Classical Music | Music for Quartet

Recorded on 09/09/2015, uploaded on 05/12/2016

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2, S. 244/2     Franz Liszt arr. M.L. Williams

Franz Liszt had a special place in his heart for the music of his homeland. Though he spent most of his life touring Europe as a concert pianist, he had a keen interest in the gypsy music of Hungary. Composed in 1847, the piece has become a gold standard for virtuosic pianists. It has two distinct parts; the beginning slow section, or lassa, is somber in tone, and the second is the friska or fast section, showy and energetic. Liszt even described it as reaching "a fury of excitement." The piece has been used in countless films and cartoons, dazzling audiences both young and old. This arrangement for harp quartet by Marguerite Lynn Williams is derived from both the piano solo and the orchestral version of the piece.

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.