#lisztober

So, proper prompts (and by this I just mean, fancy cards with the specifics of all etudes which you can easily find online) will be published here in October as it happened last year. But;

This year I'd like to propose a project which I've had in the back of my head for a bit, but never had people around to make it happen. That would be:

a new edition of the Transcendental Études.

The idea is, to compile a properly publishable, edited and correct new version of the Études. By that I mean a book of sheet music you can use to play. But, not confined to the boring black and white extremes of written music.

I would like for all of your contributions (plus mine) to decorate and integrate this book as to make it truly a Guide for the Études. So, if all is good, by the end of this year we all could have in our homes a totally personalised edition of the Études, to which we all collaborated creating.

There are no proper limitations really. Anything will be accepted as long it's made with passions. Humour will be accepted as well, as the declared use of AI will be. Of course texts, lyrics, poems and visual art or photographs would be more apt for something that's ideally meant to be printed out. Doesn't mean that video or audio contributions can't make the cut, though: qr codes, links and whatever other solution we come up with will help integrate all creations inside it. There's really no limit lest for the usual, normal stuff: nothing too vulgar, nothing too provocative… Nothing you wouldnt like to see printed, that's it. I trust all of us here wouldn't jump the gun anyways.

The themes will be 12 and those are, of course, the Études. Some of them already have an imaginarium connected to them (Feux Follets, Chasse-neige, Mazeppa etc). Some of them, like the Prelude, have no agogica to guide you, so you'll be able to workout your impressions and feelings with no prior scene set for you.

It's the first occasion for us to do something together that'll be tangible, since the creation of this discord. I'd love for it to have a bit from everyone, but of course all are free to participate or not. It's really not a chore. It has to be fun, and the pure act of creating something for all of us in the spirit of F L.

So all is good: illustrations, paintings, drawings, poems, texts, songs, lyrics, statues, videos, crafts, video or audio executions of the Études which we can link … Whatever comes up for you in and is in line with the Études. This print will have to transcend paper itself!

So, nothing more comes to mind for me at the moment. If there's any questions please ping me and ask. Of course you contribute with your art and I will think about editing etcetera. Hopefully we can do something together. Let me know how you feel about it.

Love,

my honest reaction to him

TB is such a dreadful disease, took the lives of too many wonderful people. Chopin could've composed more musical masterpieces. Emily Brontë could've published more than Wuthering Heights.

No Liszt month without Chopin! And unfortunately, I may have gone a little overboard here…@franzliszt-official

Franio! @franzliszt-official, I have a suitably weird and terrifying contribution leading up to Dziady for the Virtuoso prompt.

I apologise in advance, I’ve been rather melancholy, so instead of drawing — as it would’ve been wise to limit myself — only novelty allowed me to participate, so I have ‘sculpted’, or modelled, Franz’s rather famous hand(s) out of what could be found in this house that I haunt. That being a ball of patafix/blu-tack, which I’m led to believe is for fastening things to walls. Thus I have thoroughly abused the product. And, given that it doesn’t set, and could be easily squashed by my sitting on it, we will call it ‘Ephemeral Art’, to make myself feel better.

What do I think about when I think about Franz and his virtuosity? Those damn fingers! Were they my own, I’m sure my études would sound even better when I play them. Anyway, for reference, I found these bronze casts of Franz’s hands:

There was only enough mouldable mulch for the right hand, unfortunately. Make do.

See here, my measly attempt.

And here in inverted colours to better match the bronze.

Difficult to work with. Very sticky and can’t be smoothed. The proportions are very much off… as ever. Here’s a pencil for size reference — so you’ll have some sympathy with my poor, tortured soul.

Ultimately, this provided me equal fear and entertainment. It is difficult to sleep with Franz’s dismembered hand staring back at you. The fear has spread to the rest of the household.

Stuff of nightmares.