1 / 10
0:00/0:00
Solo
2018
Harpsichord
- Program Notes
- Two Unmeasured Preludes - 1) In an Old Style 2) Prelude No. 2 In this music the length of notes is unspecified. However, certain salient ideas are sometimes measured with stems. A line shows that a note should be held and for how long. Chords may be struck together, but more often should be arpeggiated, either upward or downward, or both. A dotted straight line indicates that two notes should be played together. This of course does not preclude other notes from being played together, however, that be left to the taste of the performer. Finally, accidentals affect only the note they precede, except in the case of repeated notes when re-writing them would be cumbersome. Performance These preludes are not merely introductory gestures, but fully-fledged musical compositions. It is generally better to perform these types of works slower than faster. Guiding a listener into new harmonies and through sometimes unusual modulations is critical, and it has been echoed in numerous remarks by Louis Couperin, Rameau, and even Frescobaldi in his prefaces. In Rameau’s words: “Here the ear is of no less help than in any other kind of music, for one must be able to think of a melody and then add flowers to it - that is, brilliant runs, tirades, broken chops and arpeggios - which often make up for what is lacking in the melody by offering the pleasure of a good performance.” (Code de Musique Pratique, 1760)
- Recording Notes
- Performed by: Yunyi Ji Instrument: Zuckerman Italian Virginal
- Performer Credits
- Yunyi Ji
- Publisher
- Self-published
- External Links