The Lassan, with its short but powerful entrance, is the first section of Lisitsa’s composition. Despite beginning with the C-sharp main triad, C-sharp minor quickly becomes the home key. She modulates easily from here on out, notably to the tonic and relative majors. The Friska is the second section, which starts softly on F-sharp minor but on the dominant key of C-sharp major, echoing a lassan theme. The Friska embarks on a voyage of increasing vigor and pianistic brilliance, with various tonic and dominant themes providing accompaniment. Modulations are almost exclusively restricted to the dominant and reduced mediants.
Lisitsa performs mechanically, yet viciously and at incredible speeds, which is thrilling. Her musical choices, as well as her level of attention and idiosyncrasy, appear Gouldian. Hunched over the piano, neck forward, fingers flying, she has a savant-like quality. She is unique in her ways, as evidenced by this video. Her performance demonstrates a high level of control and restraint, which is indicative of her pianistic ability.
It would take years of intensive daily practice to develop a technique capable of playing either piece. Lisitsa had a lot of piano experience, which made memorizing the Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 easier for her (Aichberger). A method can only be learned over time; it is impossible to learn it rapidly. Learning and mastering a piece of this nature requires years of practice to build the physical capability, finger strength, skill, and accuracy required to play a composition of this magnitude.
The difficult aspect could be the use of a light tone, which left the finale and some parts of the Friska missing in power when it was needed. Stopping the loops with such velocities could be another difficulty that made her eschew a few notes. I like how she blends virtuosity with superb musicality where it is needed. If Liszt had been able to hear her perform his works, he would have been ecstatic.
Work Cited
Aichberger, von. “Valentina Lisitsa Plays Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2”. Youtube.Com, 2011, Web.