Taught by renowned pianist
Rebecca Penneys
Join noted American pianist Rebecca Penneys for a lesson on one of Chopin’s most bewitching pieces: his Berceuse in D-flat Major, Op. 57. Her insights into technique, physicality, and positioning give you the tools you need to master this work’s gentle but etude-like style.<br><br>In her walkthrough of the piece, Penneys draws attention to the work’s genre (lullaby, or cradle song), the role of the brief “vamp” that opens the piece, rich blending of harmonies in long pedals, as well as the unfolding variations of the Berceuse and their relation with many concepts Chopin explores more thoroughly in his 24 Etudes, Op. 10 and 25. She plays many examples from the etudes that are related to passages in the Berceuse, demonstrating the specific physical approaches required to play them fluently: not sitting too close, high wrist, rotation, pivot fingers, weight on the outer side of the hand, energy impulses, physical mapping, finger-pedaling, and more. This nuanced physical vocabulary will help you play the Berceuse with elegance and suppleness.<br><br>Penneys closes with her reflections on hands-separate and very slow practice.
Berceuse in D-flat Major Op. 57
Join noted American pianist Rebecca Penneys for a lesson on one of Chopin’s most bewitching pieces: his Berceuse in D-flat Major, Op. 57. Her insights into technique, physicality, and positioning give you the tools you need to master this work’s gentle but etude-like style.
In her walkthrough of the piece, Penneys draws attention to the work’s genre (lullaby, or cradle song), the role of the brief “vamp” that opens the piece, rich blending of harmonies in long pedals, as well as the unfolding variations of the Berceuse and their relation with many concepts Chopin explores more thoroughly in his 24 Etudes, Op. 10 and 25. She plays many examples from the etudes that are related to passages in the Berceuse, demonstrating the specific physical approaches required to play them fluently: not sitting too close, high wrist, rotation, pivot fingers, weight on the outer side of the hand, energy impulses, physical mapping, finger-pedaling, and more. This nuanced physical vocabulary will help you play the Berceuse with elegance and suppleness.
Penneys closes with her reflections on hands-separate and very slow practice.
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Unlock Course →Professor Emeritus at the Eastman School of Music, Rebecca Penneys is a recitalist, chamber musician, orchestral soloist, educator, and adjudicator, known for her unique pianistic vision.
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