Prelude No.5 - Live Performance by Henry Ng

Hello there

Here's the fifth prelude in season 1 of my epic (lol) miniseries of piano pieces. The main idea for this work was to depict an evil yet humorous character, the nefarious Kefka Palazzo. Hope you all enjoy, this was a fun one to write. 

Hey Vince,

That's a real funny one. Those off beats, tone clashes, unexpected haromnic progression all creates the light hearted mood. It definitely reminds me some of Mendelssohn's Rondo Capriccioso in E major. I particularly like b.36 where you split you opening theme to a motive. The acsending shape of the opening theme can be easily used to create clinax which you use that successfully! I also love the extra breath in b.44 as it's funny there.

I myself may want the tempo to be faster to reflect the scherzando feeling more . I may go up to 136 per crotchet. Will "giusto"  better than non-rubato? Since giusto means strict tempo.

Thanks for sharing as always Vince!

Henry

38 minutes ago, Henry Ng Tsz Kiu said:

I myself may want the tempo to be faster to reflect the scherzando feeling more . I kay go up to 136 per crotchet. Will "giusto"  better than non-rubato? Since giusto means strict tempo.

ooh, I like these suggestions. I was a bit worried about tempo and playability, since I'm trying to keep these on the easier side, but I think notating 100-136 for tempo would be cool. Also, I like the giusto tip. Going to update the score, thanks Henry!

@Henry Ng Tsz Kiu I updated the score, but felt 136 was too fast. I still wanted a march-like feeling, so marked it 100-120. Thanks for the suggestion 😄

Moderato giusto, is that how you would mark the tempo?

18 minutes ago, Thatguy v2.0 said:

Moderato giusto, is that how you would mark the tempo?

Yeah I think so! It normally appears as Tempo giusto but I also find there are Allegro giusto which means a strict Allegro, so I think Moderato giusto is definitely ok.

P.S. I press @vince and cannot find your name...

Henry

Cool thanks!

11 minutes ago, Henry Ng Tsz Kiu said:

P.S. I press @vince and cannot find your name...

I think that only works for usernames... you know too much from my anonymity 😄

Definitely nailing the vibe.

It would be cool especially, orchestrated IMO

@AngelCityOutlaw thanks dude

Peter mentioned it could work as an orchestration as well. I think it lends itself to it, perhaps one day. Thanks for checking out the track 😄

This one is a banger, definitively, and very different in character compared with the previous ones.

Can't find anything that I dislike, everything was very well chosen. The 5/4s here and there to emphasize the ending of a certain set of phrases as well as the dynamics and articulation. You also kept the promise you made to keep these preludes easy enough.

VERY good job, one of the best up to now if not the best one you have made in my opinion.

Kind regards,
Daniel–Ømicrón.

On 4/2/2023 at 9:18 AM, Omicronrg9 said:

This one is a banger, definitively, and very different in character compared with the previous ones.

Can't find anything that I dislike, everything was very well chosen. The 5/4s here and there to emphasize the ending of a certain set of phrases as well as the dynamics and articulation. You also kept the promise you made to keep these preludes easy enough.

VERY good job, one of the best up to now if not the best one you have made in my opinion.

Kind regards,
Daniel–Ømicrón.

Thanks Daniel, sorry I forgot to respond to your nice thoughts on this. I'm updating the mp3 with Henry's interpretation, what do you think? 😄

Cheers, my guy

Thanks @Henry Ng Tsz Kiu for your wonderful interpretation!!!

Henry's performance absolutely elevated the piece in a way I didn't think possible. Wow, seriously, bravo! This interpretation tones down some of the clownishness, and amps up some of the more charismatic mischievousness. It's become more compelling this way. Henry, you're a legend 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Thx Vince and @SergeOfArniVillage for your compliments! I have to admit that I have never read through Vince's tempo markings for this one (sorry for infringing your absoulte authority as the composer haha), since as I've said in my comment, I feel like the tempo should be faster to make the piece funnier, and I'm happy my playing helps bring out the good, or the "charismatic mischievousness" as you say!

But playing in a faster tempo does make some passages more dificult, like the wide leaps of LH and the unpredictable pattern in both hands. That's mischievous!!

I will be continuing to play Vince's preludes for sure since they are lovely.

Henry

Great piece!

On a totally unrelated note: Is that a flute I hear in the background?

3 hours ago, MicahHorn said:

On a totally unrelated note: Is that a flute I hear in the background?

Yup, sorry for the unclean recording since the soundproofing of the room I recorded it is not that good.

Henry

On 6/23/2023 at 1:06 PM, MicahHorn said:

On a totally unrelated note: Is that a flute I hear in the background

Yes, and it's actually my favorite part.  😄 A glimpse into Henry's life haha.

Is it weird that I want to add those notes add the end of the score for the final version? 

6 hours ago, Thatguy v2.0 said:

Yes, and it's actually my favorite part.  😄 A glimpse into Henry's life haha.

Is it weird that I want to add those notes add the end of the score for the final version? 

WHAT??!!