Instrumental Duet Instrumental Duet,Piano - Level 5 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.534483

Composed by Germaine Tailleferre. 20th Century,Concert,Standards. Score and parts. 65 pages. Musik Fabrik Music Publishing #3534799. Published by Musik Fabrik Music Publishing (A0.534483).

This work was written in the first months of 1942 while Tailleferre was living in Grasse, in the socolled
« Free Zone » of occupied France during the Second World War and was completed just as
Tailleferre was forced to flee France with her daughter. As the wife of Jean Lageat, who had been the
secretary of the French socialist Léon Blum during the « Front Populaire » period just before the War
and who was at that time in the US working against the Vichy Government, and as someone who was
not unvocal about her political views, this could not have been a comfortable situation. Tailleferre left a
record of what she experienced during this period in an article written for the American music journal «
Modern Music » which she wrote shortly after arriving in America in the Spring of 1942 :
« Notwithstanding their staunch spirit of resistence, the people under German rule today are
increasingly bowed down under their burdens. By achieving the physical decline of the French, the
Nazis hope that spiritual collapse will ensue. However, after two years of quasi-famine, France remains
pround and great, although the necessity of liberation grows daily more urgent.....For an artist to work
under these conditions is almost impossible. The mere effort of subsisting wastes time and absorbs
energy ; The means to work are also lacking.....Musical composition is made practically impossible
through lack of music paper. For more than a year, I sought in vain to find paper in Lyon, Marseilles
and Nice on which to copy an orchestral score...Two years of experience under German rule have
taught me that all expressions of pride, dignity, spirit , aspiration of the human will can be made only
claudestinely. It is a historical truth that the human mind makes its greatest progress under freedom ».
Under such circumstances, it is a miracle that this work exists at all. The three movement work was
dedicated to the famous Marguerite Long, for whom Tailleferre had already written several short works
for piano solo, and François Lang, a pianist who was closely linked with the Group des Six and who
had performed in the première of the 1934 Concerto Grosso for Two Pianos, 8 Solo Voices, Saxophone
Quartet and Orchestra and for whom Tailleferre wrote two cadenzas for concerti by Mozart and Haydn.
The work opens with sunny, optimistism in a mood similar to the opening movement of the Concerto
Grosso, but quickly the mood changes to more dramatic themes. The second movement seems to
subjectively express a rupture with the past and a tragic melancholy. The final third movement is
extremely dramatic and almost frightening with it’s force.
When Tailleferre left France in the Spring of 1942, having been warned by a neighbor that she was
going to be arrested if she didn’t leave immediately, she left the score in a two-piano version, probably
due to the fact that there was no music paper to be had to copy the score. When she returned to France
in 1946, she learned that François Lang had been deported to Auschwitz where he died. Musical life in
France had been completely changed by the War years. Tailleferre put the work aside and forgot about
it, perhaps wanting to forget the hardships that she had lived through and the loss of many of her friends
associated with these years.
Tailleferre's version for two pianos is published by Musik Fabrik and the work may be performed in
that version. It is clear however, that the work was intended to be orchestrated and the editors hope that
the present orchestration will allow the work to finally be presented as Tailleferre conceived during
some of the darkest years of the Twentieth century.

2 Pianos,4 Hands,Piano Duet - Level 5 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.977034

Composed by Paul SanGregory. Contemporary. Score. 29 pages. Distant Engraver Music #3536815. Published by Distant Engraver Music (A0.977034).

Each of these four short pieces has its own character, color and rhythmic flow. Because the interplay between parts is sometimes complex and challenging, they can provide wonderful ensemble workouts for performers as well as fun and exciting musical experiences for audiences. The title Harmonic Spaces refers to both the idea that they are musical spaces filled with colors and characters as well as to the widely-spaced harmonic intervals upon which those aspects are built. Each movement is based on one or two wide intervals that mimic the spacing of overtones (or partials) in the harmonic series. This approach allowed the composer to produce unique harmonies, colors and atmospheres. For listeners, of course, knowledge of these intervals isn't important, even though the colors, characters and atmospheres they produce is. Each movement is described briefly below:

I - Simply and gracefully moving forward.
(9th and 3rd partials)
This gently flowing movement is a slow progression of widely-spaced chords with gracefully rising and falling strings of notes woven in and around them. The chords often appear in groups of two, with the second being quieter, like an echo of the first. That creates a sense of harmonic space within which the delicate lines move in and out of agreement with the chords.

