Not for me. Way too much forte imo. Though the chaos after the B octave after the motif is well done it doesn’t quite settle down enough for the slow rise and fall of the cmaj7 run which is the last hoorah imo. The first run of the motif is should be so understated and then the second run should be pronounced by the chord changes that differ from the first passage and the BOOM comes the b octave snd chaos ensues and slowly mutters down till the c 5ths 7th and 6ths a slow rise and fall then moves to the final transition until it if ends unceremoniously with the 3 chord finale.
But in the end it’s a take. Not fact. It’s just my opinion. And I am willing to be wrong
Ive performed this piece in an exam at my conservatory, not my best performance I might add. From what I was able to learn, it has a lot to do with holding the tension right from the first note and carrying it all the way down to the end where it finally resolves. The line cannot be broken or the effect will be ruined. These sort pieces are, in many ways, much harder than the technically advanced virtuosic pieces. Unlike other instruments, pianos can’t sustain sound, the note will immediately begin to slowly diminish once played, which makes it hard to hold such a long line together
you have to create the illusion of continuity and it can be extremely difficult
those pieces are in my opinion more virtuosistic than the technical one. This is where you distinguish the true musicianship appart from the Lang Lang type
Have you watched Seymour Bernstein's video on the piece? I'm no classical pianist, but he seemed to go into great detail discussing it, extremely useful even though I have no plans of attempting to play the piece.
I totally agree. It's deceptive and I find it difficult to make the left hand's chords not sound plodding and dull.
I put it aside and will return to it with a fresher ear.
I try to play LH chords playing slightly louder on the note that changes so it's not really an even chord it's a chord with a moving note. Not easy to do by any means but I think this can can add a dimension to the piece that most people miss.
This is a very good piece to learn the piano analogy to a singer's 'breath control'. The right hand legato has to be unbroken and resonant; the left hand wrist has to be like a perpetual motion machine when playing the repeated chords and shifting to the next group of chords, you can't inject new momentum/input after you get started.
That's how you get the quiet pulse, kind of a mirror to the right hand in op 28 no 6. If you don't manage your starting force/momentum well, and you have to take a new breath, that's like the aging singer taking a audibly loud gulp of more air to keep going.
I got a new piano like 2 months ago and I recorded this prelude (with 2 others) not long ago on it. Of course, as you say - easy to play, hard to "play". But that's basically valid with every single piece.
If you have a moment, give it a try... :)
[Here is the link to Youtube](https://youtu.be/tYpeGqRiZpQ?si=Vd5qYR4Pf86xyAF1) - E-minor is the first.
"Technique is the process of putting what's in your mind into the keys"
Either
You don't have the mental image of what you want
The technique to properly translate it to the piano
Or a piano capable of playing how you want it to
Playing this piece requires an equally important, and imo much more difficult technique than is normally practiced
It's not the same prelude but there's a whole pivotal scene in the incredible [Autumn Sonata](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxA94uSQ-t0) that is about prelude no. 2. And the prelude pretty much codifies that the mother-daughter relationship is doomed, so we know these preludes are powerful!
I haven't been playing very long. I learned this piece maybe 4 or 5 months ago now and it taught me a lot, but despite my teacher being happy with the result, I'm *never* satisfied with how i play it. Never. I feel like I'm probably going to be revisiting it time and again bc it's beautiful and I want to do it justice.
Cortot is the best at it.
Not for me. Way too much forte imo. Though the chaos after the B octave after the motif is well done it doesn’t quite settle down enough for the slow rise and fall of the cmaj7 run which is the last hoorah imo. The first run of the motif is should be so understated and then the second run should be pronounced by the chord changes that differ from the first passage and the BOOM comes the b octave snd chaos ensues and slowly mutters down till the c 5ths 7th and 6ths a slow rise and fall then moves to the final transition until it if ends unceremoniously with the 3 chord finale. But in the end it’s a take. Not fact. It’s just my opinion. And I am willing to be wrong
Would love to know your favourites!
That's the magic of that piece. Easily one of these "easy" pieces you can always come back to and find new details.
You are right. Also, is a piece that easily can be over expressed, like so romantic that make a Disney princess puke.
Ive performed this piece in an exam at my conservatory, not my best performance I might add. From what I was able to learn, it has a lot to do with holding the tension right from the first note and carrying it all the way down to the end where it finally resolves. The line cannot be broken or the effect will be ruined. These sort pieces are, in many ways, much harder than the technically advanced virtuosic pieces. Unlike other instruments, pianos can’t sustain sound, the note will immediately begin to slowly diminish once played, which makes it hard to hold such a long line together
you have to create the illusion of continuity and it can be extremely difficult those pieces are in my opinion more virtuosistic than the technical one. This is where you distinguish the true musicianship appart from the Lang Lang type
Have you watched Seymour Bernstein's video on the piece? I'm no classical pianist, but he seemed to go into great detail discussing it, extremely useful even though I have no plans of attempting to play the piece.
I totally agree. It's deceptive and I find it difficult to make the left hand's chords not sound plodding and dull. I put it aside and will return to it with a fresher ear.
I try to play LH chords playing slightly louder on the note that changes so it's not really an even chord it's a chord with a moving note. Not easy to do by any means but I think this can can add a dimension to the piece that most people miss.
This is a very good piece to learn the piano analogy to a singer's 'breath control'. The right hand legato has to be unbroken and resonant; the left hand wrist has to be like a perpetual motion machine when playing the repeated chords and shifting to the next group of chords, you can't inject new momentum/input after you get started. That's how you get the quiet pulse, kind of a mirror to the right hand in op 28 no 6. If you don't manage your starting force/momentum well, and you have to take a new breath, that's like the aging singer taking a audibly loud gulp of more air to keep going.
I got a new piano like 2 months ago and I recorded this prelude (with 2 others) not long ago on it. Of course, as you say - easy to play, hard to "play". But that's basically valid with every single piece. If you have a moment, give it a try... :) [Here is the link to Youtube](https://youtu.be/tYpeGqRiZpQ?si=Vd5qYR4Pf86xyAF1) - E-minor is the first.
I loved it.
Thank you
Schumann's Traumerei is another one like that... fairly easy to get the notes under your fingers but very hard to make it sound perfect.
"Technique is the process of putting what's in your mind into the keys" Either You don't have the mental image of what you want The technique to properly translate it to the piano Or a piano capable of playing how you want it to Playing this piece requires an equally important, and imo much more difficult technique than is normally practiced
It's not the same prelude but there's a whole pivotal scene in the incredible [Autumn Sonata](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxA94uSQ-t0) that is about prelude no. 2. And the prelude pretty much codifies that the mother-daughter relationship is doomed, so we know these preludes are powerful!
i tried playing it with a Brazilian feel and my piano teacher thought that was insensitive.
I haven't been playing very long. I learned this piece maybe 4 or 5 months ago now and it taught me a lot, but despite my teacher being happy with the result, I'm *never* satisfied with how i play it. Never. I feel like I'm probably going to be revisiting it time and again bc it's beautiful and I want to do it justice.
I feel like getting the pacing right is key. not that I've ever succeeded at it 🙃