Description
Like light shifting on water, this is an extremely light, bright miniature. As the twenty-third of the 24 Preludes, Op. 28, followed by the furious D minor No. 24, it reads as the calm before the storm.
The right hand plays continuous fine broken chords while the left sings a short melody beneath, in F major and common time, never once stopping in its under-a-minute span. Most striking is the final note: just where the piece seems to settle, one note of an unresolved chord is left sounding, and it gives the whole a strange resonance.
The simple figuration places it at intermediate level. The task is evenness in the right hand and the maintenance of a soft dynamic — keeping the fine notes equal and never letting them grow. The left-hand melody need only rise faintly from beneath. Do not hurry the final chord: holding the hand until the left-over note has faded is far more effective.
A set of 24 short pieces Chopin composed in 1838-39, covering all 24 keys, each with its own distinct character — a poetic cycle for piano.
Browse all songs in 24 Preludes Op.28 →Sheet Music
Sheet music provided by Mutopia Project
About the Composer
Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)
Frederic Chopin was born in Poland and made his career in Paris, remaining unusual among great composers for writing almost exclusively for piano. He poured his longing for his homeland into mazurkas and polonaises, while his ballades and etudes combine poetic melody with harmonic innovation. This site includes the "Revolutionary" and other etudes, Ballades No. 1 and No. 4, nocturnes, and the Preludes, Op. 28.
View all works by Chopin →