No.7 Le Courant Limpide
Description
Running water is the subject here, as the title "The Limpid Stream" says. Nineteenth-century character pieces are full of such scenes; in this seventh study of Op. 100, Burgmüller scales the subject down to something a beginner can play through in well under a minute.
Unbroken sixteenth-note figuration runs in the right hand while the left holds the harmony quietly beneath it. Over two hundred notes are packed into around twenty seconds of G major in common time, one of the higher note densities in the set, and the flow never pauses.
Shaping that continuous figuration dynamically is the real work. Repeat the same figure mechanically and it sounds like machinery rather than water. Simply swelling where the line rises and easing where it falls is enough to give the stream expression. Keeping the wrist unlocked and carrying the arm sideways with the figure is what makes it possible to stay even to the end.
A set of beginner études by Burgmüller, each bearing an evocative title, offering a classic way to develop technique and musical expression together.
Browse all songs in 25 Easy and Progressive Studies Op.100 →Sheet Music
Sheet music provided by Mutopia Project
What this piece teaches
"The Limpid Stream." The right hand keeps up a fine, unbroken figure like running water. The lesson is keeping a broken figure even.
How to practise it
- Much of the right-hand figure lies under the hand, so keep the hand shape still and the wrist level.
- The left hand supports from underneath. Add it gently once the right hand runs through on its own.
About the Composer
Johann Friedrich Franz Burgmüller (1806-1874)
Johann Friedrich Franz Burgmuller was born in Germany and spent much of his career in Paris, where he composed the ballet La Peri. He is best remembered today for his pedagogical piano collections, especially the 25 Etudes faciles et progressives, Op. 100, whose accessible, tuneful pieces remain popular with beginning pianists. This site includes Nos. 1 to 18 of the 25 Etudes, Op. 100, beginning with "La Candeur" and "Arabesque."
View all works by Burgmüller →