Music Instrument: Piano
Programme:Trois Petites Fantasies, No.1
Composer:Charles-Valentin Alkan(1813-1888)
Charles-Valentin Alkan was a French-Jewish composer and pianist. In the 1830s, he was as famous as other pianists in Paris, such as Chopin and Liszt. But as Alkan was sometimes remote, he couldn’t adapt to the society, and as a result, his works became neglected after his death.
The trois Petites Fantasies (three small fantasies) were written during Alkan’s recluse, feeling disappointed after failing to be the head of the Conservatoire piano department. Most of Alkan’s masterpieces were created during this period, including the Concerto and Symphony for piano solo. However, the 3 Petites Fantasies are different from the other pieces, as they are not of grandeur, instead, they are lean, stark, and they seems like 20th century pieces.
Assez Gravement is the first of the three pieces. It contrasts two different ideas: the first appears as an anxious questioning, the second a melody accompanied by a drum-like motif. The melody then becomes more and more beautiful and fragile, while the drum-like motif becomes more and more persistent, finally reaching a climax. Then comes a quiet coda of vast number of leaping chords over the whole page, finally vanishing into silence.
Alkan’s works have characteristics from almost all styles. We can find Beethoven-like motifs, the romantic beautiful melodies, and grotesqueries typical of Prokofiev’s music, all of which are included in Assez Gravement. Therefore, we can say that Alkan’s music inherits the traditions, and also influenced composers in the future.
乐器：钢琴
曲目：三首小幻想曲，第一首
作曲者：夏尔-瓦朗坦·阿尔坎
阿尔坎是有着犹太血统的法国作曲家/钢琴家。19世纪30年代他的知名度可以和肖邦，李斯特平起平坐。但在之后的很多时间里，阿尔坎选择隐居。他无法适应当时的社会，所以他逐渐淡出了人们的记忆。
三首小幻想曲是在阿尔坎隐居时创作的。当时他应聘巴黎音乐学院钢琴教授，但最终以失败告终。此事对阿尔坎打击非同一般，但同时也导致之后的大量高质量钢琴作品的诞生。这首幻想曲在风格还是和其他作品有所不同，它不再拥有宏伟的和声，反而更加干练，如同一些20世纪的作品。
Assez Gravement (非常庄严的) 是3首小幻想曲里的第一首。 音乐有2个对比性音乐材料：第一个是及其焦虑的提问，第二个是一段和=有鼓声般伴奏动机的独立旋律。旋律逐渐的显得优美和脆弱，同时鼓声越加紧迫，最终达到音乐高潮。结尾片部分是由大跨度和弦在非常弱的力度下完成，最终音乐消散在无声中。
阿尔坎作品特点聚集了不同风格。我们能发现类似贝多芬的音乐动机，浪漫主义时期的旋律，普罗科菲耶夫的古怪。这些都能在Assez Gravement 里找到。由此可见，阿尔坎的音乐是承上启下的。