Relaxing Piano Playlist Series 6 Episode 2

Feeling tired? Need to unwind? Then how about some gentle, soothing piano music? Welcome to the the Episode 2 of Series 6 in the Relaxing Piano Playlist! In this episode, I perform for you music all centered on the theme of Spring with works by Mendelssohn, Grieg, Sindig, MacDowell, Tchaicovsky and the second movement from the "Coronation" Piano Concerto No.26 by Mozart.

Transcript

00:30 - James Quinn

Hello and welcome to Episode 2 of Series 6 in the Relaxing Piano Playlist, with your host, James Quinn here at the piano, thank you very much for joining me. This episode is billed as a special themed “Spring” music Episode.

In this episode, you’re going to hear a number of pieces ranging from a wide variety of composers, covering the Classical and the Romantic periods that help to set the flavour of springtime.

The first piece that you’re going to hear, comes from the composer Felix Mendelssohn, where you will hear one of his Songs Without Words, specifically you will hear No.6 from Op62. This particular piece is known as Spring Song but also as “Camberwell Green” purely on this was where Mendelssohn was n this exact location in England when he wrote the piece while staying with relatives of his wife. 

Afterwards, we will pay a visit to the Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg for our next piece, and in this instance you will hear one of his Lyric Pieces, and this one quite fittingly is known as ‘Butterfly” from Op43.

We then introduce a new composer to the podcast in the form of the Norwegian composer, Christian Sindig, and you will hear what is perhaps his most famous piece, The Rustle of Spring which comes from a published set of Six Pieces for Piano from Op32. 

We then make a return to the American composer Edward MacDowell, where on this occasion you will hear a short movement from one of his piano cycles. In this case you will hear the movement entitled “By a Meadow Brook” which comes from his Woodland Sketches Op51.

To finish off this section, I feel it is quite appropriate to finish the theme of Spring with what is undoubtedly a big audience favourite. Taken from his world famous ballet The Nutcracker, you will Tchaicovsky’s much loved Waltz of The Flowers.

After this, you will hear another slow movement from a piano concerto to finish off this episode, and in particular, we return to the classical composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, where you will hear the second movement from his Piano Concerto No.26 in D Major, which was published as K.536. This is otherwise known as the “Coronation”, named purely for when Mozart performed this for a coronation of Leopold II as Holy Roman Emperor in October, in Frankfurt in 1790. 

So to recap, here is the order just once more: Songs Without Words No.6 Op62 by Mendelssohn, Butterfly from Lyric Pieces Op43 by Grieg, The Rustle of Spring Op32 by Sindig, By a Meadow Brook from Woodland Sketches Op51 by MacDowell, Waltz of the Flowers from The Nutcracker by Thaicovsky, and finally movement 2 from “Coronation” Piano Concerto No.26 in D Major by Mozart,

So sit back, relax, and I hope that you enjoy all of the music. Thank you.