II - With a steady, even flow (or groove).
(7th and 5th partials)
The harmonic partials of this movement are what give dominant 7th chords their characteristic sound and function. Furthermore, because 7th chords are an important part of jazz harmony, jazz influences enter into this piece. Listeners may notice the outlines of gliding 7th chords, swinging meters and syncopated rhtyhms reminiscent of jazz.

III - Gentle, flexible, but rhythmically accurate.
(11th Partial)
This movement unfolds slowly like a quiet summer afternoon under a shade tree watching lazy clouds. Because the 11th partial is a note that falls between the cracks of the piano keyboard, both the perfect 4th and augmented 4th (in very wide spacing) are used to approximate it. Although this creates some non-traditional harmonies and non-chord tone effects, the piece is tranquil, peaceful and beautiful.

IV - With precision, energy and excitement.
(13th Partial)
This energetic finale uses much syncopation and rhythmic interplay as well as wide-ranging arpeggios that get shared between the two players. The primary interval often appears as widely spaced parallel motion, which adds a special color or flavor to the rhythms. The result is a joyful romp in a playground of rhythm, color, motion and contrast.

(duration of all four pieces is ca. 12 minutes)
This work was funded by the National Culture and Arts Foundation of Taiwan (ROC)

2 Pianos,4 Hands,Piano Duet - Level 5 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.1170301

Composed by Georges Bizet. Arranged by Richard Simm. 19th Century,Classical,Opera,Romantic Period. Score. 6 pages. Richard Simm #770661. Published by Richard Simm (A0.1170301).

The brigadier, Don José, has fallen madly in love with Carmen, but she already has her eyes on another man, the bull-fighter, Escamillo. In this aria Don José declares his love for Carmen, but she belittles his passionate attempts to convince her of his feelings, saying that if he really loved her, he would take her away from her humble surroundings to a place where she could really be free.

The arranger has added a short bridge passage between the opera's initial scenes of communal life centred around a cigarette factory and Don José's beautiful expression of his ill-fated love in Act II.

Instrumental Duet,Keyboard - Level 5 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.1497831

Composed by Jenni Roditi. 21st Century,Classical,Contemporary. 24 pages. Jenni Roditi #1074235. Published by Jenni Roditi (A0.1497831).

For Piano Duo - 2 pianos/4hands. Initiate, Between the Octaves, the opening piece in the suite, is a sparky, rhythmic and post-modern hoquet, of some wit and almost perpetual bounciness. A ricocheting of quickly contrasting dynamics with occasional switches to distant moments. Three big plunges into legato emotional flow, release the popping bubbles of the fiery staccato material. A short final chorale settles and grounds the quick cuts, swoops and build ups that have propelled the whole piece. 
Names of all the movements in the suite Between the Octaves in the right order are Initiate, Surrender, Thread, Curve, Encircle, Ritualise, Ignite. The whole suite follows a long line from movement 1 to movement 7. However, individual pieces are well suited to be played alone too. Piano Duo is ideally two Steinway grands, otherwise, whatever is available. An enjoyment of the tensions and relationships generated between the two instruments: grand-upright, upright-electronic keyboard is to be explored as a positive. Each piece creates its own world in the suite and can be part of smaller subgroups taken from the suite, in any combination, but the order of the pieces needs to be maintained if more than one is played. 

