6

Why specify the D double sharp here and then an E later in the measure? Why not just an E in the first place? Am I just missing something blatantly obvious?La Campanella m37

Improve this question
  • 1
    Does this answer your question? Purpose of double-sharps and double-flats? – guidot Nov 22 '20 at 22:13
  • 6
    @guidot FYI: Not a dup. Error in the OP score. – Aaron Nov 22 '20 at 23:04
  • @Aaron: I admit, that the piece is mentioned in the title, but the text of the question seems pretty independent from it. – guidot Nov 23 '20 at 7:55
  • It's a note which is already sharp, according to the key signature, which the composer wanted to be sharpened. – AJFaraday Nov 23 '20 at 9:46
13

It's an error in the score. The Dx on the & of beat 2 should be a Cx.

The below image comes from the Breitkopf and Härtel first edition on IMSLP. Other scores there corroborate. The Busoni edition ("Franz Liszt: Complete Etudes for Solo Piano, Series II" [1988, Dover]) also agrees.

La Campanella m38 (actually 37)

EDIT: As pointed out in the comments (@James Martin), the lower E on beat 5 should be a D#.

Improve this answer
  • 2
    There is another discrepancy later in the bar as well, with the lower D# written as an E. – James Martin Nov 23 '20 at 9:43
  • 3
    With multiple errors in one bar, I wouldn’t be inclined to trust this edition very far! I’d strongly recommend OP to just use one of the versions from IMSLP instead. – PLL Nov 23 '20 at 12:19
  • Thank you! I have been staring at this measure for days wondering what I’m missing. I’ve only ever played for fun, so I appreciate the help. – gimmethedeetz Nov 23 '20 at 23:16
0

Unfortunately the only thing d double sharp and e have in common is their position on a piano keyboard. Composers and music theorist prefer more subtle issues like tonality of the piece and the function the note has within that. Under this view there is no similarity.

Improve this answer
  • 3
    Aside from the fact that (as Aaron’s answer shows) the actual answer to this question is that it’s a typo, you are also severely overstating the distinction. Certainly there’s a meaningful distinction between Dx and E, but “no similarity apart from their position on the keyboard” isn’t true at all: they’re enharmonically equivalent, and there are many ways in which traditional harmony makes use of such equivalence. – PLL Nov 23 '20 at 12:16

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.