Overlooked but Not Forgotten: A Study of 24 Preludes for Piano, Op. 17 (1892) by Felix Blumenfeld (1863-1931)

Although the name of Felix Blumenfeld (1863?1931) is rarely mentioned in musical circles today, there was a time when this was not the case. During his lifetime, Blumenfeld commanded a great deal of respect within the world of music and was in great demand as a piano teacher, pianist, and conductor. As a composer, he wrote many works for solo piano. Despite Blumenfeld?s enormous popularity during his lifetime, theses pieces were quickly forgotten after his death. In this thesis, I will establish the importance of Blumenfeld?s piano compositions as artistic works of quality and present these overlooked pieces as valid repertoire for both teaching and performing. There is very little scholarship focusing on Blumenfeld or his piano music. Therefore, I will sift through and compile information from various existing sources, including biographical works of people connected with Blumenfeld and Inesa Sinkevych's dissertation, ?The Piano Teaching Principles of Felix Blumenfeld: Translation with Annotations of a Book by Lev Barenboim" (2010), to present an overview of Blumenfeld's life and piano works. This overview is important as it provides a sense of who Blumenfeld was as a musician and lays a foundation for who he was as a composer. By consulting musical scores and recordings, I will also explore the types of piano works Blumenfeld wrote and discuss the composer?s stylistic features, specifically within his 24 Preludes, Op. 17 (1892). Furthermore, my comparison between the prelude sets of Blumenfeld and Frederic Chopin (1810?1849) will show that Blumenfeld?s works exemplify and expand on Chopin?s style, adapting it to accommodate modern harmonies and Blumenfeld?s own distinct compositional features. In light of their musical and compositional quality, Blumenfeld's works should not be forgotten. As this study strives to create awareness of his works, it will set the stage for a renewed appreciation of Blumenfeld's piano compositions for teaching and performing today