Here is a taste of the background to the musical world of this 53 minute compositional suite. During a reflective time I read the following: The whole philosophy of dharma art (Buddhist art) is that you don't try to be artistic, but you just approach objects as they are, and the message comes through automatically. (Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, from 'True Perception The Path of Dharma Art.' Shambhala 2008, p.133.) The 'objects as they are' became the 'octaves as they are'. As the pieces were composed the octaves had a centring and clarifying role that allowed other material to circulate around or play against them. They acted as pivots, repetitions, drones, ostinati, pointillist nodes, pedals, melodic features, struts, harmonic turnpikes, breathing spaces, bass lines: musical imperatives. The octaves called the musical shots most of the time. When the music pulled a semitone up or down and away from the octaves (as it did quite often) it was especially telling in the context of the ringing spaces the octaves were creating. I became interested in the subtle dislocation that two pianos could provide. By dislocation I mean a degree of tension between the natural acoustics of the two instruments in the room and the players idiosyncrasies as musicians.  The whole point of this work was to examine the nature of my syntax, grammar, and compositional thinking. The title demanded one thing above all: what notes am I going to use between these octaves?? My choice of notes was derived in most instances from the tempo, pitch, and rhythm of the initial octaves at the beginning of each piece alongside the individual word titles that I set out to explore as musical images. The audio was developed from Sibelius software, via MIDI to Logic samples of a Steinway grand piano.

Instrumental Duet,Keyboard - Level 4 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.1497857

Composed by Jenni Roditi. 21st Century,Classical,Contemporary. 19 pages. Jenni Roditi #1074269. Published by Jenni Roditi (A0.1497857).

Piano Duo 2 pianos/4 hands. Encircle, Between the Octaves, originally called rotate as its impetus was to generate a steadily rotating music. Encircle was later chosen as a more evocative word. The harmony surprised me as it suggested shifts and colourations that I would not have expected to conjure. Two upper rotating parts with melodic narrative are supported by bass and baritone lower parts. The final section adds a dance-like short form to end what could otherwise have run and run and run. 

Names of all the movements in the suite Between the Octaves in the right order are Initiate, Surrender, Thread, Curve, Encircle, Ritualise, Ignite. The whole suite follows a long line from movement 1 to movement 7. However, individual pieces are well suited to be played alone too. Piano Duo is ideally two Steinway grands, otherwise, whatever is available. An enjoyment of the tensions and relationships generated between the two instruments: grand-upright, upright-electronic keyboard is to be explored as a positive. Each piece creates its own world in the suite and can be part of smaller subgroups taken from the suite, in any combination, but the order of the pieces needs to be maintained if more than one is played. 

Here is a taste of the background to the musical world of this 53 minute compositional suite. During a reflective time I read the following: The whole philosophy of dharma art (Buddhist art) is that you don't try to be artistic, but you just approach objects as they are, and the message comes through automatically. (Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, from 'True Perception The Path of Dharma Art.' Shambhala 2008, p.133.) The 'objects as they are' became the 'octaves as they are'. As the pieces were composed the octaves had a centring and clarifying role that allowed other material to circulate around or play against them. They acted as pivots, repetitions, drones, ostinati, pointillist nodes, pedals, melodic features, struts, harmonic turnpikes, breathing spaces, bass lines: musical imperatives. The octaves called the musical shots most of the time. When the music pulled a semitone up or down and away from the octaves (as it did quite often) it was especially telling in the context of the ringing spaces the octaves were creating. I became interested in the subtle dislocation that two pianos could provide. By dislocation I mean a degree of tension between the natural acoustics of the two instruments in the room and the players idiosyncrasies as musicians.  The whole point of this work was to examine the nature of my syntax, grammar, and compositional thinking. The title demanded one thing above all: what notes am I going to use between these octaves?? My choice of notes was derived in most instances from the tempo, pitch, and rhythm of the initial octaves at the beginning of each piece alongside the individual word titles that I set out to explore as musical images. The audio was developed from Sibelius software, via MIDI to Logic samples of a Steinway grand piano. 

2 Pianos,4 Hands,Piano Duet - Level 1 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.1265430

Composed by Alison Mathews. Children,Contemporary,Instructional. Score. 8 pages. Alison Mathews #858248. Published by Alison Mathews (A0.1265430).

This is short lively piece for 4 hands that reinforces the landmark Cs, both on the stave and on the keyboard. Level one uses C3, C4, C5 and level two uses C2 to C6 with a final flourish using all 8 Cs! Originally written to be played at 2 pianos I’ve included a duet version which involves some extra moving around the keyboard for both players to ensure your pupil always plays at the correct octave. It’s easy to fit into lesson time alongside flashcard games or to supplement your method book. You can even extend it further by getting your student to create their own part, deciding on the order of Cs and rhythm!