GM453 Béla Hartmann Big Pieces for Small Hands
Six piano pieces for Intermediate to advanced players
Béla Hartmann became a well established performer and teacher after reaching the
2000 Leeds International Piano Competition Semi Finals. Watching his own young
daughter develop as a pianist alerted him to the lack of interesting repertoire
to challenge young pianists with small hands, finding little of interest without
frequent octave passagework and stretchy intervals. This led him recently to
compose the six pieces for his daughter, to enjoy performing music that sounds
dramatic and, at the same time, interesting with no painful stretches to
overcome. The “Introduction” does include dramatic octaves but composed with
just enough time to enable young pianists to play them with both hands thus
enhancing the drama. The two “Etudes” are aimed at Grade 8 students, one in F
major requiring rapid finger work and neat articulation, and the other in Bb
minor, which is more lyrical and chordal. “Scherzo” and “Little Prelude” are
considered to be Grade 5 level and provide fine musical contrast and mood in the
two works, with skittish, playful exchange with both hands in the Scherzo and an
improvisatory feel in the slow Prelude. “Lied ohne Worte” harks back to
Mendelssohn with melodious legato lines on a flying left hand over the
continuous semiquavers.
The six pieces display a wide range of musical genres and styles which cannot
fail to excite young pianists to explore these highly original works displaying
grand pianistic effects without straining or stretching small hands. Having come
to serious composing very recently, Béla Hartmann is sure to establish a firm
place in contributing to the intermediate recital repertoire.
Nadia Lasserson EPTA Piano Journal No 130 August 2023, p38