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Transcendental Étude No. 5 (Liszt)
Transcendental Étude No. 5 in B-flat "Feux follets" (Will o'
the Wisp) is the fifth étude of the set of twelve Transcendental Études by
Franz Liszt.
Difficulties
As with the other works in the Études but
one, Feux follets went through three versions, the first being Étude en douze
exercises from 1826, the second being Douze études d'execution transcendentale
from 1838, and third, an 1851 revision of the 1838 set. It is this last
version, from 1851, that is most often performed, most of the demands of the
1838 version being trimmed down and refined. Its rapid double-note passages in
the right hand accompanied by wide broken intervals in the left are notoriously
difficult to play. In addition, the passages are often asymmetrical and
unpredictable. It reaches several climaxes that are technically demanding and
ends in pianissimo arpeggios. Despite the mechanical difficulties of the work,
its greatest challenge lies in doing justice to its whimsical and mysterious
character. Pianissimo and leggierissimo markings abound in the double note
sections making it more difficult to play. It is one of the most technically
difficult pieces of the whole set.
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Transcendental Étude No. 5 (Liszt)
