Prairie Dawg Press edition of Pieces for Two Violins and Piano – our critical analysis

Prairie Dawg Press edition – our critical analysis

Prelude, Danse Bizarre and Nocturne for Two Violins and Piano

I. Prelude

– critique of edition by Prairie Dawg Press (2012), made in comparison with a photocopy of the MS.  (Also, 14, an observation on the recording with Ian Jones.)

In general, suggest adding cross staving that is helpful for the pianist. It helps to show which hand takes which notes.

# (measure) /# (beat) / part

Page 1

  1. 2/1/vln.1 – the mf should be in bracket – not in MS
  2. 3/2-3/pno – there should be a crescendo
  3. 4/4/vln.2 – the mf should be in bracket – not in MS
  4. 5-7/1/pno – there should be a con before each 8vb (The 8vb in the piano part throughout the 2nd system is unclear – according to the MS and the PDP edition, it appears the single bass notes should simply be played an octave lower than written. Suggestion: they are like the preceding bar – to be played as octaves with the 8vb added to the single written note. It would be clearer if it said “con 8vb.”)
  5. 7/2/pno – the slur begins on the first tied G on the & of 1 in MS – will sound the same in the end

Page 2

  1. 9/1/vln. 1&2 – the f for both violin parts should be in bracket – not in MS
  2. 10/1/vln. 2 – Clarke includes a courtesy natural accidental for the second note F natural in the triplet – not in PDP
  3. 13/1-2/pno – a slur should be from dotted quarter note chord to eighth note chord like in MS
  4. 18/3/vln.1 – the rhythm should be quarter note F followed by an eighth note E – no tie in MS (Clarke clearly made an correction to her MS, and in so doing, changed the rhythm to eighth note Bb followed by quarter note F and slurred to EIGHTH NOTE Eb only – no sixteenth notes)

Page 3

  1. 21/1/vln. 2 – crescendo should be in bracket – not in MS
  2. 23/3/pno – Clarke includes a courtesy natural accidental for the final C natural in triplet
  3. 24/1/vln. 1&2 – there should be f markings for both violin parts on beat 1 – in MS
  4. 24/3/pno – the final quarter note Bb should be an eighth note followed by an eighth rest – in MS
  5. 25&27/1/pno – the Eb notes in the soprano part are written as Eb notes in Clarke’s MS. However, in the recording, Ian Jones plays them as E naturals.???
  6. 31/all parts – there is a rit. indicated in the MS and the edition; however, there is no indication in the MS or the edition of an A tempo anywhere following. (Suggestion: add A tempo in the following measure with the piano part and surrounded by brackets)

Page 4

  1. 43/3/pno – there is a missing accidental in both the MS and the edition for the 2nd note of the triplet B in the soprano. (It should have a natural sign – the previous note is already A#)
  2. 49/3/pno – the eighth note chord in the bass clef of the piano should have a courtesy flat sign for the Eb, because it was previously E natural in the last measure.

Page 6

  1. 61/3/vln. 2 – the 2nd note E of the triplet should have a natural sign – in MS
  2. 63/vln. 1&2 – there should be crescendi throughout the measure – in MS
  3. 67/vln. 2 – the first dotted eighth note B natural should have an accent – in MS

II. Danse Bizarre

– critique of edition by Prairie Dawg Press (2012), made in comparison with a photocopy of the MS.

# (measure) /# (beat) / part

Page 8

  1. 17/2/vln.1 – The chord should also be marked as pizzicato like vln. 2.
  2. 19/1/vln.2 – Beginning in the vln. 2 part and continuing throughout the score in all parts, the staccato markings should continue. Perhaps an alternative is to indicate sempre staccato.

Page 9

  1. 25/1/vln. 1&2 – Both vln. parts include a pp dynamic marking in the PDP edition; however, the Clarke MS contains p.
  2. 29/2/vln.2 – In the slurred arpeggio, the fifth note should be an F# like in the MS rather than the G in the PDP edition.

Page 10

  1. 31/2/vln.1 – The final two notes in the measure are likely staccato rather than tenuto; however, the MS is also unclear.
  2. 33/1/vln. 1&2 – The mf dynamic markings for both violin parts are not in the MS. They should be in brackets.
  3. 34/1/vln. 1&2 – Like before, the decrescendos in both violin parts are not in the MS. They should be in brackets.
  4. 36/4/vln. 1&2 – It would be clearer to include the fermata over an eighth rest on beat four followed by another eighth rest on the & of beat four to show the pick-up in the piano.
  5. 38/1/pno. – The dotted half note Fs should be tied from the previous measure.
  6. 38-39/pno. – The crescendo and decrescendo in the pno. part is not in the MS. They should be in brackets.
  7. 40/2/pno. – The octave Ebs in the left hand may be divided for greater facilitation. Therefore, the right hand would play octave Ebs and the left would have just the lower Eb.

