Rocherolle, Eugenie Ricau : Miniatures
Work Overview
First Publisher:Kjos
Instrumentation:Piano Solo
Genre:pieces
Total Playing Time:6 min 00 sec
Commentary (1)
Author : Nishihara, Masaki
Last Updated: February 8, 2024
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Author : Nishihara, Masaki
All of Rocherolle's early piano works were published by Kjos (also pronounced "Kyos"). Kjos, a major American music publisher based in San Diego, California, is known as the primary publisher of the Bastien method. Originally, Kjos specialized in wind band and ensemble scores, but due to the connection between its second-generation owner, Niel A. Kjos, and Jane Bastien, who were classmates at Columbia University, Kjos successfully acquired the rights to Bastien's works and fully entered the piano method book publishing business. In the United States, Thompson, Gillock, and Burnam, was the leading and largest established publisher. However, Kjos, as a new entrant, introduced its unique approach, stimulating Willis. This fostered a healthy competitive relationship between the two companies, leading to a vibrant piano education scene. It is well-known that these methods soon flowed into and became popular in Japan.
It is also interesting to note that Rocherolle, who began her career with wind band and choral music, transitioned to piano music and established her position in parallel with the growth of Kjos's piano music division. This work, Rocherolle's fourth piano composition, is a collection of short pieces with classical titles. From this point on, Rocherolle's works began to express their themes more clearly with each composition. It can be seen that Kjos was captivated by Rocherolle's high potential as a piano composer and began to seriously commission her works. The difficulty level is approximately Czerny 30. It is written freely, without being constrained by the rigid stylistic conventions of classical music. The overall musical ideas are light and easy to play. The sophisticated harmony is outstanding.
Pieces
- 1. Nocturne | Slowly, freely, 2/4, G major
- 2. Prelude | Flowing, 3/4, B minor
- 3. Valse | Cheerfully, 3/4, B flat major
- 4. Gigue | Lively, 6/8, F major
- 5. Mazurka | Spirited, 3/8, A minor
- 6. Etude | Very fast, 4/4, C major