Hungarian Rhapsodies virtuoso pianist as well as a composer). Liszt incorporated many themes he had heard in his native western Hungary and which he believed to be folk music, though many were in fact tunes written by members of the Hungarian upper middle class, or by composers such as József Kossovits, often played by Roma (Gypsy) bands. The large scale structure of each was influenced by the verbunkos, a Hungarian dance in several parts, each with a different tempo. Within this structure, Liszt preserved the two main structural elements of typical Gypsy improvisation—the "lassan" ("slow") and the "friska" ("fast"). At the same
The Classical Style (opera) to heaven—disappointed, but understanding. The opera ends with Rosen being visited by the composer Robert Schumann (also descended from heaven), who himself signaled a shift from the Classical era to the Romantic era of classical music. The work is scored for an orchestra consisting of two flutes (doubling piccolos), two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, trombone, timpani, percussion, harpsichord (doubling piano and celesta), and strings. Reviewing the world premiere, Joshua Kosman of the "San Francisco Chronicle" lauded "The Classical Style" as an "exuberantly witty and often touching one-act opera" and wrote, "There has been plenty of