Dynamic curve preludes

I wrote these pieces as preparation for a course on fortepiano given by Dirk Börner at the Fribourg Conservatory of Music, in Switzerland, in November 2016. While writing them I was inspired by an important characteristic of the fortepiano: the distinctly different registers (colour and character of sound) over the range of the keyboard, in contrast to the modern piano, which produces a much more homogeneous sound. Furthermore, with the fortepiano, the volume of sound tends to diminish towards the upper end of the keyboard to a greater extent than it does with the modern piano. Thus, when played on the fortepiano these two preludes produce a wide range of nuances and colours without the musician necessarily seeking to create them – on the contrary, it is important to allow the registers of the instrument itself to take charge naturally of the dynamic diversity in the music (jumps of register, accompanying arpegios towards the top or bottom notes…). In the version for modern piano, I suggest a range of dynamic indications designed to emulate the effects that are natural to the pianoforte. The pianist is, of course, free to accept or not the scheme of nuances I suggest.