Page 11

  1. 41/1/pno. – Like before, the dotted half note C# in the right hand needs a tie from the previous measure.
  2. 42/1/pno. – The upper dotted half note C# in the left hand needs to be tied to the eighth note C# on beat 3.
  3. 44/1/pno. – The 3 note chord in the tenor range of the bass clef needs to be tied to the previous measure.
  4. 45/pno. – A decrescendo, which is in the MS, needs to be included in this measure.

Page 12

  1. 51-52/pno. – The crescendos are not in the MS. They should be in brackets.
  2. 59/1/pno. – The MS contains an F natural in the right hand chord just above the lower Eb.

Page 13

  1. 71-72/pno. – The decrescendo in these measures is not in the MS. It needs to be in brackets.

Page 14

  1. 75-76/pno. – The decrescendo in these measures is not in the MS. It needs to be in brackets.
  2. 76/3/pno. – The final beat of the right hand is not a triplet in the MS. It should be an A duple eighth note and a duple eighth rest.
  3. 78-80/pno. – The crescendo and decrescendo in these measures are not in the MS. They should in brackets.
  4. 81/3/vln.1 – The eighth note on beat 3 is an E in the MS, not a D as in the PDP edition.
  5. 82/3/vln.1 – Like before, the triplet notes on beat 3 are E, F natural and G in the MS, not D, E and F natural as in the PDP edition.
  6. 82-84/pno. – The crescendo in these measures is not in the MS. It needs to be in brackets.

Page 15

  1. 92/3/pno. – The final triplet of the right hand lacks a necessary natural sign accidental on the top note D of the middle chord. This accidental is in the MS.
  2. 93/1/pno. – Likewise, the first chord in the right hand lacks a # sign for the C#. This # sign is in the MS.
  3. 94/2/pno. – The first note C contains a courtesy natural sign in the MS. I feel this is also necessary.
  4. 95-96/pno. – The crescendo in these measures is not in the MS. It should be in brackets.

Page 16

  1. 100/1/vln.2 – The first note in the measure is an E# in the MS, not a C# as in the PDP edition.
  2. 100/1/pno. – The crescendo in this measure is not in the MS. It should be in brackets.
  3. 101/3/vln.1 – The slur is also not clear in the MS. It is likely the slur continues through the & of beat 4.
  4. 102/pno. – The dynamic marking f is not in the MS. It should be in brackets.
  5. 104-106/pno. – The decrescendo in these measures is not in the MS. It should be in brackets.
  6. 105-106/vln.2 – The slurs in these measures is not in the MS. They should be in brackets.

Page 17

  1. 109/vln.1 & pno. – The MS contains decrescendos for both of these parts like the vln.2 part.

Page 18

  1. 122/pno. – The loco indication is not in the MS. It should be in brackets.
  2. 124/1/pno. – The MS contains a dynamic marking pp, which is not included in the PDP edition.
  3. 129/2/pno. – The right hand chord top note in the MS is a D, not an F# as in the PDP edition.

Page 19

  1. 134/1/pno. – The MS contains a dynamic marking mf, which is not included in the PDP edition.
  2. 136-137/vln.1&2 – The crescendos in these measures are not in the MS. They should be in brackets.
  3. 133-140/vln.1&2 – Like before, the crescendos in these measures are not in the MS. They should be in brackets.

Page 20

  1. 152/1/pno. – The right triplet chords would be clearer in bass clef. The chord notes are divided among the treble and bass clef staves in the MS.
  2. 153-154/pno. – The quadruples in these measures are sixteenth notes in the MS, unlike the eighth notes in the PDP edition. Eighth note quadruples are not possible in this instance, so they must be sixteenth notes like in the MS.

III. Nocturne

– critique of edition by Prairie Dawg Press (2012), made in comparison with a photocopy of the MS. (Also, 46, an observation on the recording with Ian Jones.)

