Walden Hughes' Piano Ensemble Compositions

Dr. Walden Hughes has written 100 compositions and transcriptions for his university piano ensembles, and by commission for performing pianists and piano faculty in the United States and Europe. These works have been performed widely in 58 different countries by various performing ensembles.   The compositions can be heard below as MIDI files. 

The full scores can be attached to email as PDF files for instant delivery & printed with Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is a free download if you don't have it already (but I’ll bet you already have it). 

For information concerning how to obtain performance scores of the compositions represented by the MIDI files below, contact Dr. Hughes through E mail at (or go to this web site for availability - http://waldenhughes.webs.com):

walden.hughes@juno.com

DUET (1 piano 4 hands)

Stars & Stripes arranged by Dr. Hughes for 1 piano 4 hands MIDI New Sabbataical 2010 There is also a ONE piano 8 hands version available @ http://waldenhughes.webs.com as well as a 2 pianos 8 hands version.

Joy to the World arranged by Dr. Hughes for 1 piano 4 hands MIDI New Sabbataical 2010 - There is also a ONE piano 8 hands version available @ http://waldenhughes.webs.com as well as a 2 piano 8 hands version (& a 4 pianos 8 hands version)

Jupiter: the Bringer of Jollity Chorale Theme from Holst’s The Planets 1 piano 4 hands MIDI New Sabbataical 2010

StolzelDu Bist Bei Mir 1 piano 4 hands MIDI New Sabbataical 2010 (We used to think Bach had composed this; it's in the Magdalena Notebook)

Russian Rag MIDI Watch VIDEO performance of Russian pianists Olga Bogdanova and Irina Kopteva in performance of Russian Rag

RagTime Dance MIDI Watch VIDEO performance of Russian pianists Olga Bogdanova and Irina Kopteva in performance of Ragtime Dance

Stoptime Rag Watch a VIDEO Performance of Justin Mihkelson and Jacqueline Fitch

Joplin's Solace (A Mexican Serenade)

Pineapple Rag (no pineapples required)

Joplin's Entertainer 2010 – There is also a 2 Pianos 8 Hands version available @ http://waldenhughes.webs.com/ Watch a VIDEO Performance of the 2010 NNU Piano Quartet

Joplin's Maple Leaf Rag Watch a VIDEO Performance of Jenna Hagemeier and Rebecca Clark

Joplin's Elite Syncopations

Albeniz Prelude
Commissioned by University of Louisiana at Monroe Piano Faculty for the Louisiana Music Teacher's Convention.

Couperin's Rondeau: Mysterious Barricades

Prokofiev's Gavotte from the Classical Symphony

Prokofiev's March from the Love for Three Oranges

Joy to the World

Bach's "Wachet auf " (Sleepers Awake) MIDI 

Bartok's "Rumanian Folk Dances"

. . . . . . . . . . "Rumanische Polka" MIDI

. . . . . . . . . . "Schnell Tanz" MIDI

Gershwin's "Clap Yo' Hands" MIDI

. . . "Fascinating Rhythm" MIDI Watch a VIDEO Performance by Geoff Harmon and DorthyAnn Isaackson

. . . . . "I Got Rhythm" MIDI Watch a VIDEO Performance by Lindsy Glaze and Johanna Hamilton

. . . . . "Oh Lady Be Good" MIDI

. . . . . "Rialto Ripples" (Rag) MIDI
Recorded by the Kipnis-Kushner Piano Duo January 2000 (Parnassus Records - PACD 96030) Watch VIDEO performance of Russian pianists Olga Bogdanova and Irina Kopteva in performance of Rialto Ripples

Grainger's "Children's March" (short version) MIDI
Commissioned by Igor Kipnis for the Kipnis-Kushner Piano Duo

Grainger's "Children's March" (virtuosic version) MIDI
Commissioned by Igor Kipnis for the Kipnis-Kushner Piano Duo

Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King" MIDI

Gottschalk's "The Banjo" MIDI

Haydn's "Surprise" Symphony MIDI
Commissioned by Paul Ressel, Katholische Universitaet Eichstaett, Germany

Ibert's "Little White Donkey" MIDI

Tchaikovsky's "Polonaise" from "Eugene Onegin" MIDI

TRIO (1 piano 6 hands)

Bach's "Brandenburg Concerto Number 6"
Commissioned by Ken Phillips, Hvaler Municipal School of the Arts, Norway.

