In the Hands
Paul Cantrell’s music
blog & podcast
Piano music old and new from a devoted amateur,
all free to listen to, download, and share.

Chopin Preludes 4 and 9 (as a pair)

Visiting the house of my composer friend Matthew Smith (who has an outstanding CD out now, by the way), I noticed the score to Chopin’s E minor prelude out on the piano. It turns out that his wife, children’s book illustrator and author Lauren Stringer, is taking piano lessons, and she has been working on it. I was delighted — the piece is a favorite of mine. I dug out my recording of it for her to hear, and thought I’d bring it back to the podcast as well.

The piece has been a popular one on In the Hands — people have left many comments on it. I suspect that’s because it’s so popular with advanced beginner / intermediate piano students like Lauren. All of us who are, or once were, beginners owe Chopin our thanks for this piece: it is a great one, yet it’s within reach of a beginning pianist. (That’s not to undercut the task of learning it. Any pianist who has learned to play it well ought to be proud of their accomplishment! It is not in any way a trivial thing. In reach of a dedicated beginner, perhaps, but not easy.)

I abhor the idea that material for beginners should be dumbed down. Simplicity is necessary, but simplicity need not be dumb. We are especially guilty of doing this to children, but it happens to beginners of all ages. It’s kind of bait and switch: somebody loves music so much that they find the courage to start taking lessons, then we give them music that’s not worth loving, holding off the real stuff until they’re more advanced. It’s disrespectful, and it’s counterproductive: the lessons of substance and meaning do not need to follow years and years after the lessons of reading and technique. We do the same thing with reading, with math — especially with math! — oh, don’t get me started.

I see it as a challenge to us composers: Chopin, who wrote some of the most difficult piano music out there, managed to produce this music of tremendous depth without needing to make it tremendously difficult. If he can do it, why can’t we? OK, actually, making something both great and simple is one of the most difficult artistic challenges there is, but it’s also one of the worthiest. Lauren certainly knows that: the best picture books can tell compelling stories that tackle layered, subtle, and difficult ideas using only a very few words and elemental artwork, and they are powerful for their simplicity. Her gorgeous latest book is a nice essay on how the choices we make in our perception of reality shape that reality and our lives — though she says it much more simply, and more effectively!

I’ve paired the E minor prelude with the E major one. The latter is a bit more difficult (mostly because of the wider stretches), but is also within a dedicated beginner’s reach, and also a great one. It has a wonderful chord progression, and a very interesting structure: we set out from the same point of departure three times (0:00, 0:28, 0:58), each time finding a new path with newly surprising modulations. I learned these two preludes one after the other, and think they make a great segue. I do like the big contrasts!

Prelude Op 28 No 4 (in E minor)
Prelude Op 28 No 9 (in E major)

Attention, beginners, would-be beginners, and especially those who say, “Oh, I wish I could learn to play the piano! But I’m just too old / too busy / too tonedeaf / too whatever.” Rubbish! Balderdash! Pish, piffle, and poppycock! It is never too late to start. Be bold! Lauren was; you can be too. Great music is not out of your reach.

Comments

brandi jacques

hear hear!

beautiful recordings and wonderful words of encouragement to pianists just starting out. may i link to them from my blog?

i particularly agree with your comments about the unfairness of “dumbing down” music for beginners.

thanks for the inspiration, both musical and pedagogical…
brandi

Tim Smith

Beautiful performances, both! I would not have thought it possible to improve upon your earlier em rendition, but the remaster is exquisite. This was my first listen to the E Major, a masterpiece. I’ve linked to both audio files from http://bach.nau.edu/docShowcase.html - Thanks, Paul!

Tim Smith
zoe lee

Great postings. I come here to listen to your recordings to get inspiration. But today I found all the mp3 links stop working. Is it just me or something happened to your mp3 files?

zoe lee
Paul

zoe: As far as I can tell, it’s just you — they work fine here.

You might try clicking on the “Listen” link while holding down the option key (Mac) or the alt key (Windows) to download the MP3 to your drive. If that doesn’t work, you can tell me what error message you got.

You could also try subscribing to the podcast. Then all the MP3s will be downloaded automatically for you.

Paul
charlene

I just stumbled upon your page and I’m sure glad I did. Aside from the really great Chopin renditions, that was really one nice article. It applies to all those who love music and to those who want to learn. I play the guitar, and your words hit home. ^_^ Thanks for the boost! I hope it’s okay if I link you to my blog…

Tree

While Googling “Chopin Etudes,” I came across your site. What a lucky find! I’m an early advanced player and an instructor of beginning and early intermediate students. I had forgotten about the lovely Em Prelude. I’m inspired to revisit it and share it with some of my students.

Your recordings are wonderful. I love your interpretation of both preludes. Thanks so much for putting together such a wonderful website and podcast.

I will be subscribing to your podcast and keeping my eye on this site.

