Description on Youtube:
In 1868 Bizet wrote his most ambitious work for piano, the Variations chromatiques. He writes to Galabert: "I have just finished the Grandes variations chromatiques [...]. It is about the theme I drafted this winter. I am, I admit it, totally satisfied with this piece. It is treated audaciously, you will see." Obviously inspired by Beethoven's 32 Variations in C minor, a work that Bizet admired and performed in public, it is the only one of his works for piano which is highly dramatic and in which the sense of (inevitable) doom is present from the very beginning—the variations in C major contained promising but a deceptive (illusive) redemption. Bizet's s indications reflect the broad spectrum of expression: maestoso, leggero con eleganza, grazioso, con fuoco, agitato, alla Polacca, espressivo assai, appassionato, malinconico (melancholic), Quasi recitativ. Destiny fulfills itself at the end with all its force (tutta forza). Bizet performed the Variations chromatiques on 23 December 1871 in a concert of the Société nationale de musique.
(Naxos Music Library)
Please take note that the audio AND sheet music ARE NOT mine. Feel free to change the video quality to a minimum of 480p for the best watching experience.
Performer: Julia Severus (Naxos, 2011) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIYnzABDwmU)
Original sheet music: imslp.org/wiki/Variations_chromatiques_de_concert_(Bizet%2C_Georges) (Choudens fils, ca.1879)
