Frederic Chopin – Prelude in A Minor, Op. 28, No. 2.mp3
Frederic Chopin, born in Poland on March 1, 1810, is known as Poland’s greatest composer in addition to being a virtuoso pianist. It is quite possible that of all Chopin’s compositional work, including his 24 Preludes for piano, may be the most reflective of both his artistic and instrumentalist style.
Chopin grew up just as the Classical era was developing into Romantic music and, not to any surprise, studied the theories of Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven, who has been held accountable for the birth of Romanticism in music. Despite its conception as the epitome of Romanticism, Chopin’s music has a certain timeless quality as Chopin exercised a Romantic style with heavy chromaticism employed over a Classical base. Also, Chopin’s music is known for often employing the use of rubato, an expressive method of playing that uses accelerandos and decelerandos to the performer’s preference, which enhance the poetic flow of the piece. This stylistic and Romantic feature was made concrete through Chopin’s performances of his own work and is very seldom played without rubato. However, the ability to vary the tempo based on the performer’s interpretation has caused debate over how rubato should be used with respect to Chopin’s original intentions.
Although the 24 preludes are often performed as one single work, they are 24 separate short pieces that Chopin composed between 1835 and 1839, and are not the only preludes that he composed, as there are three additional preludes. These preludes are often a short introduction to a larger piece. However, in the case of Chopin’s 24 Preludes, each is to be played as a stand-alone piece. There are no formal requirements set by the definition of a prelude, but they tend to feature short motifs that appear variedly and develop throughout the piece. This is definitely the case with Chopin.
In “Prelude No. 2 in A minor,” several types of analysis can be performed. Because we are dealing with a prelude, it would be most helpful to divide the piece into separate motifs. The first entrance in the right hand of measures 3 and 4 contains the motif that we will identify as ‘a’. As the piece begins on the dominant (E Major) of A minor, the motif begins on the root of the chord then down a whole step in the next measure by means of an appoggiatura to D. In measures 5-7, this motif is answered with a second motif after G is tonicized on the dominant D, which we will identify as motif ‘b’. In this piece, the most important aspects of these motifs are their rhythmic qualities and direction. This is because, as the piece develops, the motifs are reproduced at different intervals although the shape and rhythmic distinctions remain the same. For instance, in measures 15 and 16, the ‘a’ occurs again but the appoggiatura consists of a fourth then minor second rather than the original; a fourth then a minor third. For this difference we will refer to this ‘a’ as an ‘a’.’ As you hear by listening to the contour of each line, each ‘a’ and ‘b’ together make up a larger period. We will call measures 3-7 ‘A,’ measures 8-14 will be ‘B,’ and measures 15-23 will be our ‘A’.’ All together, the form is ABA’ with a two bar introduction and is therefore ternary.
The second type of analysis employed is a harmonic analysis. We have already established that the entrance is on the dominant of A minor; E Major. From there, the left hand gets harmonically complex to the point that we can expect to have many non-harmonic tones. In the 4th measure, G is tonicized. This is significant because just as the first motif entered on the root of the dominant in A minor, the second motif enters on the dominant of the newly tonicized G Major key. This type of consistency that occurs elsewhere in the piece is where Chopin’s genius is most notable in organization and form. In most cases, in the left hand part, the chords on each beat represent the chord tones while the upbeats introduce chromaticism and tension. However, in some cases, chord tones are filled in on these upbeats in the left hand, much like in measure 8 with the D of the B minor triad landing on the upbeats. This is the way in which Chopin breaks away from the diatonic system: by cluttering the chordal material with leading tones resolving back at each beat and creating a feeling of constant dominant-tonic relationship in each beat but with a darker attitude as it is not a direct V-I relationship. The overall form from key to key is A minor (despite only using the dominant E Major) in measures 1-3, G Major in 4-14, and A Major from 15-23 but the cadence falls on A minor, suggesting a resolution to the dominant in the first A minor section.
With a composer as organized and brilliant as Chopin, we are bound to discover something by looking at the overall contour of the piece and the golden mean analysis of the piece. By first looking in the right hand, it is useful to find where the highest notes lie. In measure 10, there is a grace note at C#4 which is the highest note in the piece. This tells us that there is some type of verifiable climax at this moment and it is definitely apparent as the ‘b’ motive is last played in the ‘B’ period before returning to A Major and the final ‘A’ period. By performing the golden mean analysis, measure 14 is considered another climax. However, in such a short piece like this, it can be assumed the golden mean analysis provides only the general location of such a climax and that both the golden mean analysis and highest note in the piece both point to this section that is a return to the final ‘A’ section.
Looking back on this piece in the context of the mid 19th century, it is clear that Chopin has taken many liberties that separate it from the preceding theories of the Classical period. It is also apparent that this type of sonic revolution greatly contributed to the Impressionist period that supercedes Romanticism, with composers such as Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel breaking further away from the standard dominant V-I relationship. However, Chopin was not alone in promoting this new style as a large number of piano composers emerged around the same time as Chopin and are often compared to him, such Franz Liszt and Felix Mendelssohn.
By using “Prelude No. 2 in A minor” as a representation of Chopin as a composer, I would say that Chopin was, in some ways, a microcosmic composer. His melodies tend to be relatively simple, but rather than expanding them and making them complex, Chopin chooses to zone in on the simple, and expand from within by exploring harmonic possibilities underneath. Chopin, much like many of the great early composers, spent much of his time improvising music as an accompanist for the church. It is known that, much like Bach, Chopin’s improvisations were the source of inspiration for much of his compositional work. With that being the case, it is not only amazing, but pure genius that Chopin was able to portray such formal organization, thought, and technical complexity within each of his works.
Works Cited:
Burkholder, Peter J., and Barbara Russano Hanning. Concise History of Western Music Study and Listening Guide. New York: W W Norton & Co Inc (Np), 2007.
"Chopin Music: Biography." Chopin Music: Biography. 9 Dec. 2008
Chopin - Preludes for the Piano, Vol. 34. New York, NY.: G. Schirmer, Inc., 1986.
