Field: 18 Nocturnes

The 18 Nocturnes by John Field stand as timeless gems in the piano repertoire. An Irish composer and pianist, Field's works represent a bridge between the classical and romantic eras; he is often credited with pioneering the Nocturne, a genre later made famous by Chopin.

Composers: John Field
Artist: Tyler Hay (piano)

As the pre-eminent forerunners to Chopin’s works in the same genres, the Nocturnes of John Field have few rivals for music well known by history but so seldom heard. They were largely inspired by the slow movements of Classical concertos, Mozart above all, as well as opera arias. From them, Field evolved his own firm concept of a form with rich harmonies and gentle dynamics to suggest the night and dreaming, though in fact he began by giving these pieces traditional names such as Pastorale, Serenade and "Romance. He wrote the 18 works not as a set, but over the course of 15 years, rarely completing more than one and never more than three in a single year. Liszt observed in them ‘The total absence of everything that looks to effect'.

Even when he settled upon Nocturne, Field bestowed upon some of them a qualifying subtitle: ‘Cradle Song’ (No.6), ‘Reverie’ (No.7), ‘Song Without Words’ (No.13), ’Nocturne Pastorale’ (No.17), and ‘Nocturne charactéristique Midi’ (No.18). This last Nocturne stands apart from its companions as a tribute to midday, cast as an Allegro, with a coda in which a chiming clock strikes twelve as quicker notes laugh and dance around the repeated note.
As a window on the salons of 19th century Europe, the Nocturnes are taxing neither to play nor to listen to, but they are polished with painstaking finesse, and they demand from the performer all the subtle pianistic guile of Chopin’s works: notably a command of rubato to shape the melodies, and the imaginative and technical capacities of a coloristic palette to bring variety without eccentricity to the sequence.

👉 Social media links:

Brilliant Classics:

Tracklist:
0:00:00 Nocturne No. 1 in E-flat Major, H 24
0:03:19 Nocturne No. 2 in C Minor, H 25
0:06:59 Nocturne No. 3 in A-Flat Major, H 26
0:10:44 Nocturne No. 4 in A Major, H 36
0:17:04 Nocturne No. 5 in B-Flat Major, H 37
0:19:32 Nocturne No. 6 in F Major, H 40
0:23:59 Nocturne No. 7 in C Major, H 45
0:30:05 Nocturne No. 8 in A Major, H 14E
0:34:35 Nocturne No. 9 in E-flat Major, H 30A
0:38:25 Nocturne No. 10 in E Minor, H 46
0:42:12 Nocturne No. 11 in E-Flat Major, H 56
0:47:07 Nocturne No. 12 in G Major, H 58D
0:49:11 Nocturne No. 13 in D Minor, H 59
0:53:11 Nocturne No. 14 in C Major, H 60
1:01:38 Nocturne No. 15 in C Major, H 61
1:05:37 Nocturne No. 16 in F Major, H 62
1:09:57 Nocturne No. 17 in E Major, H 54
1:20:46 Nocturne No. 18 “Midi” in E Major, H 13K

Spotify Playlists:

#Field #Nocturnes #Piano #Music #Nocturne #PianoMusic #PianoClassics #ClassicalPiano #BrilliantClassics

[BrilliantClassics]

Thank you for watching! Tracklist:
0:00:00 Nocturne No. 1 in E-flat Major, H 24
0:03:19 Nocturne No. 2 in C Minor, H 25
0:06:59 Nocturne No. 3 in A-Flat Major, H 26
0:10:44 Nocturne No. 4 in A Major, H 36
0:17:04 Nocturne No. 5 in B-Flat Major, H 37
0:19:32 Nocturne No. 6 in F Major, H 40
0:23:59 Nocturne No. 7 in C Major, H 45
0:30:05 Nocturne No. 8 in A Major, H 14E
0:34:35 Nocturne No. 9 in E-flat Major, H 30A
0:38:25 Nocturne No. 10 in E Minor, H 46
0:42:12 Nocturne No. 11 in E-Flat Major, H 56
0:47:07 Nocturne No. 12 in G Major, H 58D
0:49:11 Nocturne No. 13 in D Minor, H 59
0:53:11 Nocturne No. 14 in C Major, H 60
1:01:38 Nocturne No. 15 in C Major, H 61
1:05:37 Nocturne No. 16 in F Major, H 62
1:09:57 Nocturne No. 17 in E Major, H 54
1:20:46 Nocturne No. 18 “Midi” in E Major, H 13K

[galina]

Listening to the nocturnes of John Field, the founder of this genre of piano music, is a wonderful gift for the listener. Field's night songs are pleasant to the ear and elegant, they are pleasant to listen to and relax from the hustle and bustle of the day... Brilliant Classics, thank you!

[notaire]

Wunderschöne und detaillierte Interpretation dieser achtzehn frühromantischen und fein komponierten Tastenwerke im gut betrachteten Tempo mit klarem doch elegantem Klang des technisch perfekten Klaviers und mit sorgfältig kontrollierter Dynamik. Wahrlich intelligenter und genialer Pianist.

[isleneleite]

Maravilhoso material musical!
Uma Jóia para quem, como eu, admira as obras pianísticas clássicas e românticas!
Gratíssimo pela postagem!

[GuglSix]

It is thoroughly excellent! Thank you!

[nancyholcombe]

They may be nocturnes BC, but are a lovingly gentle way to wake up this morning! I last heard John Field as a teenager so it's wonderful to have an entire collection to listen to now. Thank you!

[fredsmalley]

This is gorgeous. Enchanting. Thank you

[Vida-Erudita]

Boníssimo! John Fidel é um pai para o Chopin, seu filho elevou os noturnos ao mais refinado estágio.

[류순열-hi]

아름다운 피아노 연주곡 잘 들었습니다~감사합니다~🎵🎹🌿🍀☘🌹🌹☘🍀🌿❤❤수고 많으셨습니다~☕

[MsLeenite]

Beautiful music: thoughtful, sparkling, soothing. Thank you, Brilliant Classics. I didn't realize I needed to listen to this album until I did.

[W.ClassicMusic]

Start the day on your channel
Thank you for the good music

[katiabarcenas]

Gracias por compartir es una bella interpretación!!! Me encanta ❤❤❤

[SincerelyDeMartini]

Não conheço Field, mas vou ouvir tudo. Só pelo começo já gostei.
Obrigado

[knzw]

Field's nocturnes "were largely inspired by the slow movements of Classical concertos, Mozart above all..." Exactly, almost. When I was very keen on Chopin's nocturnes, I sought out more music in this mood. Turns out that if you extract all the slow movements of Mozart's piano sonatas that have the word "adagio" or "andante, " you obtain a whole new set of 18 nocturnes. Go through each of the 18 sonatas, select out the one movement that has the word adagio or andante, and you get a collection of nocturnes. As I recall, the one exception is Sonata No 6, where the second movement "Rondeau en polonaise (Andante)" seems closer to a nocturne than the third movement "Andante." I'm not knocking the Mozart concertos, but, for one thing, the concertos are not solo piano.

[hannawagenknecht]

To dream this Night, please, thank's so much 😌😊❤, Wonder wonderful melody😂

[MenelionFR]

wow, how beautiful! Unpopular opinion maybe: to me Field is like Chopin but with less sugar, so easier and tastier to the ear. I mean, I do like Chopin of course, but these nocturnes are something.