Liszt-Finale-Presto from Hungarian Rhapsody No. 9 arr. Sankary (SP)-B/V/C/Cro./X/3M/4T/P

The Hungarian Rhapsodies are a set of 19 solo piano pieces by pianist and composer Franz Liszt. While Rhapsody No. 9 (S.244/9, "Pesther Carnival," 1847) is not particularly well-known to general audiences, it was arguably a favorite of Liszt's—in addition to the piano original, he also arranged it for piano four hands, a piano trio, and personally revised the orchestral arrangement by Franz Doppler. Like much of Liszt's output, it is based on multiple Hungarian themes, and its bombastic nature lends itself well to large percussive forces.

This arrangement by Nate Sankary of the final movement is scored for an ensemble consisting of eight keyboard percussionists, timpani and two multi-percussionists. At many times, melodies and accompaniments are passed rapidly between players to accommodate Liszt's virtuosic writing. The piano score has been split among the group, and each part contains very challenging adaptations of and embellishments on the original material.

Number of players: 11
Difficulty: Intermediate

Instrumentation

Player 1: Chimes
Player 2: Crotales (2 octaves)
Player 3: Glockenspiel
Player 4: Vibraphone
Player 5: Xylophone
Player 6: Marimba (4.3 octave)
Player 7: Marimba (4.3 octave)
Player 8: Marimba (5 octave)
Player 9: 4 timpani
Player 10: Crash cymbals, 2 suspended cymbals, sizzle cymbal, orchestral tambourine, 2 triangles, mounted tambourine, concert bass drum (shared w/Player 11)
Player 11: kick drum w/pedal, orchestral snare drum, 2 suspended cymbals. 2 triangles, concert bass drum (shared w/Player 10)