Grande Scherzo (Così fan tutte)

Details

Grande Scherzo for one piano, four hands by Greg Anderson, based on the Finale to Act I of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Così fan tutte (Women are like that), K. 588 / I. Presto: “Si mora, si, si mora” (“Let us die, yes, let us die”), II. Allegro: “Eccovi il medico” (“Here’s the doctor”), III. Andante, “Dove son?” (“Where am I?”), IV. Molto Allegro: “Dammi un bacio” (“Give me a kiss”) / Full score / Difficulty: Advanced / Duration: 12 minutes / Pages: 35 / Copyright: 2009, 2019 / Work number: 037 / Appears on the album An Amadeus Affair / Spotify / Apple Music

Program Notes

Pianists find themselves left out of Mozart’s sublime operas, yet they are taught to play his piano music “as if it were an opera.” Having already infused his sonatas and concertos with a generous dose of operatic flair, I couldn’t resist diving into the source material itself and wrote this 12-minute piano duet based on the finale to Act I of Così fan tutte.

This finale begins as two spurned lovers burst in, “poison” themselves in melodramatic fashion, then collapse in a heap. Soon thereafter, a bogus doctor arrives who revives the scheming duo using a large magnet. In their dazed, half-hallucinating state, the men grovel for kisses from the “goddesses” before them—a plea that is met with furious refusal by the ladies. It’s slapstick comedy, fervent emotion, and a dash of cynical philosophy all rolled into one scene.

My free arrangement treats the material pianistically, like Mozart’s rogue sonata for four hands at one piano. The primo pianist channels Fiordiligi, Dorabella, and the ever-resourceful Despina, while the secondo part impersonates Guglielmo, Ferrando, and the scheming Don Alfonso. Infused with Mozart’s signature sense of drama and trademark wit, the duet offers pianists the joy of bringing one of his operatic scene to life.

— Greg Anderson