No. 1 Maiden's Wish, LW. A193 (S. 480, R. 145)

Liszt, alongside his opera transcriptions, actively arranged songs by predecessors such as Schubert, and by contemporary composers like Schumann and Chopin.

From Chopin's total of 19 songs, Liszt arranged six, publishing them in 1860 as "Six Polish Songs." The original Chopin songs were all written as very private compositions, not intended for public performance during the composer's lifetime, nor were they dedicated. The manuscripts were discovered after Chopin's death and published in 1857 by his friend Julian Fontana (1810-1869). Since Liszt began composing his arrangements of Chopin's six songs in 1857, it means he started working on them immediately after the songs were published.

Chopin's songs, like their composition periods, feature a wide variety of poetic content. However, all of them actively incorporate rhythms of mazurkas and polonaises, as well as folk melodies, making them a collection of works strongly reflecting his love for his homeland. "Maiden's Wish" is Chopin's first song, written in 1829, but the original title is "Życzenie" (The Wish). Pure affection for a beloved person, expressed as "If I were the sun, I would shine only for you; if I were a bird, I would sing only for you," is sung to the rhythm of a mazurka. The lyricist, Stefan Witwicki (1801-1847), was a friend of Chopin, and most of Chopin's songs were set to his poems.

In arranging this work for solo piano, Liszt reconfigured it into a set of variations that gradually increase in intensity. Through this arrangement, he successfully emphasized the innocent yet passionate feelings of a young girl. After an introduction expanded from the original 8 bars to 26 bars, the melody, which largely transfers the original song to solo piano with added ornamentation, is played as the theme, followed by three variations. The first variation has a light character, emphasizing dance elements. The second variation is characterized by triplet figurations in the right hand, making it a virtuosic variation reminiscent of Chopin's Etude Op. 25, No. 2. The third variation is the most dramatic, utilizing octaves and thick chords. Furthermore, it incorporates a fusion of elements from the first and second variations, as well as polyrhythms created by eighth notes and triplets, effectively depicting fluctuating emotions and their outbursts.