. . . . . "Allegro ma non tanto" MIDI

. . . . . "Adagio ma non tanto" MIDI

. . . . . . . . . . "Allegro" MIDI

Bach's "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" MIDI

Bach's "Sheep May Safely Graze" MIDI

Handel's "Arrival of the Queen of Sheba" MIDI

Khachaturian's "Sabre Dance"  MIDI Watch a VIDEO Performance of the NNU Piano Quartet

"Ping Pong Polka" MIDI
"It's a Small World" played with as many ping pong balls as available on the piano strings

Rachmaninoff's "Vocalise"  MIDI Watch a VIDEO Performance by Scott King, Andrew Stout and Jenny Swonger
Commissioned by Ken Phillips, Hvaler Municipal School of the Arts, Norway.

Rossini's "William Tell Overture" MIDI

Strauss' "Radetzky March" MIDI Watch a VIDEO performance of the NNU Piano Ensemble

Christmas music for piano trio (or any multiple of 3 pianists at more than one piano)
Commissioned by Linda Kennedy, Arkansas

Joy to the World

. . . . . "Adeste Fideles" MIDI Watch a VIDEO Performance of the NNU Piano Ensemble

. . . . . "In Dulce Jubilo" MIDI

for more Christmas music, see 4 pianos 8 hands music below...

DUO (2 pianos 4 hands)

Haydn's "Surprise" Symphony
Commissioned by Paul Ressel, Katholische Universitaet Eichstaett, Germany

Albeniz Prelude
Commissioned by University of Louisiana at Monroe Piano Faculty for the Louisiana Music Teacher's Convention.

Joy to the World

. . . . "Surprise slow movement" MIDI

. . . . . . . . . . "Surprise Finale " MIDI

Schubert's "Ave Maria" MIDI MIDI Watch VIDEO performance of pianists Becky Nelson & Wendy Quarve in performance Thanksgiving evening 2006 at NNU

Schubert's "Hark Hark the Lark" MIDI

QUARTET (2 pianos 8 hands)

Stars & Stripes arranged by Dr. Hughes for 2 pianos 8 hands MIDI New Sabbataical 2010 - There is also a ONE piano 8 hands version available @ http://waldenhughes.webs.com as well as a duet version (1 piano 4 hands)

Joy to the World arranged by Dr. Hughes for 2 pianos 8 hands MIDI New Sabbataical 2010 - There is also a ONE piano 8 hands version available @ http://waldenhughes.webs.com as well as a duet version (1 piano 4 hands)

Joplin's Entertainer NEW Sabbatical 2010 – There is also a 1 Piano 4 Hands Duet version available @ http://waldenhughes.webs.com/ Watch a VIDEO Performance of the 2010 NNU Piano Quartet

Joplin's Maple Leaf Rag NEW Sabbatical 2010

Grieg's In The Hall Of The Mountain King NEW Sabbatical 2010 – There is also a 1 Piano 4 Hands Duet version available @ http://waldenhughes.webs.com/ Watch a VIDEO Performance of the 2010 NNU Piano Quartet

RagTime Dance Watch a VIDEO Performance of the 2010 NNU Piano Quartet

Albeniz Leyenda (Prelude) Watch a VIDEO Performance of the NNU Piano Ensemble
Commissioned by University of Louisiana at Monroe Piano Faculty for the Louisiana Music Teacher's Convention.

Faure's Berceuse from Dolly Suite Watch a VIDEO Performance of the 2010 NNU Piano Quartet

Beethoven's "Turkish March" MIDI

Copland's "Hoe-Down" MIDI  Watch a VIDEO performance of NNU Piano Quartet reunion at a homecoming concert Thanksgiving evening 2006 at NNU (Julia Ganske, Ryan Ketchum, John Fraley, Brad Jahn)

Dvorak's "Slavonic Dance in C Major" MIDI Watch a VIDEO Performance of the NNU Piano Quartet

Gershwin's "I Got Rhythm" MIDI Watch a VIDEO Performance of I Got Rhythm NNU Piano Ensemble

Liszt's "2nd Hungarian Rhapsody" MIDI Watch a VIDEO performance of NNU Piano Quartet performing Thanksgiving evening 1997 (Julia Hoffman, Brandon Hoffman, John Burton and Heather Olson)

