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Czerny Op 740 #37, 2 Versions

I loved working on this study and getting it into my class repertory. It lies well in my hands and it’s always very exciting in class. Riisager’s orchestration adds a snarling snap to the RH downbeats that I try to imitate when I play it. The only down side is that if you play it for centre (and it’s especially effective for pirouettes) you’ll likely to have to repeat it several times without stopping, and for most of us non-virtuosi that’s asking for trouble. It makes excellent Cloche-Grands Battements music at the barre, and you only have to play it once.


Op 740 #37, 1st Version: 3/4 Grands Battements, 8 sets of 8

Op 740 #37 1st Version Audio

This is my performance of Czerny’s study a bit under his tempo. I add an assist from the LH in m 16 and m 17 to keep the power and volume going.


I avoid playing #37 for centre because of stamina issues, but, as I’ve said, it’s very effective for pirouettes, and for grand allegro it’s thrilling.


Op 740 #37, 2nd Version: centre pirouettes, 24 sets of 8

Op 740 #37, 2nd Version Audio

This is my performance of #37 with several repeats edited in, making it suitable for a monster allegro in centre.


Incidentally, I used this study in my “Rudy Apffel Vol 2 Music For Ballet Class” (2001) and when I reformatted vol 2 in 2017 for digital download I mis-identified the track as Op 740 #44 instead of #37. I didn’t catch the error before I released the reformat to CD Baby and thence to their partners. In fact, I only noticed the error while preparing the track for this project. There’s nothing to be done except apologize and hope to learn the lesson: proofread more than once.


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