Obscure Music Monday: Hopekirk's Romance in A minor

Helen Hopekirk (1856-1945) was a talented pianist, composer, and teacher born in Scotland, though later became an American citizen after moving to the United States in 1897 to take on a teaching position at the New England Conservatory of Music. She traveled extensively during her career, touring Europe and America as a concert pianist and studying in diverse cities like Leipzig, Warsaw, & Paris.

The Romance in A minor is an earlier work in her compositional output, first performed in 1885. The flowing opening lines clearly show the influences of romantic composers of the era, in contrast to many of her other works that featured influences of her native Scotland. While the romantic influence is clear, Hopekirk does add a touch of Scotland in the next to last measure, where the expected dotted rhythm as we come to the final cadence is reversed, giving us the "Scottish Snap" rhythm for a brief moment.

This work is certainly approachable to an intermediate level pianist, with the challenge of numerous octaves in the right hand, with chord filler on the off beats within. We hope you enjoy listening to (and playing!) this great Romance.