious recent ones) and we have to be very careful when we’re learning new repertoire.<\/p>\n

Rachmaninoff Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini Op. 43<\/strong><\/p>\n

We’ll start with a simple one. The edition I learned this piece from was the Kalmus, and I think it’s just a basic reprint of the first edition. The end of Variation 11 always confused me, because after a series of sixteenth rests, there was an eighth rest. However, if you take into account the notes that follow, the beats didn’t work out. It wasn’t until I looked at the full score where I found out that there was a missing triplet sign. Might not change much in the grand scheme of things, but it’s kind of nice knowing that the beats add up.<\/p>\n