Étude Op. 25, No. 11 (Chopin)

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"Winter Wind" redirects here. For other uses, see Winter wind.
Beginning of the Étude Op. 25, No. 11

Étude Op. 25, No. 11 in

cut time.[1] The first four bars that characterize the melody were added just before publication at the advice of Charles A. Hoffmann, a friend.[2] Winter Wind is considered one of the most difficult of Chopin's 24 études.[3]

Structure

semiquaver-tuplets
that make up most of this étude
Main article: Études (Chopin)

The étude is a study for developing stamina, dexterity, accuracy and technique – essential skills for any concert pianist. It begins with a

relative major, C major, which shortly segues into a repetition of the first theme. It finishes with a short development into a fortissimo coda
, and ends with one final statement of the theme.

Technique

Étude Op. 25, No. 11
Martha Goldstein (playing on an 1851 Érard)
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Étude Op. 25, No. 11, is a study of right hand dexterity and left hand flexibility. Each hand has intense challenges, ranging from brilliant runs and multi-octave leaps to tricky articulations which must be phrased correctly so the melody becomes audible.[4] Both hands play an important role throughout the piece; the melody is sung through the heavy left hand, and the right hand contributes the étude's namesake with rapid scales and arpeggios. This study must be navigated with polyphonic mindset, treating both hands as separate melodies that work together, in a duet for one performer.

One dissertation stresses the importance of implied melodic structure throughout the right-hand figures. Meaning, the following passage (measure 10, 11):

Should be played thus:

accentuating those notes indicated by additional quaver (eighth note) tails. This serves to emphasize the underlying quartal rhythm to further accentuate the march-like theme of the left-hand.

chromatic scales. Abby Whiteside agreed with this subdivision, calling them "tonal patterns which have to be solved before this Etude is playable."[5] Citing her usual procedures of promoting arm strength, she emphasized two key points exemplified by this étude: "notewise procedure does not further bravura playing" and "finger technique is simply not adequate for brilliance and speed." Her dissertation states that this work is impossible without the aforementioned subdivision, and simultaneously advocates her arm technique.[5]

Legacy

The American music writer and critic

Schirmer edition of Chopin's études, famously asserted of this étude, "Small-souled men, no matter how agile their fingers, should avoid it."[6][7]

Notes

  1. Palmer, Willard A.
    : Chopin Etudes for the Piano, page 116. Alfred Publishing Co., Inc., 1992
  2. ^ a b Walker, Alan: The Chopin Companion, p. 136. Norton and Co., 1966
  3. ^ "Chopin – Etüden (Urtext)". G. Henle Verlag. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  4. ^ "Your Guide to Chopin's Études". WFMT. 2020-02-28. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
  5. ^
    ISBN 978-0-684-10654-0
    .
  6. ISBN 978-0-465-03078-1
    .
  7. ^ Chopin : the Man and His Music by James Huneker

External links
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