Selections from Annees de pelerinage book 3 (Italie) s. 163 (Ian Lindsey)

00:00 Jeux d,eau a la villa d’este

7:50 Sunt Lacrymae Rerum (En mode Hongrois)

15:11 Sursum Corda!

Annees de pèlerinage book 3 (Italy):

The final book of Années is the least ostentatious of the three books - many of the pieces being darker and more introspective, and generally lacking in much of the virtuosity of his previous two cycles. Yet, in terms of sheer invention, it might be the most progressive.

Jeux d’eau a la villa d’Este:

Jeux d’eau a la villa d’Este is considered by many to be the finest of this set. Written in the bright-sounding key of F-sharp Major, this trend-setting early impressionist piece recalls bubbling fountains and water features found in the gardens of the estate “Villa d’Este” in Tivoli. In a very early example of Impressionism, Liszt utilizes shimmering effects in the upper register, tremolos and fast Arpeggi to create a convincing soundscape that mimics the play of water. Legend has it that Maurice Ravel heard Liszt perform this piece in a recital in Rome, which inspired him to write his own Jeux d’Eau. This is highly unlikely, since Ravel was only 11 when Liszt died. However, it is impossible not to see the clear connection between Jeux d’Eau a la Villa d’Este and Ravel’s Jeux d’Eau, Ondine, and other pieces as well. Many other composers, including Debussy and Respighi, were similarly influenced.


Sunt Lacrymae Rerum:

Sunt Lacrymae Rerum is the fifth piece of the set. Even though this piece is found in a collection of pieces, titled “Italy”, it contains the subtitle “in the Hungarian style”. Sunt Lacrymae Rerum roughly translates to “Tears of Things” and is derived from a line in the Aeneid, by the Roman poet Virgil. The piece was written in remembrance of the failed Hungarian Revolution of 1848. Dark and brooding, it’s harmonic style and fragmented approach to melody has some similarities to works such as Unstern or La Lugubre Gondola, or even the Seventeenth Hungarian Rhapsody - quite forward looking for its time, and most certainly an influence on composers such as Bela Bartok.

The piece opens with a descending motif of four notes, that is distinctive for its use of the augmented second (an interval that is very noticeable in the Hungarian or so-called “gypsy” scale). A ghostly syncopated lassan-like melody appears twice, the second time with a striking bell-like effect achieved by repeated chords in the upper register of the keyboard. Like some of his other late works, the ending is enigmatic.

The piece was dedicated to Hans Von Bülow, a former student of Liszt’s and the husband of his daughter who later (to Liszt’s great dismay), left him for Wagner.

Sursum Corda:

Sursum Corda is the seventh and final piece of the third book of Anées de Pèlerinage. Its title is roughly translated as "Lift up your hearts" and is the name of the opening "Eucharistic Prayer" in the Catholic Liturgy. It is therefore surprising that Liszt decided to close out the entire cycle of Anées de Pèlerinage with a piece that’s name indicates a beginning. However, it seems somehow only appropriate, as if to cleanse the audience after the lugubrious character of the previous Lacrymae and March Funebre.

In this piece, Liszt explores the orchestral sonorities of the keyboard and though initially gloomy, it ends in a positively uplifting manner. A notable performance exists by Bartok, who recorded it in 1936.