From Alamy.com
This was set as a Grade One piece for the ABRSM piano exam in 1999 - 2000. It is present in a number of publications, a few of which are listed below.
· Getting to Grade One, ed. Elissa Milne, Hal Leonard Publishing
· Piano Piccolo, ed. Hans-Guenter Heumann
· Piano Literature Book, ed. Faber and Faber, Faber Publishing
· More Classics to Moderns, Book 1, ed. Denes Agay, Music Sales Ltd
It can be encountered in two keys, E minor and D minor. The one present in the Getting to Grade one book is in E minor however when it was set in 1999 – 2000, it was in the key of D minor.
What is the story the player wishes to convey to the listener?
It would be advisable to suggest to a potential player of this piece that they watch some selected videos showing the bourrée being performed. According to Wikipedia, the bourrée is a dance of French origin. It resembles a gavotte in that is in cut time. It is though quicker than a gavotte and the phrases start with a quarter-note upbeat whereas the gavotte starts with a half-note upbeat. In the Baroque era, after the Academie of Dance was established by Louis XIV in 1661, the French court adapted the bourrée, as they did with many dances, for the purposes of concert dance.
The International Encyclopaedia of Dance states 'it is a lively dance with the dancers with a graceful and centred carriage using swiftly flowing steps to form a variety of floor patterns in geometric figures common to French court dancing of the period'.
The story could be of two dancers moving towards each other and then away in the first two phrases. In the second section the dancers move towards each other at the end of the third phrase followed by moving away during the last phrase. The player can think of the footwork that the dancers will be employing when playing the piece.
There should be a change of character at the beginning of the third phrase.
What is the structure of the music?
The piece is in binary form, with each section repeated however this would not be necessary in an exam situation. The first section ends in the tonic key.
Main part of the music
This should be placed at the beginning of bar 13. The player needs to consider that because the music was written in the Baroque Period the forte at the climax should not be too loud.
Phrasing
There are four phrases in this music with four bars in each phrase. Each phrase starts with an upbeat of a crotchet. The first two phrases start exactly the same way and contain the same material, with the exception of the endings of each of the phrases. The third phrase contains different material and this phrase leads into the last phrase, which has similar material to the first two phrases. However the end of the phrase is different to the first two phrases. The player will need to be able to play with a range of dynamic colours to maintain the listener's attention.
There is contrasting material in the first, second and fourth phrases; the first two bars contain one melodic pattern and this is balanced with a following two bars with a slightly different melodic pattern. The third phrases contains similar material and this helps to heighten the climax at the beginning of the fourth phrase.
Metronome mark, time signature and rhythm
The metronome mark in the Getting to Grade One book could be slightly fast, in my opinion. Personally, the speed of 69 or 72 crotchet beats per minute is preferable. There is a danger that when the music is played too fast the music will sound a little trivial and some of the details may be lost.
The player needs to ensure that the time signature of Cut time is apparent to the listener. Graupner has provided help in this regard by using a number of minims and dotted minims in the LH.
Since the music starts with an anacrusis, the first beat of bar 1 needs to be played with a small emphasis so that the listener is aware of where the first beat of the bar is positioned. Whenever there is an anacrusis in a piece of music it is a good idea to think about how this contributes to the character of the music. The player must ensure that the anacrusis is 'clear', in other words the LH rest is observed. Suggest to the player that they must 'play' the rest.
Although there are only a few sets of quavers in this music there is a danger that they could be played unevenly with more stress on the second quaver in comparison to the first one. Saying the time names and ensuring that the fingers are curved are helpful suggestions in this situation.
Beginning and ending
The player needs to imagine that they are adding into music that is already playing. The first LH note should be played with resonance.
At the end, a slight slowing down is appropriate however the player must ensure that the notes are not doubled in rhythm as a result. Wait on the last notes at least one more beat at the slowing speed before gently lifting off and putting the hands back in the lap.
Thomasschule on left and Thomaskirche on right. By Unknown author - heiligenlexikon.de, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5732736
Details and considerations
Graupner was born on the 13th January 1683 in Kirchberg, Saxony, Germany and died in Darmstadt, Hessen, Germany. He went to Leipzig in 1696 where he studied at the Thomasschule, and met among others, Johann Kuhnau and befriended Telemann. In 1706 Graupner moved to Hamburg where he composed the first of his five operas. In 1709 he became Voce-Kapellmeister at the court of Ernst Ludwig, Landgrave of Hessen-Darmstadt. In 1723 he turned down a post as Kantor at St Thomas' in Leipzig. Telemann also declined the post, so the post went to J. S. Bach. His remaining years were spent at Darmstadt. He was blind later in life. His compositions include 1418 church cantatas, 113 symphonies, 8 operas. 36 sonatas and a lot of keyboard music. Graupner had little concern for posterity and he requested that all of his music be burnt after his death. This led to conflict between his heirs and the court at Darmstadt and in 1819 the court was declared the sole owner of Graupner's compositions.
Residential palace on the market square, Darmstadt. By Pedelecs - http://www.wikivoyage-old.org/de/Bild:Residenzschloss_Darmstadt_539-Gdh.JPG, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22727731
According to the New Zealand School of Music the manuscripts have only become available from the 1970s. A film has been released entitled "Christoph Graupner - viloa d'amore and more". One of the Professors at the University, Professor Donald Maurice is one of the soloists featured on this film.
Touch
The player needs to play with energy from the fingertips into the keys creating a slightly brittle and bright touch. However, the two-note slurs must be observed by using a little weight into the keys on the first note of the pair of notes. In contrast, the LH should be played with resonance as this underpins the music. At the end of first, second and last phrases the music is lightened by the use of crotchets in the LH.
Balance between the hands
The balance is to the RH however at the end of the first, second and last phrases the hands should 'blend' together in sound. As always though, small changes in the LH's dynamics will help to project the RH's melody.
Articulation
This music can be articulated in a number of ways. Whatever articulation scheme is decided on, consistency is the paramount. One version I have seen of this piece has quite a number of detached notes however another version is more legato overall. The detached notes should only be slightly detached; short detached notes played in this music are not appropriate. In addition to this, discuss with the player how the use of articulation affects the character of the music.
Dynamics
Considering this is Baroque music one would not expect many dynamic markings on the music. The piece in the Getting to Grade One publication has had dynamic and agogic markings inserted into the music, which could be followed with some refinements.
As stated before, the dynamics in this music should be played with some restraint, as a full forte for example would not be appropriate for the piece.
Rubato
Only a couple of touches of rubato should be used in this piece, a slight hesitation prior to bar 8 and a little slowing down at the end of the penultimate bar and in the final bar.
Use of the LH
As discussed previously this piece requires the use of a resonant LH. The detached note (according to the articulation in the piece in the Getting to Grade One publication) at the end of the second bar of each phrase helps to lighten the music a little but also defines the two parts of the phrase. The LH detached notes should only be slightly lifted.
Use of the RH
The RH should be played with energy and vitality with energy from the fingertips. When playing this piece the player should think of the sound of a harpsichord.
Memorial plaque for Johann Christoph Graupner on the listed building at Neumarkt 11 in Kirchberg (Saxony)By Michael Wolf, Penig, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=74807843
Additional considerations
· to help the player remember where the melody changes, for example at the end of the first and second phrases, setting the melody to words could help.
· the player should place the loudest part of each phrase in a different position to provide interest for the listener
· the player should continue playing after the end of bar 8.
References
www.bach-cantatas.com/Lib/Graupner-Christoph.htm
New Zealand School of Music 'Recovering Christoph Graupner', 7th December 2018