Balakirev’s Piano Works: Gemlike Masterpieces Left by the Coordinator of The Five

The “Mighty Handful,” who championed nationalism and produced many masterpieces in the Russian music world of the late 19th century.

Mily Balakirev, the group’s coordinator, left approachable works that, while influenced by his ideals—Chopin, Schumann, and Liszt—also incorporate elements of Russian folk music.

In this article, we carefully select from Balakirev’s works those performed as solo piano pieces or in ensembles that include piano!

And yes—the piece famed for being among the most difficult in the world makes an appearance… Enjoy to the very end.

Playlist

Balakirev’s Piano Works: Gemlike Masterpieces Left by the Coordinator of The Five
	Title	Playlist	Review
1	Oriental Fantasy: IslameyMily Balakirev		A difficult piece by Balakirev with an Oriental atmosphere.
2	hibari (skylark)Glinka＝Balakirev		The mentor–student relationship between Glinka and Balakirev and their arrangements
3	Nocturne No. 3 in D minorMily Balakirev		Balakirev’s Nocturne: a fusion of emotion and technique
4	Waltz No. 6 in F-sharp minorMily Balakirev		An emotionally rich waltz by Balakirev
5	Piano Concerto No. 1 in F-sharp minor, Op. 1Mily Balakirev		Balakirev, as the leader of The Five, advanced the nationalist school in Russia.
6	Scherzo No. 1 in B minor, Op. 84Mily Balakirev		Balakirev's Ethnic Scherzo
7	Mazurka No. 2 in C-sharp minorMily Balakirev		Balakirev promoted Russian folk music.
8	PolkaMily Balakirev		Balakirev’s early work Polka, where folk elements and virtuosity merge
9	tarantellaMily Balakirev		A representative piano piece by Mily Balakirev, a composer of the Russian Five
10	DumkaMily Balakirev		A Listening Guide to Balakirev’s Dumka
11	Along the Volga RiverMily Balakirev		A boat-hauling work song arranged from a Russian folk song
12	In the Garden (A Bucolic Etude)Mily Balakirev		Introduction to the Appeal of Balakirev’s Masterpiece “In the Garden”
13	Toccata in C-sharp minorMily Balakirev		Balakirev’s Romantic virtuoso piece
14	Spanish Overture No. 1: Brilliant Caprice on the Jota AragonesaGlinka＝Balakirev		Arrange Glinka’s Spanish Overture for piano
15	Sonatina “Sketch” in G majorMily Balakirev		The Appeal of Balakirev’s Posthumous Sonatina