Area of Study 1: Setwork 3
Who was Chopin?•Born in Poland in 1810•Died in Paris 1849•Virtuoso pianist•Romantic composer famous for piano music
In 1838 he went to Majorca and ended up staying with his lover in a deserted monastery in a place called Valldemossa.
He composed this Prelude inspired by a heavy rainstorm that he could hear dripping on the roof of the monasteryThis piece was written between 1835 – 1838 as part of a set of 24 preludes.
What main info do you need to know about the Chopin piece?
• Key? • Structure? • Texture? • What is it an example of?
What main info do you need to know about the Chopin piece?
• Key? In the key of Db Major• Structure? The structure is ABA form (Ternary
form)• The B section is in C# Minor• Texture? The overall texture is melody and
accompaniment (Homophonic)• This piece is an example of programme music,
which means it describes something.
The piano…
• The piano was really developing in the Romantic era.
• What clues do we have in the piece of music that point to it being a piece of Romantic piano music?
It uses the following Romantic piano techniques:
• Use of RUBATO – speeds up or slows down very slightly to make it more expressive
• CANTABILE – the melody is played so that it ‘sings out’ on the piano and uses a smooth sound (LEGATO)
• Careful use of the pedals on the piano, particularly the sustain pedal on the right.
Section A
• Markings are SOSTENUTO (Sustained) and PIANO (soft)
• Right hand has the melody• Texture is MELODY-DOMINATED
HOMOPHONY• Main tune starts with 3 notes of the main
chord F – Db – Ab falling.• A decoration called ACCICCATURA (crushed
note) is used
Section A (continued)
• The pedal note used throughout the piece is Ab (the dominant).
• A new, second theme adds variety.• There are some CHROMATIC notes used to make
the harmony more interesting (add colour).• At the end the Ab becomes written as G#. This is
the same note but we call it ENHARMONIC CHANGE. This leads the piece into C# Minor for Section B.
Section B• In the Key of C# Minor• More dramatic and dark in mood (Minor Key)• Lower region of the piano used.• Homophonic texture throughout• Tune is in the left hand with a G# PEDAL NOTE in
the right hand. This is called an INVERTED DOMINANT PEDAL
• Wide range of DYNAMICS used. • G# is used at the end as a PIVOT NOTE going back
into Db Major.
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