So I want to compose a recital program that both stings and bites, but warms and melts you at the same time. I picked pieces by similar composers and divvied (that’s divided, if you aren’t from Chicago) them up between two programs. Here’s what I came up with, then some thoughts.
Program A
Mozart: K. 455 Variations on a Theme by Gluck in G.
Schubert: Impromptu #1 in C
Chopin: Op. 27 “Deux Nocturnes”
Op. 60 “Barcarolle” in F-sharp Major
Intermission
Moskowski, Moriz: Op. 37 “Caprice Espagnol”
Prokofiev: Op. 83 “Sonata #7”
PROGRAM B
Mozart: K.570 Sonata in B-flat Major
Schubert: D.845 Sonata in A Minor
Intermission
Liszt: “Reminescences de ‘Lucia di Lammermoor’,” Opera de Donizetti
“Reminescences de ‘Robert le Diable’,” Opera de Meyerbeer
Liebermann, Lowell: Op 29. “Gargoyles”
So which do you guys like better? Both have their merits in my opinion. I like programs with chronological progressions, first of all. But in order for that to happen smoothly, you still have to bring your audience in effectively. It’s not always best to start with an extremely jolting piece, because that is what the audience might expect from you throughout, and your arm(s) will fall off. It might be best to start with a gracious, warm, and inviting work to both intimately welcome the audience while allowing yourself a piece that you can discreetly adjust to the piano you are playing on without major interjections from unbehaved limbs.
