''Au bord d'une source'' ("Beside a Spring") is a piano piece by

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

; it is the 4th piece of the first suite of '' Années de Pèlerinage'' ("Years of Pilgrimage"). There are three separate versions of ''Au bord d'une source''. The first version appears in Liszt's set ''Album d'un voyageur'' (1834–1838), and the second in the first suite of Liszt's ''Années de pèlerinage'' (1836–1855). The last version is almost identical to the second, except for the final nine bars, which were added by Liszt as a coda for his Italian piano student Giovanni Sgambati, who was also a composer; this lengthened the piece by about 30 seconds. The coda was written in 1863. The second version of ''Au bord d'une source'' is often regarded as the most popular. In the first version the technical difficulties are considerably higher to the pianist, whilst the last version adds a flashy coda. Au Bord d'une Source at allmusic/ref>

Analysis

The main theme of ''Au bord d’une source'' comprises a pattern of arpeggiated semiquavers in the right hand with short notes in the left, firstly played below the right hand and then played two octaves higher, above the right hand. This constant crossing over of hands places considerable technical demands on the amateur pianist. Liszt links the various sections of the piece together using passages of intricate scale and arpeggio patterns ascending high into the upper register, descending back down and transforming back into the melody; this allows the whole piece to flow as one. The piece has many intricate difficulties that are belied by the calm mood with which a successful performance is often imbued.IMSLP Score (pages 16 - 23)

Recordings

The following pianists have recorded the piece, among others: :

References

External links

Album d'un Voyageur, S.156
Scores at the

IMSLP The International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP), also known as the Petrucci Music Library after publisher Ottaviano Petrucci, is a subscription-based digital library of public domain, public-domain sheet music, music scores. The project use ...

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Années de Pèlerinage: 1ère Année: Suisse, S.160
Scores at the

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Au bord d'une source, coda to the third version
Score at the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

* ''Au bord d'une source''at

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

''Au bord d'une source''
played by

Vladimir Horowitz Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz (November 5, 1989) was a Russian and American pianist. Considered one of the greatest pianists of all time, he was known for his virtuoso technique, timbre, and the public excitement engendered by his playing. Life ...

, from The Last Romantic (

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) {{Authority control Compositions by Franz Liszt Compositions for solo piano 1855 compositions Piano compositions in the Romantic era