Csárdás (Liszt) Csárdás (Liszt) The three csárdás that Franz Liszt wrote in 1881-2 and 1884 are solo piano pieces based on the Hungarian dance form of the same name. Liszt treats the dance form itself much less freely than he did much earlier with the "verbunkos" in the Hungarian Rhapsodies, and the material itself remains more specifically Hungarian than gypsy in thematic material. Their spare lines, angular rhythms and advanced harmonies show these pieces to be direct ancestors of the compositions of Béla Bartók. Because of these attributes, the csárdás are considered by Liszt scholars among the more interesting of the composer's
Four Pieces for Piano, Op. 119 (Brahms) he may have included some earlier compositions, and it is quite possible, although there is no definite proof, that some works—such as the E major rhapsody—may have been conceived before 1892. Two earlier collections of smaller lyric piano pieces, Eight Pieces for Piano Op. 76, and Two Rhapsodies, Op. 79, date from 1871-79 (published 1879 and 1880 respectively). The poetic mood of the first intermezzo from Op. 119 belies its vague title. In a letter from May 1893 to Clara Schumann, Brahms wrote: "I am tempted to copy out a small piano piece for you, because I would like to