Chopin: Prelude No.15 In D Flat

Question 1

virtuosic

Answer 1

very technically difficult music

Question 2

virtuoso performer

Answer 2

highly skilled singer or instrumentalist, capable of performing technically difficult music

Question 3

sustaining pedal

Answer 3

the right hand pedal on the piano which when pressed causes the note to still sound even after the keys have been released

Question 4

soft pedal

Answer 4

the left pedal on the piano that when pressed softens the tone of the music

Question 5

romantic era

Answer 5

artistic era in music circa 1800-1900 in which composers were more concerned with feelings and emotions than form (e.g. composers Beethoven, Brahms, Chopin)

Question 6

chromatic

Answer 6

music in which notes are used that are not in the key of the piece

Question 7

tempo rubato

Answer 7

literally means ‘robbed time’. This is a technique where the player can pull back or speed up the tempo for a special effect or for expressive purposes.

Question 8

enharmonic

Answer 8

different ways of ‘spelling’ the same pitch. For example B flat and A sharp

Question 9

tonic minor

Answer 9

a minor key form of the tonic

Question 10

tune and accompaniment

Answer 10

texture with a clear melodic line and a clear accompaniment

Question 11

pedal point

Answer 11

sustained or continually repeated pitch heard against changing harmonies

Question 12

coda

Answer 12

the final section of a piece; bringing the piece to a close

Question 13

sotto voce

Answer 13

half voice/whisper

Question 14

smorzando

Answer 14

dying away

Question 15

slentando

Answer 15

gradually decreasing the tempo

Question 16

key features of the Romantic era

Answer 16

1. music is more expressive and emotional than in earlier periods
2. rich and chromatic harmonies are used with a greater use of dissonance, and modulations to more remote keys
3. technical advances in instruments are exploited, which in part leads to larger orchestras and the rise of the virtuoso
4. structures and form become longer
5. pieces are often given descriptive titles, and programme music becomes more common

Question 17

important composers of the Romantic era

Answer 17

Liszt, Mandelssohn, Schumann & Chopin

Question 18

structure - ternary form (A)

Answer 18

D♭ major - a lyrical melody accompanied by quavers in the bass. This section also has its own ABA structure.

Question 19

structure - section B

Answer 19

C♯ minor - In contrast to the first section, the melody, which is new, is now in the bass and the quavers are heard above it. The music has moved from major to minor and builds up to a couple of ‘ff’ climaxes.

Question 20

structure - section A’

Answer 20

D♭ major - a return to the opening melody. This repeat of section A is shorter and finishes with a brief coda.

Question 21

rhythm

Answer 21

1. septuplet in bars 4 and 23: seven notes of equal length are played in a single crotchet
2. in bar 79 there is a dectuplet: ten notes of equal length fit into a single beat
3. repeated quavers are a unifying rhythmic feature throughout the piece
4. the melody begins with a dotted rhythm. This is repeated a number of times in Section A, helping to give it a lighter feel than the melody of Section B.

Question 22

metre

Answer 22

the time signature is C is the same 4/4 time - four crotches beats per bar

Question 23

tempo

Answer 23

1. ‘Sostenuto’ is written at the start of the score. This means sustained - the piece should be played in a legato, unhurried manner
2. Rubato is used in the recorded performance. The pianist plays some notes longer than written and others shorter than written, creating a flexible tempo for expressive effect

Question 24

melody

Answer 24

1. the prelude begins with a lyrical melody in the right hand. It is decorated with ornaments, such as an acciaccatura (in bar 4) and in turn (in bar 11). The melody features some chromaticism and dotted rhythms.
2. in section B the melody moves to the bass. It has a narrower range and is mostly made up of lower notes (crotchets and minims).
3. the prelude is mostly made up of four and eight bar phrases.

Question 25

tonality and harmony

Answer 25

1. the prelude is in D♭ major. It uses mainly diatonic harmony with occasional chromaticism.
2. the piece modulates from the tonic major (D♭ major) in section A to the enharmonic tonic minor (C♯ minor) in section B. It returns to D♭ major for the repeat of section A.
3. section A and B both end with imperfect cadences. The prelude ends with a perfect cadence.
4. there is a dominant pedal that can be heard throughout most of the piece (the repeated A♭s in section A and the repeated G♯s in section B)

Question 26

texture

Answer 26

Apart from two bars at the end, the texture is homophonic.

1. section A: melody in the right hand, supported by broken chords in the left hand
2. section B: melody in the left hand with repeated quavers( the dominant pedal) in the right hand. The pedal is inverted (in the top part rather than the bass) for much of this section, and it is doubled in octaves each time the music builds to a climax. The texture is more chordal than in section A.
3. section A’: back to the opening texture. There is a short monophonic passage in the coda.

Question 27

dynamics

Answer 27

1. lots of cresc. and dim.
2. wide range of dynamics (pp - ff) but no sudden contrasts
3. section A is quieter than section B which climaxes to ff twice

Question 28

use of the piano

Answer 28

1. most of the prelude uses the middle and lower ranges of the piano.
2. not virtuosic - instead focuses on producing a legato, singing tone.
3. exploits the piano’s wide dynamic range, with much use of cresc. and dim.
4. sustained pedal is used for resonance to help create legato melodies.