How does one find the appropriate tempo for this piano piece in the manuscript of the Kitzler Study Book? It's "Chromatische Etüde" in F major by Anton Bruckner. I'm currently transcribing the Kitzler Study Book manuscripts, but there is no tempo marking. How do I find the appropriate tempo?
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2Wow, this is so sketchily written that I don't see any dynamic markings, either. I also have a feeling that editors will also nail him for not putting in enough slurs.– DekkadeciFeb 9, 2021 at 13:38
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2 Answers
There are three ways to determine the appropriate tempo of any piece:
- Through one's own experience with similar pieces (e.g., same composer, style, genre, or time period).
- By consulting recordings to see how others have played it.
- By consulting other written editions of the piece.
Experience
This piece is clearly focused on developing fast finger-work. The evidence is the long runs of scale passages in "fast" notes. So, as a performer, one plays the exercise at whatever speed is manageable, and then attempts to develop speed as far as possible.
Recordings
In a 2018 recording by Ana-Marija Markovina, the tempo is dotted-quarter = 100bpm.
Hers was the only recording readily available.
Other editions
Here, it seems, one is out of luck. The Etude seems not to have been published outside of the manuscript. (See Wikipedia)
There's no definitive answer. It's an Etude, designed to develop and showcase some aspect of piano technique, so I think we can assume it's designed to go at a fair lick! You could look at it as a preparatory exercise to playing 'Flight of the Bumblebee'.
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