# Forgotten masterpiece of piano literature



## Aramis

I wanna tell you 'bout a girl I know, my, she looks so fine

Róże i Ciernie

Les Roses et Les Épines

The Roses and Thorns​
Are cyclical work for solo piano written by Juliusz Zarębski whose cration dates around 1883. I have written about this composer before, in vain trying to interest people with his Piano Quintet in G minor which is masterpiece of chamber music.

Like mentioned quintet, Roses and Thorns are suprisingly modern work. Music by obscure composers often happend to be beautiful but rarely to be original and innovative. Well, his was both. Being student of Liszt he has heavily influenced by his mature experiments and his music strikes you as preceding, in many ways, Debussy and Ravel.

Roses and Thorns are his second masterpiece admirable for it's advanced colorful harmony and, more simply, for it's beauty. It is work of quality compareable with Liszt's Years of Pilgrimage (also cyclical work) and far superior to anything that Brahms ever wrote for solo piano. Sorry, I had to write this, it's true anyway, but people always prefer sticking to big names, he.

The recording I have is from this CD:










Perhaps I will upload it to YouTube.


----------



## Webernite

I've heard some of his solo piano works. They definitely have modernistic credentials, like you say. But harmonically, there seems to be something lacking compared with Chopin and Brahms. Don't you think his music is a bit colorless?


----------



## Aramis

Depends on what have you heard (?). I think that in the two works I referred to he reached the same heights as Chopin and Liszt did. He died too early and therefore didn't leave us too many mature works but this handful that he managed to compose as mature artist belong, in my opinion, to greatest achievements of piano music in second half of XIXth century. Colorless? It is term that I would sooner assing to Brahms works for solo piano than even early pieces by Zarębski.


----------



## Webernite

Well, if you eventually upload Roses and Thorns to Youtube, I'll have a listen.


----------



## Aramis

And so I have done. The recording is rather silent so turn your speakers properly.

Enjoy:


























Personally I consider 1st and 4th movements to be my favourite of this work.

The photo in videos shows Zarębski with his wife.

I hope my contribution will result in better appreciation of his work and at least few people will remember his name and music which are both very dear to my heart.


----------



## Webernite

This piece is definitely more "colorful" than the others I've heard (probably earlier works?). Very nice.


----------



## Aramis

> probably earlier works?


I can't tell you since so far you didn't specify what pieces exactly did you hear before.


----------



## Webernite

It was a rhetorical question. I can't remember what they were called. :lol:


----------



## Aramis

It is hardly understandable to me how is it possible that rather meaningless threads that are virtually ABOUT NOTHING can end with 2000 replies in short period and still progress while gratuitous attempt to interest people with some very valueable work which they probably wouldn't encounter without this attempt for another 100 years ends with reply from one user, videos with few (literally) views and that's all until it gets lost in the abyss of forgotten threads.


----------



## emiellucifuge

Thank you Aramis, I didnt see this thread until now.

I will listen to this as soon as my current-listening is over, and share my thoughts.


----------



## Rangstrom

Looks like the Accord is OOP, but there is recording of the piano quintet that I've added to my want list.


----------



## Romantic Geek

Sadly - this seems to be one of too many forgotten masterpieces for piano. Maybe we should have pianists stop playing the Waldstein for the umpteenth time and start performing some "new" music...and by "new"...I mean forgotten.


----------

