related works
Pleurants (Meditations on the Dijon Mourners) : for viola / Rens Tienstra
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Viola
Scoring:
vla
Deuxième série de rondeaux : pour piano à quatre mains et percussion ad libitum, 1964 / Rob du Bois
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Piano 4 hands; Mixed ensemble (2-12 players)
Scoring:
pf4h(perc ad lib.)
Four Dance Sketches : version for four hands piano / Robert Groslot
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Piano 4 hands
Scoring:
pf4h
Vier Miniaturen : for piano four-hands / Fania Chapiro
Genre:
Chamber music
Subgenre:
Piano 4 hands
Scoring:
pf4h
composition
The Little Prince : Suite for piano four hands / Rens Tienstra
Other authors:
Tienstra, Rens
(Composer)
Description:
The Little Prince (Le Petit Prince) by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (1900–1944) is the story of an aviator who, stranded in the desert, encounters a young prince. During their talks, he discovers the prince has visited various planets, Earth being the last of his visits. Although styled as a children’s book, The Little Prince is known and famous for its profound observations about themes of loneliness, friendship, love, and loss. The book has been translated into over 505 different languages and dialects worldwide, being the second most translated work ever published.
The current work for piano four hands is a musical reflection on the book’s themes and atmosphere, in line with similarly-spirited French works such as Ravel’s Ma Mère l'Oye, Debussy’s Children’s Corner and Poulenc’s L’histoire de Babar.
In particular, it was the versatile playing of pianists Stanislav Jar and Laura Balicov that motivated this composition. The suite is dedicated to Stanislav and Laura, in recognition of their highly-inspired and dedicated musicianship.
Rens Tienstra