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I am trying to choose my repertoire from my masters. I previously posted as "FTCL", which didn't work since nobody no what that is.

I am looking for advice on the romantic sonatas, regarding which are more or less difficuly, nicer to play, etc. Also thinking of the Faure Variations and Rachmaninoff Corelli Variations. Anybody know how difficult they are to play?

I need to fill 45 minutes, and the standard is such that, as a general guideline, anything by Haydn or Mozart is insufficeintly demanding.

Thanks,

Gerrit

What I learned during my masters:

Bach - Prelude and Fugue in Eb Major, WTC I
Schubert - Sonata in a minor, D. 784, Piano Trio in Bb Major
Haydn - Andante and Variations in f minor
Brahms - Op. 116, Clarinet Trio
Mozart - Concerto in Bb Major, K. 450
Ravel - Une Barque sur l'Ocean, Alborada del Gracioso
Liszt - Mephisto Waltz
Scriabin - Sonata #9
Prokofiev - Concerto #3
Beethoven - Triple Concerto

And while I know you won't likely be able to convince your administration otherwise, the idea that Mozart and Haydn didn't write anything sufficiently demanding for graduate study in music is completely absurd.

Since you're specifically asking for romantic sonatas, I'd suggest the Schubert I mentioned above, Scriabin 2 or 4, or Chopin 3 (if you've got the chops for it.)

The Corelli variations are difficult, but not quite as thorny as the concerti or sonatas. I don't know the Faure so I can't comment on that one.

I couldn't agree more! The problem is that as I am playing the exam in South Africa, and the examining board is in London, I cant play any Concertos. Do you know of any Haydn or Mozart that I could propose? All the Mozart and Haydn Sonatas have been declared "insufficiently demanding", and since I cant play a concerto I presumed that pretty much cancelled them out... If I am missing something PLEASE let me know, I would really like to play either of them!

According to the RCM (Toronto) 2008 Piano Syllabus, the following Sonatas are liste3d as appropriate for the ARCT diploma examination:

Haydn :
Sonata in C minor. Hob. XVI:20
Sonata in A flat major, Hob. XVI:46
Sonata in E flat major, Hob. XVI:49
Sonata in C major ("English"), Hob. XVI:50
Sonata in E flat major, Hob. XVI:52

Mozart :
Sonata in D major, K 284
Sonata in A minor, K 310
Sonata in D major, K 311
Sonata in A major, K 331
Sonata in B flat major, K. 333
Sonata in C minor, K 457
Sonata in F major, K 533

According to the RCM (Toronto) new 2009 LRCM Piano Performance Syllabus, the following Sonatas are appropriate for the Licentiate diploma :

Haydn : Piano Sonata in E flat major, Hob. XVI:52

Mozart : Piano Sonata in D major, K 284
Piano Sonata in C minor, K 457 (with or without the Fantasie, K 475)

You will notice that there is duplication of a Mozart and Haydn Sonata in the LRCM list from the ARCT list.

These might give you something to go on. What you should do is check to see if any of the above Sonatas were on any lower Trinity College lists.

Regards,

Wow, Mozart and Haydn aren't sufficiently demanding? Since when? There are so many nuances that have to be used, and Mozart especially is just tricky to begin with. He never repeats anything the same way twice (unless you obey the repeat signs :P)!

To add to BruceD's combined list: Mozart's K 576 "presents the most technical problems of all the sonatas" according to Maurice Hinson's Guide to the Pianist's Repertoire.

I know you don't have any say in this, Gerritt, just commenting on how dumb that board is! You sure you want your masters from there?

Is there no syllabus for the FTCL? It would help if you gave more information on the syllabus or guidelines. Otherwise we're just guessing.

Yes, there is. TCL

Go to Music/Music Diplomas/Music Diplomas from 2009/then download the PDF file "Diplomas in Music Performance and Teaching" from the right hand margin, and you'll find the syllabus for the (piano) ATCL Recital on page 18, the LTCL on page 20, and the FTCL Recital on page 24. There are no Haydn or Mozart Sonatas on the FTCL list.

Regards,

Thanks for that, Bruce. I'd been to the TCL site but couldn't find the actual syllabus .

To the OP: Why aren't you just choosing pieces from the syllabus?
It's more straightforward, isn't it, without the need to decide whether it's "difficult enough"..?

Morodienne: This isn't a Master's degree, though the OP points out that it's of a similar standard. It's a diploma exam, with its own list of works. Generally you choose from the list. If you want to submit an own choice piece, you need to have it approved. It's not really "dumb", just the rules of the diploma.

My master's programs included:

Bach G Major French Suite, P and F in f minor, book II
Beethoven Op. 10/2
Mozart K.330
Debussy - entire Children's Corner, L'isle joyeuse
Chopin - Bb minor Scherzo, 3 Album leaves, E minor Nocturne, C# minor Polonaise
Ginastera - Sonata No. 2
Bartok - Scherzo
Menotti - Ricercare and Toccata

And Mozart and Haydn can be very demanding! SO much detail and hard to bring off so that it sounds easy. Everything is exposed.

Thanks guys. Yes, it would probably be easier to pick pieces straight of the list, but many of those pieces I am not familiar with, so I was just looking for comments or suggestions. My musical training has been quite narrow, so although I have played difficult pieces I have not played a lot of pieces. As such I have no idea what to expect from a Schubert/Brahms/Prokofiev/Rachmaninoff/Liszt Sonata. I have been playing Beethoven my whole life and would like to try something different, hence my enquiry!

One that isn't played all that often is Grieg's Sonata in E minor (op. 7 I believe). It's a nice piece and not terribly demanding but usually makes the grade for grad studies.

I used Prokofiev's Sonata #1 for my grad school audition -- that's a fantastic work!