Abstract
The varied musical styles expressed in the keyboard miniatures by British composer Alec Rowley (1892-1958) present piano students with ample opportunities for pedagogical and technical training. Written at the intermediate and moderately-advanced levels, this body of miniatures prepares a wide range of developing pianists for advanced repertoires.
The present project offers a performance guide with pedagogical suggestions for Rowley’s "Five Nocturnes" for piano (1947). These pieces reveal the composer’s wide musical palette of planing technique and pentatonicism from the French Impressionists and extended chords derived from jazz idioms. Leisurely melodies, idyllic lyricism, and dramatic phrasing are also featured alongside a chromatic harmonic language. The pedagogical range of difficulty present in Five Nocturnes furthermore supplements other repertoires of the abovementioned styles: the first two nocturnes are in the upper-intermediate level, and the later three are moderately-advanced, with all pieces being moderately compact in scope. Rowley’s nocturnes bridge the gap in skill levels typically found in standard teaching repertoire while supplying stylistic diversity. Transitioning from the intermediate Baroque and Classical works to the advanced late Romantic or contemporary styles can thus be more gradual and less daunting, allowing students to move on to advanced piano compositions without fear. Finally, advocating these works promotes interest in the neglected realm of twentieth-century British piano compositions, and the present study serves as an introduction to the specific genre of nocturnes therein.