Pictures at an Exhibition (complete)

By Modest Mussorgsky

Arranged for Harp Duet

Instrumentation: Pedal Harp Duet

Difficulty: Advanced

Publisher: Lyon & Healy

Format: Harp 1 and Harp 2

Performance Duration: 33 minutes

Movements: 

Promenade 1

Gnomus

Promenade 2

Il vecchio castello

Promenade 3

Tuileries

Bydlo

Promenade 4

Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks

Samuel Goldenberg and Schmuÿle

Promenade 5

Limoges

Catacombae

Con mortuis in lingua mortua

The Hut on Fowl's Legs

The Great Gate of Kiev

Pictures At an Exhibition, arranged for harp duet by Dr. Erin Freund. Available as a set of parts; there is no separate score Pictures translates well from the piano to the harp. Both instruments have a similar range of pitches, can display a range of dark and bright musical colors, and can play both chordal and polyphonic textures. This arrangement of Pictures is scored for two harps for several reasons. Some are purely practical. For example, passages that would be impossible for one harpist with large jumps between registers and wide intervals have been split between the two harp parts to lie more comfortably. Likewise, passages that would be impossible for one harpist with intense chromaticism have been divided to lighten each performer's pedaling. Additionally, scoring for two harps allows musical lines to be brought out in the same way that an orchestrator might assign lines to different instruments, and allows for contrasting articulations to layer in the same passage. Alternating and trading motives between the two parts adds an element of musical conversation that would not exist in a solo arrangement. The two harp parts are equally challenging and demanding, with neither part taking a back seat to the other. Both parts are musically interesting, use a variety of registers, and frequently switch between melody and accompaniment roles for musical interest.  Pictures At An Exhibition can be heard on Erin Freund's album, Orchestral Transcriptions.