Liszt's transcriptions were generally a matter of reducing larger works to the keyboard, like the nine Beethoven symphonies and numerous arias and other music from popular operas of his day. But he also occasionally expanded a solo piano or other smaller work to the orchestral realm, such as the Hungarian Rhapsody No. 14, which became the Hungarian Fantasia for piano and orchestra. In a sense, this version of the Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 for piano four-hands, is both a reduction and an expansion: it qualifies as the former since it is a transcription of the orchestral version of the Rhapsody, but since the ultimate source work is the Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 for solo piano, it is also an expansion. The work features virtually the same folk-inspired music in the other two versions. Naturally, Liszt beefed up the orchestral rendition and thus this four-hand arrangement reflects the higher-calorie textures and flashier, more bombastic elements in that work. The famous themes from the slower first half and Vivace and Prestissimo sections of the latter part effectively come across in all versions, though the four-hand piano account somewhat scales back the bombast of the orchestral version and may be the preferred choice for many listeners wanting an expanded account. Like the other versions, it has a duration of ten minutes.

© All Music Guide

Portions of Content Provided by All Music Guide.
© 2008 All Media Guide, LLC. All Music Guide is a registered trademark of All Media Guide, LLC.