# (measure) /# (beat) / part

Page 21

  1. 3/vln.1 – the whole measure should have a slur into the downbeat of the following measure like in the vln.2 part.
  2. 8/1/all parts – the a tempo should be in brackets, because it is not in the MS.
  3. 10/1/pno – the rhythm in the MS is a triplet including a rest for the first eighth note and then the G and C as the second and third eighth notes.
  4. 11&12/4/pno – this rhythm is also in the MS, but it is not really possible. The double dotted half note would be followed by a duple eighth note on the & of 4, not a triplet. There is a discrepancy of one sixteenth note of a sextuplet. NOTE: I tied a dotted half note to a quarter note and the final eighth note within a triplet.
  5. 12/pno – the slurs in the alto part of the piano beginning on the & of 1 going to the & of 3 and the first two eighth notes in the triplet on beat 4 are not in the MS.
  6. 13/1/pno – the double dotted half note in the piano part is tricky here, because Clarke changed the rest of the measure in the MS. It could be a dotted half note or even just a half note.
  7. 13/4/vln.1&2 – the final C in both parts doesn’t need a natural sign – not in MS.

Page 22

  1. 17-19/pno – there should be a slur connecting the final notes in the soprano part of the piano in each measure to the double dotted D in each following measure.
  2. 20/1/pno – more of the tie to the alto G should be present.
  3. 23/2/vln.1&2 – As I think you’re already aware, the E in each violin part on beat two should be a D.

Page 23

  1. 28/1/vln.1 – The Bb on the & of one should be an octave higher.
  2. 29/1/all parts – A p is included for each part in the MS.
  3. 29/2/vln.1 – This part is tricky, because Clarke removed the part for the following measure. Should the first violin play the high F or not – it seems like a strange phrase ending.
  4. 31/3/pno – The eighth note chord on the & of 3 in the right hand of the piano part should be C and an A (a sixth) above – in MS.
  5. 34/1/vln.1 – A mf is included for the first violin part in the MS.

Page 24

  1. 35/1/vln.1 – The mf included in brackets in the PDP edition for the first violin part is not in the MS.
  2. 35-38/pno – The loco in each measure is not in the MS.
  3. 39/1/vln.2 – The tie is not completed into the first Eb from the previous Eb.
  4. 39/2/pno – The Eb in the piano left hand part should be a Db and the crescendo throughout the measure and the following measure is not in the MS, but it could be assumed.
  5. 39-41/vln.1 – Beginning on the low Eb, there should be a slur through the two tied high Ebs in the following measures – in MS.
  6. 41/2/pno – The low F in the right hand chord should have a # sign.
  7. 41/4/vln.1 – The final note C should be a D – in MS.
  8. 42/1/pno – The second sixteenth note in the left hand should be a B above the staff – in MS.
  9. 43/pno – The final low F in the right hand should have a # sign.
  10. 45/pno – The second sixteenth note on beat two in the left hand should be a C# – in MS. Also, the [2] is apparently fingering for the recurring G, but rather confusing.

Page 25

  1. 47/3/pno – The second sixteenth note B on beat three has a courtesy natural sign in the MS.
  2. 49/1/vln.2 – The rest of the tie on the note F from the previous measure needs to be included.
  3. 53/3/pno – The second sixteenth note B on beat three should be a D – in MS.

Page 26

  1. 59/pno – The final E in the left hand should be a D – in MS.
  2. 61/1/pno – The tie for the octave A needs to be more present for the lower octave on the downbeat. Also, the quarter rest on beat 3 is a half rest in the MS.
  3. 63/3-4/vln.1 – The quarter notes F to E on beats 3 & 4 should be slurred – in MS.

Page 27

  1. 64/1/all parts – The MS contains an f for all parts on the downbeat.
  2. 67/1/pno – The first octave G# on the downbeat of the right hand should be tied from the previous measure.
  3. 69/vln.1 – The D# on the downbeat should be slurred to the E on beat 3. Also, the final dotted eighth note E and sixteenth note F should be slurred too – in MS.
  4. 70/1/pno – The natural signs on the octave A in the left hand are not necessary – not in MS.

Page 28

  1. 79/4/pno – The second eighth note in the final triplet should be a G instead of an F – in MS.

Page 29

  1. 86/1/pno – The MS has a p on the downbeat.
  2. 87-89/vln.2 – The decrescendo in not in the MS.
  3. 93/1/vln.1 – The first accented C has a courtesy natural sign in the MS.

Page 30

  1. 99/1/pno – The MS contains loco.
  2. 100/3/pno – The final eighth note in the triplet on beat 3 is G natural in the MS – not Gb.
  3. 102/1/pno – The MS contains loco.
  4. 103/4/pno – The final eighth note Eb in the right hand should be a C – in MS.

Page 31

  1. 108/4/pno – The E in the left hand on beat 4 should be an F – in MS.
  2. 109/1/pno – The MS contains a ppp dynamic on the downbeat.
  3. 112/1/pno – The lowest note in the measure is tricky – the MS has a low B, which is obviously not correct. I believe it should be a low C instead of the E in the PDP edition. Ian Jones plays it as a low C too.