Taught by renowned pianist
Ben Laude
Join tonebase Head of Piano Ben Laude for a deep dive into one of Chopin's most distinctive waltzes. The piece exploits the tension between C-sharp minor and D-flat major, a speciality of Chopin's, and Laude traces the harmonic activity from start to finish to help ground your practicing in analytic understanding. The waltz has a main "dark" theme and a complementary "light" theme, with a recurring ritornello of running 16th notes in between. Laude breaks down the practical mechanics required to deliver a fluid performance and demonstrates a number of expressive possibilities you can explore when fashioning your own unique interpretation.
Introduction: A Popular Waltz in a Haunting Key
In this introduction, Ben Laude surveys the popular reception of Chopin's Waltz Op. 64 No. 2 and considers the tension and attraction between D-flat major and C-sharp minor, an enharmonic relation the fascinated the composer.
A Section: Style, Analysis, and Technique
The main "dark" theme of Chopin's C-sharp minor Waltz beings with a pickup that leaps up a 6th, not unlike several other famous works of Chopin. The harmonies appear complex, but when simplified to a key with fewer accidentals you can see that they are conventional. Paying attention to questions of touch, fingering, phrasing, and pedaling, Ben Laude thoroughly prepares you to deliver this signature theme with confidence and style.
B Section: Spinning Eighth Notes
Perhaps the most recognizable part of the piece, the spinning 16th-note passage that appears three times fit the hand like a glove once you understand the basic mechanics of forearm rotation. The bigger challenge will ultimately be interpretive, as Laude shows that the frequent repetition of the material calls for very definite expressive decisions.
C Section and Return: Lyricism and Interpretation
At the heart of the work, the sunshine emerges from the the darkness of C-sharp minor, as the third is raised from E to F and the tonic transforms into D-flat. This "light" theme also begins with a pick up, this time reaching up an octave before descending and reaching up again, then again, over yearning chromaticism in the accompaniment. Laude shows how voicing is the key to creating a singing line, before the piece winds its way back to the spinning 16ths and prepares its final return to the first theme.
Full Performance
Ben Laude performs Chopin's C-sharp minor Waltz, Op. 64 No. 2.
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Unlock Course →Head of Piano at tonebase, Ben Laude is a concert pianist and music educator whose playing has been praised by the New York Times as “superb in pace, tone, and eloquence.”
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