Tree
anonymous

good!

anonymous
Sandy

I have a degree in Music Ed and was intending to become a band director, but motherhood interrupted my plans. I had taken piano lessons off and on while growing up and always thought I’d love to take lessons again sometime. Recently, I got up the courage to ask my kids’ piano teacher about lessons. This week, almost 20 years since my last lesson, I began lessons again. What an encouragement to run across your comments! I know that I am attempting music that is honestly “beyond” me (and have been feeling a little guilty about it) but it’s what I love and it keeps me motivated to push to the next level. Thanks for the encouragement!

Sky

The one you have listed as Op 28 No 9 is actually Op 28 No 6, if I am not mistaken.

Sky
Paul

Sandy: Three cheers for reaching beyond yourself! Do not feel guilty about it even for a moment.

Sky: The number is correct. Number 6 is in B minor. Here’s a recording.

Paul
Martin

Just the most wonderful recording of Op 28 No 4 that I have heard to date. I strive to play this piece in exactly the same tempo as on this recording!

With gratitude and admiration…

Martin
Rainer

Hello Paul,

thanks for the wonderful introduction to Chopin. Yes, it’s true, I am a beginner on piano, 51 years old, spent nearly 30 years playing the fat four strings. It’s not easy for me to play No. 4 but I am working hard. :-)

Rainer

Kim

Hi Paul,

This is a completely wonderful post. I’m so glad I discovered your blog today! I completely agree with you. There can be great beauty in simplicity, and most beginning piano method books (especially for adults) are full of such uninspiring, bland pieces it’s really a wonder anyone sticks with it!

I fully believe that the courage it takes to start lessons, especially as an adult, should be rewarded with music that is lovely to play, from day one. And that teachers should work hard to counter the belief that you’re not a “real musician” until you can play at a certain level. Not true!

Thank you for your great writing and generosity in sharing your music. How refreshing and inspiring! I’ll be linking to your blog and this post.

Kim
Nanette Chopin

How wonderful to hear you playing Chopin. I am a 6th generation neice of Frederic Chopin. My Mother, Geraldine E. Smith married Sidney Chopin. My Mother was an accomplished pianist and you play we well as she.
She is gone now and it is a joy to hear you play Chopin. I learned how to play starting at the age of 6, have perfect pitch, and love Classical. It is in my genes.
I would not have found your site if it wasn’t for the new IPOD I purchased today. The music brings back memories of my Mother playing the piano.

Nanette Chopin
John the Piano Beginners Beginner

Yes, you’re right - there is too much dumbing down in beginner’s music. My kids and I find that music by Czerny is apparently simple but strangley challenging at the same time. There are some good piano tuition products avaiable on the web these days and I’ve put them on a website for all to see.

snow patrol

I completely agree, nothing is beyond anyone’s reach

snow patrol
László Döbrentei

Thanx for excellent music!
döbi

Chris L

Come back! More!

Chris L
Paul

Chris L: Thanks for the encouragement!

Last year, I bought a new house, and moved myself and my piano into it. Now I’m working three different jobs … so you might guess where some of the delay comes from!

But I’m pleased to report that I’ve recently made my first recordings in the new house that are successful sound-wise, so publishable ones will follow.

Sorry to keep you waiting. Thanks for sticking with the site.

Paul
Todd

Hey Paulie…
I am waiting to listen to the E major one, as I finding SO MUCH in e minor… I have in playing in my head most of the day these past two weeks. YOur playing is right up there with Don;s…. gorgeous, gossamer. I, the spazzz-jazz man, am going to learn this….

Todd
Claudia

You have said the words I needed to read. I used to watch my cousin play at age 7 - and then sit at her piano ( I never had one) and copy everything she did. I could never afford lessons or a piano myself.

It’s my turn now. Thanks for the inspirational words.

Claudia

Claudia
Teaching yourself piano

Chopin’s prelude in E minor was the first piece by him that I learned to play on piano. It’s been a while since I heard it - brought back some memories. As Huneker wrote - “Chopin’s arrows are tipped in fire, but they don’t travel very far.” It’s as if his constitution was too weak to withstand protracted musical intensity.

Paul

Yes, there is this myth floating around, as with Huneker, there that somehow Chopin’s music should have been longer and that its brevity is somehow a sign of weakness. It’s a bunch of bullcrap.

If you can put eternity in two minutes and forty seconds, why take longer?

His lifelong illness is a factor in this mythology, no doubt, but there’s more to it. Theorists and critics have longer wrestled with the organic logic of Chopin’s forms. Witness, for example, the preposterous attempts to shoehorn the third and fourth ballades into a sonata form. This need to categorize, rationalize, and make music conform to expectations feels very threatened by music that defies its reductionism, and I think these attempts to characterize his music as weak, fragile, etc. are a defensive mechanism.

Whatever the origin, I don’t buy it. Listen to the piece: this arrow is tipped with fire, and it spans the cosmos.

Paul
Piano Lessons

I like what you say about Chopin. It seems that many professional pianists don’t take his music as seriously as they used to. This is a shame, but I suppose it is because these days many like to focus on dry technique over poetic nuance. Oh well, the pendulum always swings to and fro.

Dinesh

Hi, While searching through Google I found you.I should say it is a great piece of information.Thank You and Keep it up. Dinesh