GM 458 Béla Hartmann Two Paraphrases on Songs by Brahms
Béla Hartmann admits to the fact that there are many available paraphrases and
transcriptions of great music, and he asks himself how he came to create a
further two. Totally enwrapped in Two Liebeslieder Waltzes, he felt a desire to
create solo piano works based on the two Songs, one from Op. 52 and the other
from Op. 65. ‘Wenn so lind dein Auge mir...’ begins as a complete reproduction
of the original in solo piano format. Lovely to play and the descant additions
merely enhance the theme. These extra melodies are craftily incorporated into
the music making it technically possible to spread across both hands. “Nein,
Geliebter, setze Dich” from the Neue Liebeslieder Walzer Op. 65 is full of extra
chromatic harmonies. Although Hartmann states that he begins with a complete
statement of the original and then digresses to see where the music can lead, he
appears to improvise related middle sections and then return to the original to
conclude. For pianists who enjoy singing in these great masterworks, these
paraphrases are a wonderful addition to the advanced piano repertoire and
deserve to feature in frequent recital programmes.
Nadia Lasserson EPTA Piano Journal No 130 August 2023, p38