Impromptu

: This article is about impromptu as a musical form/genre, for all other uses of impromptu: see Impromptu (disambiguation)

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An impromptu (meaning something like "offhand") is a free-form musical composition with the character of an improvisation, usually for a solo instrument, such as piano.

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The first recorded use of the term impromptu in this sense occurred in 1817, in the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, an idea of the publisher to describe a piano piece by Vořišek.

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It didn't take long before the first generation of Romantic composers took up the idea:

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• Schubert published two sets of four Impromptus. After his death 3 more unnamed piano compositions (Klavierst?cke) were sometimes named Impromptus.
• Chopin composed 3 Impromptus, plus the Fantaisie-Impromptu.

The impromptu genre remained popular all throughout the 19th century.

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In the 20th century there are fewer examples of composers naming their compositions "Impromptu", e.g.:

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• Donald Martino composing Fantasies and Impromptu in 1980.
• One of Queen (band) compositions, performed at Wembley Stadium in 1986 is named Impromptu.
Impromptu: References ►



 

1817: 1817 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar)....




Impromptu related Images and Photos (experimental)

Impromptu II

An Impromptu Ball 1899