"Romanian Rhapsody" by Franz Liszt // Joonghun Cho, piano

The origin of the little-known "Romanian Rhapsody" dates to December, 1846, when Liszt gave three concerts in Bucharest, Romania. The piece began as an improvisation on two Romanian folk tunes, which Liszt heard in the district of Szatmár, a territory now divided between Hungary and Romania. Liszt blended these Romanian melodies so stylishly and effectively in the piece that it was one of the most well-loved pieces Liszt performed in those concerts. The concert hall was full of murmurs of approval from the audiences, even while Liszt was still performing the piece.

Romanian Rhapsody takes a very similar form to Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsodies, and uses quite similar thematic material as well. It starts with an opening written in the gypsy minor scale, with the left hand accompaniment using the zigzag pattern from the Romanian theme which comes in later in the piece. The following lassan (slow section) recalls the thematic material from Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6. The highly expressive and improvisatory theme mimics the sound of the cimbalom. In the following G major-E minor section, a more gentle and peaceful melody is stated, possibly imitating the sound of tylynka or telenka, a woodwind instrument without finger holes which were commonly used in Romania. What follows is the Romanian folk melody that Liszt heard in the district of Szatmár, according to Bartók. I can imagine how the audiences enjoyed this not only because it was from their folk melody but also because Liszt fused this theme in his compositional style so successfully. You might not expect to hear these sounds in Liszt’s music, but how he develops and builds up this Romanian theme is quite ingenious. The fast and dance-like friska uses several thematic materials from Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12. It temporarily goes back to the Romanian theme in the middle, in a more dance-like style. The piece concludes in the virtuosic manner familiar from Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsodies.

The way many passages are written in this piece is not always as natural and pianistic as one might expect from Liszt. I believe this is because the composer didn’t revisit the piece often during his life, and it remained unpublished until 1936. In comparing the treatment of the same thematic materials in the Romanian Rhapsody, you can find that the ones in Hungarian Rhapsodies No. 6 and 12 are much more natural to play. Nevertheless, the piece is one of Liszt’s masterpieces, in my opinion, given the dramatic effect it can bring and the wide variety of thematic materials. It should be performed more often!

Romanian Rhapsody takes a very similar form to Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsodies, and uses quite similar thematic material as well. It starts with an opening written in the gypsy minor scale, with the left hand accompaniment using the zigzag pattern from the Romanian theme which comes in later in the piece. What follows after this exotic sounding introduction is the lassan (slow section), which recalls the thematic material from Hungarian Rhapsody, No. 6. The highly expressive and improvisatory theme is played, mimicking the sound of the cimbalom. In the following G major-E minor section, a more gentle and peaceful melody is stated, possibly imitating the sound of tylynka or telenka, a woodwind instrument without finger holes which were commonly used in Romania. What follows is the Romanian folk melody that Liszt heard in the district of Szatmár, according to Bartók.I can definitely see that the audiences loved this when they heard it during his performance not just because it was from their folk melody but also because Liszt fused this theme in his compositional style so successfully. It sounds very exotic, probably something you would never expect to hear in Liszt’s music, but how Liszt develops and builds up using this Romanian theme is ingenious. The next section is the friska, the second structural element generally shown in Hungarian Rhapsodies. This fast and dance-like friska uses several thematic materials from Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12. It temporarily goes back to the Romanian theme in the middle and presents it in a more dance-like style; however, it soon goes back to previous materials and finishes the piece in such a virtuosic way as Liszt often does in his Hungarian Rhapsodies. The ending passage is again written in the gypsy minor scale.

The way many passages are written in this piece is not quite natural and comfortable for a pianist’s hands. I believe this is because Liszt had not re-visited the piece much during his life, and it remained unpublished until 1936. Even when you compare the same thematic materials written in Romanian Rhapsody to ones in Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6 and 12, you will find that how they are written in Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6 and 12 are a lot less awkward for the fingers. Nevertheless, it is one of Liszt’s masterpieces in my opinion given the dramatic effect it can bring and the wide variety of thematic materials. It should be performed more!"