Apologies in advance for the babble, but I have had a particular chord sequence swirling round my head this afternoon and went for a cheeky reminisce (procrastination, procrastination...).
The snippet in question is from Bartók's
Mikrokosmos, a collection of over a hundred and fifty short piano pieces, which start at beginner level and gradually progress to advanced/pro. The final volume closes with a suite of six Bulgarian dances - I played three of them as a youth, the last of which still one of my favourite pieces of music ever. The chord sequence descends in minor thirds, but using major chords, so it has this slightly cosmic/music of the spheres kinda vibe as it modulates through the keys, which brings to mind the otherworldliness of the circle of fifths. Bizarrely, it also used to remind me of some bars from the
In The Space Capsule on the
Flash OST, which has a similar descent.
The result is a thrilling combination of these very earthy, elemental folk rhythms going absolutely hell for leather under dreamy astronaut chords - bonkers but pretty, in other words, my favourite combination. Despite the insane speeds, hands crossing all over the damn place, and an entire stretch scored with only a single note, which requires fingers on both left and right to keep up with the repeats, it was an absolute joy to play, even when I didn't make it to the end (pretty often, lol).
And if this admittedly nostalgic brain fart did not complete put you off, the relevant piece begins 7m09s. What a banger!
