During the global pandemic, the British-American violinist Maya Magub – like so many others – turned to music for solace. Her recording of Six Consolations by Franz Liszt (five of which were arranged by her, and recorded here for the first time), with the pianist Hsin-I Huang is on a new album, “Consolations” (CRD 3540, release date June 3, 2022). In anticipation of the June 3 album release, singles are released on April 22 (Consolation No. 5) and May 13 (Consolation No. 3).. We recently spoke with the violinist and asked her about her arranging these iconic works, the recording process, her career in Hollywood, and more!
You’ve said that, because the album was made during the pandemic, you had quite a unique recording process - and that sometimes it was a more “democratic” process. How did that work?
Yes. Hsin-I and I had been playing together before the pandemic, and one of the things I was most sad about losing out on at the beginning of it all (alongside the global toilet paper shortage anxiety!!) was the ability to play chamber music. The idea for this project came to me very early on, and I think it was my way of feeling connected. I never feel isolated if I have my violin with me! So, after recording several film scores from my newly-assembled home studio, I realized it could be possible to make a violin and piano album this way, with lots of discussion and collaboration but recording separately.
Of course it is always ideal to play together in the same space, but we did find some really surprising silver linings in the process of recording remotely. We couldn't begin by playing through the music, but in the early stages of rehearsal that often results in one person imposing their vision on the other (ok, yes, often the violinist...!!). This time we had to begin with discussion.
Before any recording could happen, it was necessary to map out which of us had the part with the most momentum at any point (either a whole piece or sometimes sections within a piece) and let that person record first. In the transcriptions of piano pieces, it sometimes felt right to give Hsin-I the freedom to record first without any prior discussion, as she would choose to play the solo piano version. There were times when her recording would be a surprise to me, because I had envisioned an entirely different tempo.
With the Bach/Gounod ‘Ave Maria’, for example, I had imagined playing it slower with long drawn out legato lines, suited to the violin’s greater ability to sustain. If we had been rehearsing in a conventional way I would probably have stopped early on and suggested a slower tempo, and she instinctively would have followed my rubato in certain places. In this case, her recording was so beautiful, sincere and profound that, though I had imagined it differently, I hated the idea of changing anything. Because of our unusual recording process, I had the chance to listen and play through with it many times and, over time, I found small ways to use rubato in its original definition - robbing time but then giving it back. I found that it was possible to feel free enough without stretching the overall tempo, and came to feel that I had made it 'my own'.
Later, I discovered that the piece first came to life while Gounod was improvising over someone else’s rendition of the Bach (the piano line). So perhaps this unusual process had actually allowed us to approach the music in the same way, by honoring the Bach and adapting to that rather than treating it as an accompaniment.
We had a similar experience with one of the Liszt Consolations - No. 5. Again, Hsin-I's vision was faster than I had imagined, but sounded beautiful. I just had to rethink and keep an open mind. After living with her recording for a while I realized that slurring more notes together made a huge difference, and I now can't imagine the piece any other way!
Of course there were also times when one of us felt strongly about a passage after it had been recorded, and that we couldn’t play it that way with enough conviction to make it our own. These were times to take advantage of the ability to re-record after more discussion (without needing to rebook a studio!). All in all it took a LOT of time, but was very much a musical collaboration, just as it would have been recording conventionally.
How did you approach creating the arrangements of Lizst’s Consolations for violin and piano? How are they different from the original score for piano solo?
In thinking about music as consolation, I remembered that Milstein had transcribed the wonderful ‘Lento Placido’, Liszt’s Consolation No 3, and I wondered what the other 'Consolations' would sound like for violin and piano. It was so exciting listening to them, because it was so easy to imagine them this way, and that's how this whole project evolved.
Much of Liszt's Consolations have obvious melody lines perfectly suited to the violin, and there are often musical echos that work well as a piano ‘answering phrase’. Tempting as it was to steal all the best melodies for the violin(!), an important part of the transcription process was to find moments where the violin should rest and the piano answer. After that, it was a question of making the new piano part flow logically in its own right, sometimes adding and sometimes taking away so that the voice-leading made sense in its own right.
I was lucky with the keys: The set of six Consolations oscillate between the contrasting keys of D flat and E major, both of which lie very well on the violin. The key of E major uses the brightness and natural resonance of the E string, and D flat has a contrasting richness. In Consolation No. 4, which has a prayer-like quality, I realized I could introduce another color by introducing the mute - 'con sordino'.
It felt important to make use of the full pitch range of the violin, and it was natural to use two different registers for a repeated melody, or to play in octaves. Liszt uses a lot of thirds and sixths in the melody of Consolation No. 5, and they translated well. Occasionally the original voicing felt awkward on the violin, and it was fun to find the most violinistic way to keep the original harmonies by inverting some of the intervals. This one felt a lot like a Kreisler encore by the time I'd finished!
The mini 'cadenza' in Consolation No. 6 was another fun moment to transcribe: the notes had to be changed to make them lie well on the violin, but within Liszt's original contours, and it was exciting experimenting with different patterns until it felt 'right'. I tried to think about what Milstein may have done, an my inspiration was his transcription of No. 3 with it's mini cadenzas.
The album is aptly titled Consolations – not just because the works by Liszt are the focal point of the album, but the whole collection is meant to console. What music did you listen to during the last two years when you needed consolation?
Like so many people, I found myself listening to all sorts of different music during the pandemic. And sadly, with war and inequality rife in the world today, we are no less in need of consolation now. Sometimes we need upbeat music to cheer us up, but I often find that slower, more nostalgic music brings consolation by making me feel understood, in a way that more precise verbal language can’t.
The other pieces on the program came from piles of my father's old albums for violin and piano, full of the best loved tunes - some written for violin and piano, and others transcribed from operas or the piano repertoire. I had performed many of these over the years for the wonderful UK charity, 'Everyone Matters', which brings concerts to care homes and hospices. The audiences there are so appreciative of a really great melody, especially one they remember from their past; but these short pieces are so well known that musicians tend to look down on them.
Somehow the pandemic gave me back the ability to appreciate them for what they really are and draw on them for my own consolation. Choosing the selections for the album was a great opportunity to frame every piece within this theme of consolation, and I realized afterwards that this had made me approach and play them differently. Certainly listening to them as a collection feels very different from hearing one in isolation as an encore, and gives them an extra weight and profundity. I hope that's something that other listeners will feel on some level and take away from the album.
In addition to your own albums, you have a career in Hollywood, featured on countless movie soundtracks and pop recordings. Out of all these projects, are there any that stand out from the others as favorites, or ones you were most excited to take a part in?
Oh so many...! I really feel so lucky to be doing what I do, and to be immersed in it here where it all happens. I love walking into a studio - Fox, or Warner’s or Sony - where they are busy building sets for a movie, and knowing that Clint Eastwood can just wander into our recording at any moment! Every time we play for John Williams is a dream: the music is sublime and he hears everything. From Star Wars to his solo violin album with the wonderful Anne Sophie Mutter, it has been amazing just to be in the same room as him. I've had many exciting moments with icons like Burt Bacharach; Bono at the Hollywood Bowl (where Bill and Hillary Clinton asked to meet the musicians afterwards!); and Adele at the Grammys. We have worked with Alan Menken, Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman... many legends and many exciting times!