Milhaud's "Brazileira" MIDI Watch a VIDEO performance of  NNU Piano Quartet performing Thanksgiving evening 1999 (Bob Van Allen, John Burton, Brandon Hoffman, and David Stillman

Prokofiev's "Troika" MIDI (from the Lieutenant Kiji Suite) Watch a VIDEO performance of NNU Piano Quartet performing Thanksgiving evening 1995 (Julia Hoffman, John Fraley,Ryan Ketchum and Heather Olson)

QUARTET (4 pianos 8 hands)

Joy to the World arranged by Dr. Hughes for 4 pianos 8 hands MIDI

Listen to an 8-piano version of the same piece below: 

Joy to the World arranged by Dr. Hughes for 8 pianos 16 hands MIDI

SEXTET (2 pianos 12 hands)

Khachaturian's "Sabre Dance" MIDI Watch a VIDEO Performance of the NNU Piano Quartet

Strauss' "Radetzky March" MIDI Watch a VIDEO performance of the NNU Piano Ensemble

OCTET (4 pianos 16 hands)

Milhaud's "Brazileira" MIDI

Listen to 8 students from the Hughes studio perform this octet (as an mp3 file)

Molly Bales, Jill Deakins, Lindsy Glaze, Johanna Hamilton, Jayme Harding, Emily Mace, Sarah Miller, Apryl Page

ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS (Piano Solo and Piano Duet)
21st century music

"Barbarian Toccata" MIDI

"Percussive Fugue" MIDI (Piano Trio - 1 piano 6 hands)
pianists tap on fallboard, lid and soundboard (1 pianist sitting,1 pianist standing, 1 pianist lying underneath the piano)

"Scherzo" MIDI (Piano Duet - 1 piano 4 hands)

"Blues in Fourths" MIDI (Piano Duet)

"Fugues a la Mode" (Piano Duet 4-Voice Fugues using a variety of modes from Dorian to Locrian)

. . . . "Mixolydian Fugue" MIDI

. . . . . . . . . "Phrygian Phugue" MIDI

"Fourth Fugue" MIDI

"Blues Suite Blues" (Piano Solo) combines the blues scale & harmonic & melodic 4ths

. . . . . . "Blues in Fourths" MIDI

. . . . . . . . . "Invention Blues" MIDI

. . . . . . . . "Toccata in Fourths" MIDI

. . . . . . . . . . "Giga Blues" MIDI

"Scherzo" MIDI (Solo)

"Revolutionary Blues Etude" MIDI   (Solo)

"Birthday Blues" MIDI (Solo)
For my wife

FRUIT BASKET:

"Duet for 4 Green Bananas"  MIDI
This piece is performed by 2 duet partners (at 1 piano) and 4 green bananas (not peeled!)

"Duet for 4 Grapefruits"  MIDI Watch a VIDEO Performance of Hughes students
This piece is performed by 2 duet partners (at 1 piano) and 4 grapefruits, one in each hand. Oranges may be substituted in the absence of suitable-sized grapefruits, or if the players' hands are too small to adequately wield 2 grapefruits. The composer allows a change of title under these circumstances. Tennis balls and baseballs may also be substituted, with the appropriate title change. Pomegranates and nectarines are not recommended.

"Septet for 8 Grapefruits, cantaloupe, watermelon and honeydew melon" (requires 4 pianos) - MP3 file

Performed by Molly Bales, Jill Deakins, Lindsy Glaze, Johanna Hamilton, Jayme Harding, Emily Mace, Sarah Miller

"Duet for 4 Oranges and a Cantaloupe" MIDI
This piece is performed by 2 duet partners (at 1 piano) and 4 oranges, one in each hand. The secondo player also plays the "cantaloupe" which rests on the bottom few black notes of the piano (how many depends on the size of the particular cantaloupe). The secondo player must not only play his/her 2 orange parts, but must also periodically pick-up and "drop" the cantaloupe (with sufficient exactitude that the cantaloupe does not fall off the keyboard).

"Orange Etude" MIDI  (Solo)
This piece is performed with an orange in the right hand (employs both "rolling" technique and "squashing" technique).

"Grapefruit Etude" MIDI (Solo)
This virtuosic piece is performed with grapefruits in both hands.

walden.hughes@juno.com

As an added bonus, written while recovering from cataract surgery for 4 pianos / 24 hands:

Cage's 4 Minutes 33 Seconds (of Silence)

Bach to Walden Hughes' Home Page

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Last updated:  November 25, 2011

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