Horowitz: Variations on a theme from Carmen (1928)

Between June and September 1928: Duo-Art Studios, New York City, New York (Piano Roll) All Horowitz Compositions&Transcriptions: All Horowitz Carmen Variations: Variations on a Theme from Carmen, or Carmen Variations are a set of variations composed and performed by Vladimir Horowitz. They are based on the Gypsy Dance from Georges Bizet’s opera Carmen (1875). Of Horowitz’s many transcriptions, the Carmen Variations were the only one to remain in his repertoire throughout his career. He played them from his earliest concerts in the 1920s to his golden jubilee season in 1978, over fifty years later. It shows that Carmen Variations were very famous encore of Horowitz. There is Horowitz’s first recordings of Carmen Variations on a piano roll for Welte and Sons in January 1927 and just one year later in 1928 for Duo-Art. Also in 1928 Horowitz made his first disc recording of the piece for Victor, taking five attempts before a satisfactory take was approved. This video contains 1928 Duo-Art piano roll version. In this performance, you can hear the youthful Horowitz’s hasty fingers. Becuase 1928 is just 5 years after Carmen Variations composed, this version is quite rough; also shocking, nimble and fast. Though Carmen Variations were revised many times later, this 1928 version is valuable enough because of its value to be foundation of all the later versions. (Enormous gratefulness to Christian E. Jensen, who transcripted this sheet music.)