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 Blog for 8 February 2013 My Piano Arrangements
Of course, the idea of publishing a
folio of my arrangements of popular songs is quite
intriguing, but somehow it seems a daunting prospect
that would involve much labor without much hope of a
satisfactory monetary return. If I have
miscalculated, I welcome corrections. It is well known that I rarely play
ragtime piano solos as published. Likewise, with
popular songs, I create what I hope are effectively
musical and pianistic arrangements. This, of course,
is by necessity, since the piano parts in published
sheet music of popular songs were never designed to
be played as solos. The arrangement of the piano
part in a popular song such as "My Blue Heaven" is a
highly specialized art designed to convey the bare
essentials of the song, such as the melody, the
harmonic structure, the bass line, and, quite
frequently, counter melodies and fills. These piano
parts represent a specialized musical shorthand,
created by trained arrangers on the staff of the
music publishing houses. They are almost never given
any credit, although there are occasional
exceptions. For instance, the sheet music for the
1919 song "Take Your Girlie to The Movies (If You
Can't Make Love At Home)" states that the piano
arrangement is by Fred E. Ahlert. I enjoy creating my own unique arrangements of pieces for a variety of reasons. First, it allows me to distinguish my version of a particular piece from that of any other pianist. There are many great pianists in the ragtime world but only a finite literature of authentic ragtime piano solos from the ragtime era. Audiences have their favorite pieces, which limits the repertoire heard at concerts and festivals even more. For these reasons, believe that it is a great gift to the audience if the pianist creates his own unique arrangement of a favorite, such as the “Maple Leaf Rag.” As I rhetorically ask myself, “Why would anyone bother to pay money to listen to me play the piece if I play it exactly like everyone else?” I believe that an audience that is generous enough to come to one of my recitals deserves to have a unique musical experience that no other pianist can give them – an experience that they have never had before and will never have again. Indeed, I adhere to the rule that no piece should be played the same way twice. If you were to ask me to play the “Maple Leaf Rag” right now and then again ten minutes from now, I would play it entirely differently. For instance, I might play it in different keys, vary the texture, the mood, the beat, the tempo, and most certainly change the “breaks” and “fills.” In the classical world, pianists nowadays feel constrained by the published score, which is regarded as sacrosanct. Only slight and highly nuanced variations in interpretation are permitted, taking the form of tiny changes in dynamics, touch, and tempo. This is a shame, because prior to the twentieth century, classical performance style encouraged and demanded improvisation. In the nineteenth century, no pianist worthy of the title would dare perform a Beethoven sonata, for instance, as published. Improvisation and rearrangement was expected and rewarded. Beethoven, Mozart, and Chopin were among the most acclaimed improvisers of their day. They never played the same piece the same way twice. Improvisation during a concert meant that the audience was privileged to witness a unique act of creativity rather than mere reproduction. Another reason that I improvise my own arrangements is that this was the performance style for the professional pianists of the ragtime era up to the present day. James P. Johnson, Charles Luckeyth Roberts, Eubie Blake, and countless others were legendary improvisers. If you listen to their original recordings of their own compositions, you will find that their performances are vastly different from the published versions. The reason is that the objective of the popular sheet music industry is the sell sheet music, and this can only be done economically if pieces are published in highly simplified arrangements that the average home pianist can tackle. Only a small number of consumers will buy a complicated and advanced arrangement of a popular rag whereas potentially millions of consumers will buy a piece of music if they think they can play it. Why? Because there are more amateur pianists of average ability than there are professional virtuosi. The purpose of printing sheet music was not to preserve the pianistic genius of the composer but simply to make money. This is not a criticism. It is a simple reality. Sometimes, professional pianists in
the ragtime circuit approach me and ask if they may
play one of my arrangements. A very small fraction
of these have simply "stolen" my arrangements and
passed them off as their own. While I am indeed
flattered that they think so much of my arrangement
that they want to play my arrangement in public, I
do feel that this practice is unfair to me and,
frankly, a threat to the longevity of the career of
the pianists who might fall into this category. Professional ragtime pianists who
“steal” the arrangements of other pianists are doing
themselves a worrisome disservice. They reveal
themselves, either accurately or inaccurately, as
mere imitators, devoid of any creative powers of
their own. Audiences do not want imitators. Why
would they bother to go hear Pianist X imitate
Frederick Hodges, when they could just as easily go
hear Frederick Hodges himself? This is a quick path
to a short career. Pianist X should strive to be the
best Pianist X rather than a second-rate Frederick
Hodges. Therefore, although I am, as I said,
flattered that a few ragtime pianists want to play
my arrangements, I strongly, though with great
compassion, advise them to improvise their own
arrangements. Music is more powerful, meaningful,
and inspiring when it is an act of creativity. I
would gently say to these ragtime pianists that if
you enjoy my arrangements, I encourage you to feel
free to create your own arrangements. Be creative.
Be a co-creator with the composer. If you feel the
need to borrow some of my ideas, go ahead, but I
caringly give you the advice to do yourself a favor
and show your good manners and high character by
acknowledging the source of your inspiration. No one
will think any less of you, and, in fact, they will
think more of you. It is important at this junction that
I draw a sharp distinction between the few ragtime
pianists who "borrow" my arrangements without giving
me any credit and those professional pianists who
have made a fabulous and honorable career of
performing special arrangements, whether published
or commissioned, of popular songs of the American
Song Book. These pianists are great gentlemen of
distinction and fine manners who always give credit
to the arrangers. Indeed, these pianists highlight
the skills and the musical genius of the arranger
and proudly state that they are playing, for
instance, Cy Walter's arrangement of "Body and
Soul," Earl Wild's arrangement of "Embraceable You,"
or George Gershwin's arrangement of "Swanee." This
is laudable because the whole point of playing these
arrangements is to reveal the marvelous pianism of
these famous arrangers. An exact parallel exists in
the classical world when pianists play Franz Liszt's
fantastic arrangements of Schubert songs or popular
operatic arias. In short, unless I can be convinced
that it would be worth my while to sacrifice time
profitably spent practising the piano in order to
write out arrangements, I will have little
choice but to say to those kind people who ask me if
I have any folios of my arrangements that I do not
have anything at the present, but thank you so much
for your interest. I greatly appreciate it. Frederick Hodges Copyright
2013 by Frederick Hodges
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