Ascher, Joseph

International Music Score Library Project [IMSLP] entry: Joseph Ascher

Joseph Ascher (1829-1869) was born in the Netherlands but spent most of his life in London and Paris. Composed much high-quality salon music. Died allegedly as a consequence of a dissolute life.

Piece	MP3	Midi	Genre
Alice, Where Art Thou?		MIDI	piano CD1 salon
	A piano version of a song, words by Wellington Guernsey and music by JA. It's Victorian, written in 1861; so you know it's not going to turn out well. If the tune is familiar, it may be because a brass band version was used as the theme tune to the UK comedy series Open All Hours. This arrangement is quite difficult, with cascades of notes and repeated chords once it gets going. Sequenced primarily from the full version in the First Star Folio, but I have several copies, and there are more on the web, including at IMSLP. This was my first large sequencing project, made without the tools I have at my disposal these days. It could do with a thorough revision, but I have somewhat of a sentimental attachment to it as is.
Louise		MIDI	piano salon
	Louise, Polka brillante, Op. 9 is an early piece, from around 1851, and dedicated to Madame La Baronne L. de Malet. She could very possibly be Louise Pauline de Malet de Coupigny, countess de Clocheville [1805-84]; her son, Gatien, died of tuberculosis aged 19 in 1853, and implored Louise to set up a childrens' hospital, the hospital Gatien de Clocheville in Tours.
Danse Negre, Op.109		MIDI	piano salon
	Described as a Caprice Caracteristique, this piece has distinctive Creole patterns, perhaps showing New Orleans influence, or that of Louis Moreau Gottschalk, of whom Ascher was a virtually exact contemporary, to within a few months at each end. Sequenced from the Star Folio version, but checked against other sources.
Nocturne sur la Romance de 'L'Eclair', Op.71		MIDI	salon piano
	A nocturne based on Quand de la nuit, taken from the 1835 comic opera L'Eclair by Fromental Halevy (1799-1862). Sequenced from the PD version at IMSLP. The piece starts out easy enough, but then the arpeggios cut in, and then pages of trills. Really exercises the fingers!
La Cascade de Roses		MIDI	salon piano CD2
	The Waterfall of Roses, Op. 80, was published in 1858. You really need to be able to play arpeggios for this piece! It gives your right hand a pretty good work-out. Sequenced in 1995 from the version in the Second Star Folio, and checked against versions at IMSLP. The music is marked Allegretto; it needs to be taken slightly on the fast side if it is to sparkle.

For more information about MP3 and Midi files, and especially for why they may not work well, or even at all, on your computer, tablet, smartphone or browser, see here.
To see/hear pieces sorted by genre, click on a link under Genre.
To go back to the full list of pieces, click here.
Where applicable, the link above under Wiki entry will give you a biography of the composer; and the IMSLP link is to a page with available scores and online performances relating to the composer.
For general information about copyright and performance restrictions, see here.

Andy Walker, anw [at] cuboid4.me.uk [remove digit to construct address]