Tocatta - Daniel Grimwood

[Music starts at 1:47]
One of the best pianists of his generation, Grimwood is known internationally for his performances of the music of Adolph von Henselt. He is also an advocate for British music as evidenced by a recent recording of the works of William Alwyn and Alwyn’s talented wife, Doreen Carwithen.
Working with this piece I have found it to be a sort of dual purpose etude, or technical study. Playing repeated notes rapidly without tensing is one of the challenges. These repeated note sections are interspersed with sections that bring to (my) mind Chopin’s “Winter Wind” etude.
Finally, there are some 4 note patterns sprinkled through the piece that echo the famous beginning notes of Beethoven’s “Symphony #5”. I don’t know if this is intentional on Grimwood’s part. Was he consciously quoting Beethoven, or doing so without being aware, or…it’s just a coincidence?
If you are a composer, or know a composer whose music is unknown, worthy of hearing, written for the piano, PLEASE get in touch with me. I am open to suggestions and submissions. Regarding what sort of music could fit the Respite or UnknownComposersWorthHearing profile, I echo what Steve Chandler, the composer of last month’s piece,”Luminous”, wrote to me: “I subscribe to the notion that music should contain an element of beauty. There is already enough ugliness…”.
I hope you find this piece and my playing of it worth hearing. Share, if so moved. More to come as I continue virus free, hale and hearty. Best to you all as we ride this plague out.
And please: help support this project and my #Respite and #UnknownComposersWorthHearing work by clicking on the paypal.me link, or using the @AndrewKrausPiano id on Venmo. No contracts, no pledges, no ongoing commitments, just a request to help me keep the music coming.
Thanks for listening.
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