Janacek Arrangements for Easier Access

Agnus Dei – Agnece Bozij

janacekarranged — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 17:05:07 +0000

Agnus Dei – Agnece Bozij.pdf Ethereal piece from the Glagolitic Mass arranged for guitar and optional violin. I was amazed how sweetly most of this fits on guitar. The middle section (bars 24-38) is more problematic. It might be best to omit it. I’ve simplified the melody. Each note should be sounded a quaver later than I’ve written, but that’s a bit too subtle for my ears to pick up.

A computer version can be heard at http://musescore.com/score/5420

Tod Umrel

janacekarranged — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 21:50:10 +0000

Tod Umrel.pdf Heatbreakingly sad passage from act II of Jenufa. Apologies to Czech speakers for not using accents. This act contains some of the most tender and poignant music ever. From bar 30 on I like to play it ad lib over the long peddled bass note.

Taras Bulba coda guitar solo

janacekarranged — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 19:48:24 +0000

Even more ambitious – without the violin. Taras Bulba coda guitar.pdf

Taras Bulba coda violin & guitar

janacekarranged — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 19:43:14 +0000

Taras Bulba coda violin & guitar.pdf

I know it’s overambitious, but it’s too good not to try. I’ve arranged the rest of the movement too.

Katya Kabanova End of Act 2 guitar solo

janacekarranged — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 19:39:27 +0000

Katya Kabanova End of Act 2 guitar solo.pdf

Like many Janacek excerpts, it would be easy to turn this into a pop song.

Intimate Pages 3rd. Movement guitar solo

janacekarranged — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 21:54:26 +0000

Intimate pages 3rd. Movement solo guitar.pdf This movement is full of weeping and joy and ecstasy and maybe the guitar can’t express it fully, but it’s fun to try.

By raising the pitch a semitone it becomes much easier to play for most of the piece. Unfortunately the climax (bars 58-60) now falls on a C# chord which is hard to play with sufficient force. I suggest trying out different approaches (natural harmonics, inversions whatever).

Intimate Pages 3rd. Movement guitar violin

janacekarranged — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 22:44:15 +0000

Intimate pages 3 gtr vln.pdf Third movement of 2nd. String Quartet this time in easier keys.

Intimate Pages 2nd. Movement

janacekarranged — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 14:58:58 +0000

With this movement I’ve raised it a semitone and relied on the violin for intensity. Of course the full quartet sound is incomparably more exciting, but this gives a guitarist the chance to participate. Intimate Pages II.pdf

You can hear a virtual version of this piece at http://musescore.org/en/node/9266

Death (Smrt)

janacekarranged — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 18:00:33 +0000

Death (Smrt).pdf

This completes the piano sonata, written after the death of a student at a demo in 1905. I’ve had a lot of trouble with the climax trying to include the high echoes, but I think it can be played.

Forboding (Predtucha)

janacekarranged — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 17:56:21 +0000

Forboding (piano sonata).pdf I’ve taken more liberties with this arrangement than any of my others (aside from the necessary simplification for guitar). But since Janacek attempted to both burn and drown this piece, why should he care. It would have been a terrible loss.

Usually I just move the piece up a semitone. Small parts of this I’ve moved sideways a semiquaver. And the four-note repeating motif is six notes in the original.